The melody for this song originally appeared in a song of the same title but about the assassination of William McKinley. This version, which is about the defeat of Hoover by FDR in 1932, uses some similar lines with Hoover and Roosevelt, substituted for McKinley and Roosevelt. This version comes from Bluegrass picker Bob Baker of Kentucky who said he learned it from his parents.

During the Depression years many people found Hoover to be personally responsible for the economic problems. It took many years for historians to view him objectively. This recording was made by The New Lost City Ramblers.