Herron, George Davis *1862-1925

HERRON, RAND

Posted By: Marilyn Holmes
Date: 6/21/2013 at 16:53:57

The Grinnell (IA) Herald

GEORGE D. HERRON
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Former Grinnell Storm Center
Passes Away In Foreign Land
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Word was received yesterday by cablegram noting the death of George D. Herron at Munich, Germany. It doesn't take a very long time resident of Grinnell to remember when George D. Herron was the storm center of Grinnell college and of Iowa. Coming here in 1893 on the so called "Chair of Applied Christianity," endowed by Mrs. E.D. Rand, his views on socialism and on the institution of marriage were so extreme and radical that he soon become the center of a storm which did incalculable injury to the college. These extreme views were noted in his continued attentions to Carrie Rand, daughter of the founder of the chair and the gossip which it created. Their intimacy became so strong that in 1901, for the price of $60,000.00 in hand paid to Mrs. George D. Herron by Carrie Rand, a divorce was granted at Algona in violation of the laws of Iowa after only five days residence in that town. The attorneys engineering the case were Clarence Darrow of Chicago, whose life seems to have been given to teaching the people how to evade law, and Judge Cook of Cedar Rapids. Just what price was paid these attorneys has never been developed, but the divorce was granted and soon after, a common law marriage was pronounced in New Jersey whereby he became united to Carrie Rand and started the Rand School of Socialism.

The dispatch sent out from Burlington, Iowa, after the cablegram was received speaks of him as follows:

"Dr. George D. Herron, was a former Congregational minister, who married Miss Carrie Rand, prominent Burlington woman, after divorcing his wife for that purpose by mutual agreement. Dr. Herron became converted to socialism and established the Rand School of Applied Socialism in New York City.

Miss Rand, Herron's second wife, died several years ago. She was the mother of two children. Her husband again married and there are two children by the third marriage. Herron was pastor of the Congregational church here early in the 90's. It was here he met Miss Rand and her mother."
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*1862-1925, dates from: Herron, George Davis - The Biographical Dictionary of Iowa - The University of Iowa