George D. Herron
George D. Herron | |
---|---|
Appointed United States Delegue to the Conference on the Princes' Islands[1] | |
In office February 1919 – February 1919 | |
Personal details | |
Born | George Davis Herron January 21, 1862 Montezuma, Indiana, United States |
Died | November 9, 1925 Munich, Germany | (aged 63)
Political party | Socialist Labor Party of America Social Democratic Party of America Socialist Party of America |
Spouse(s) | Mary V. Everhard (1883–1901) Carrie Rand Herron (1901–1914) Frieda Bertha Schöberle (1915–1925)[2] |
Children | 5 |
George D. Herron (January 21, 1862 – November 9, 1925) was an American clergyman, lecturer, writer and
Herron is best remembered as a leading exponent of the so-called Social Gospel movement and for his highly publicized divorce and remarriage to the daughter of a wealthy benefactor which scandalized polite society of the day. A self-imposed exile followed.
During
Biography
Early years
Herron was born George Davis Herron on January 21, 1862, in Montezuma, Indiana, the son of poor parents, Isabella Davis and William Herron. Herron referred to his father as "a humble man who believed in the Bible and hated unrighteousness", with Christian ancestors dating back to the days of the Scottish Reformation.[3] His mother, similarly dedicated to Christianity, Herron characterized as "an invalid."[4] Herron's father was identified as the decisive intellectual force of his boyhood, with Herron noting his role in teaching him to read as well as being the one who "selected my books and directed my thoughts."[4]
After serving for a time as an
In 1883, Herron married Mary Everhard. The couple had at least four children together, including Newman Everhard Herron (1883-1884), Margaret Vennette Herron (1885-1973), William Everhard Herron (1888 - 1958) and Miriam Coyle Herron (1895 - 1983). George D. Herron also had children with later wives including Elbridge Rand Herron (1902–1935), and George Davis Herron (1909–1986) with Carrie Rand, and Jarvis W. W. Herron (1918–1973) with Frieda Bertha Schoberle.
Theological career
Herron became a
Herron became interested in the
Bluntly, Herron told his audience that the existing social and religious order was wrong because it placed a premium on competition, self-interest, and material power. Such a civilization failed to secure morality and justice, since it put the weak at the mercy of the strong and at the same time minimized the paramount Christian principles of stewardship and sacrifice. The day was coming, said Herron, in which a truly Christian social order would exist on earth, the fulfillment in the here and now of God's Kingdom of Heaven. In such a society the ordering of things would be in accordance with His divine sanction.[9]
Herron's sermon was published in
One of those impressed with the vision and energy of the young preacher was a wealthy parishioner, Elizabeth D. Rand. Rand decided to put Herron into a position where he could reach more people with his ideas by endowing a new chair in Applied Christianity at Iowa College (now Grinnell) on Herron's behalf.[6] Beginning in 1893 and for the next six years, Herron taught on campus, gaining national renown given the novelty of the subject matter.[6] Also making the move to Grinnell was the daughter of his benefactor, Carrie Rand, who was appointed Dean of Women at Grinnell.[13] This brought the married Mr. Herron and the young Miss Rand into regular contact, ultimately resulting in a love affair which estranged Herron from his wife and family. Combined with his outspoken political views, this provided fodder for Herron's opponents, who forced him to resign his teaching position at the Congregationalist college in 1899.[6]
Herron eventually moved out of his home with Mary Everhard, who divorced him on grounds of desertion in 1901.
Political activities
From 1892 until 1899, Herron was a quiet supporter of the
Herron was an outspoken advocate of unity between the dissident faction of the
In 1905, his benefactor Rand died, leaving a will, which allotted $200,000 to "carry on and further the work to which I have devoted the later years of my life." Herron and Carrie Rand Herron were named the trustees of this fund, which was used to establish a library and school for socialist education, the Rand School of Social Science.[6] This institution carried on for the next half century, eventually donating its library to New York University at the time of its dissolution, where it formed the initial core of today's Tamiment Library and Robert F. Wagner Archives.
Emigration
When Carrie Rand Herron died in 1914, she left Herron with two young sons to care for. He subsequently married a third time.[18]
The summer of 1914 saw the shattering of the fragile European peace with coming of
Historian Mitchell Pirie Briggs neatly summarized Herron's position thusly:
And so it came about that Professor Herron,
Socialist, and internationalist, became ardently pro-Ally at the beginning of the war and remained pro-Ally to the end. His faith never left him. Knowing as he did the iniquities of the Entente Powers, the secret treaties and understandings, the jockeying and trading for economic and political advantages even during the progress of the war, and the frightful anachronism of the Russian autocracy, he could still believe that the only hope for a change world lay in the overthrow of the German system. The evils in the polity and social organization of England, France, and Italy were bad enough, but they were eradicable; the evils in Prussianism were basic, innate, ineradicable. It was inevitable, therefore, that he should have desired the entry of the United States into the struggle.[21]
With the outbreak of hostilities, Herron moved from Italy to
Unsurprisingly, Herron was bitterly opposed to the decision of the Socialist Party of America to continue its militant opposition to the conflict at its 1917 Emergency National Convention held in
It was Herron's function to pass to his superiors details of his conversations and correspondence with various German contacts and acquaintances, many of whom were academics. These reports often took the form of appeals by his German associates for some particular action by President Wilson and his administration.
In response to the onerous and punitive terms imposed upon defeated Germany, Herron published a book in 1921 entitled The Defeat in the Victory. For Herron, Woodrow Wilson's war to "Make the World Safe for Democracy" had ended up as "The Great Disappointment."[33] In 1918, Herron conveyed to Wilson the invitation of Marc-Ernest Peter (1873–1966)the President of the Grand Conseil de la République et canton de Genève to locate the League of Nations in Geneva. Herron commended Geneva's traditions of religious liberty and political democracy and its contributions, especially from John Calvin.[34]
In 1919, Herron moved back from his villa Le Retour on Lake Geneva to his villa La Primola in Fiesole. On August 16, 1922, he published in London, George Allen & Unwin Ltd. Ruskin House, 40 Museum Street, W. C. I, the book: Revival of Italy in which he praised the social reforms of the fascist regime of Benito Mussolini.[35]
Death and legacy
Herron died on October 9, 1925. He was 63 years old at the time of his death.
Herron's papers are housed at several institutions. The bulk of Herron's papers are located at the
Other significant Herron correspondence may be found in the
Works
Books and pamphlets
- The Message of Jesus to Men of Wealth. New York: Fleming H. Revell, 1891.
- The Larger Christ. Chicago : Fleming H. Revell Co., 1891.
- The Call of the Cross: Four College Sermons. Chicago : Fleming H. Revell Co., 1892.
- A Plea for the Gospel. Boston: Thomas Y. Crowell, 1892.
- The New Redemption: A Call to the Church to Reconstruct Society According to the Gospel of Christ. Boston: Thomas Y. Crowell, 1893.
- The Christian State: A Political Vision of Christ: A Course of Six Lectures Delivered in Churches in Various American Cities. Boston: Thomas Y. Crowell, 1895.
- Social Meanings of Religious Experiences: A Course of Lecture-Sermons. Boston: Thomas Y. Crowell, 1896.
- Between Caesar and Jesus. Boston: Thomas Y. Crowell, 1899.
- A Confession of Social Faith: An Address Before the Chicago Single Tax Club, at Willard Hall, Friday Evening, March 17, Stenographically Reported. Chicago: Chicago Single-Tax Club, 1899.
- American Imperialism: An Address Delivered April 12, 1899. Chicago: Social Forum, 1899.
- The Social System and the Christian Conscience. Liverpool: Liverpool Fabian Society, 1900.
- Why I Am a Socialist: Address at a Mass Meeting of the Social Democratic Party at Central Music Hall, Chicago, Sept. 29, 1900. Chicago: Charles H. Kerr & Co., 1900.
- The Day of Judgment. Chicago: Charles H. Kerr & Co., 1904.
- From Revolution to Revolution: An Address in Memory of the Paris Commune of 1871. Chicago: Charles H. Kerr & Co., 1907.
- William Mailly as a Socialist Type. New York: n.p., 1912.
- The Menace of Peace. New York: M. Kennerley, 1917.
- Woodrow Wilson and the World's Peace. New York: M. Kennerley, 1917.
- Germanism and the American Crusade. New York: M. Kennerley, 1918.
- The Greater War. New York: M. Kennerley, 1919.
- The Defeat in the Victory. London: C. Palmer, 1921.
- The Revival of Italy. London: George Allen & Unwin, 1922.
Articles
- "Class Consciousness," The Socialist (Seattle), whole no. 156 (August 2, 1903), pg. 1.
- "The Peace of Paris and the Youth of Europe," The World Tomorrow (New York), vol. 3, no. 2 (Feb. 1920), pp. 35-44.
See also
References
- ^ Several days later President Wilson named George D. Herron and William Allen White as the American members of the Prinkipo commission. compare von John M. Thompson, Russia, Bolshevism, and the Versailles Peace, p. 110[1]
- ^ Edited by George Thomas Kurian, Mark A. Lamport, Encyclopedia of Christianity in the United States, p. 1083.
- ^ Charles Beardsley, "Professor Herron," The Arena, vol. 15, whole no. 77 (April 1896), pg. 785.
- ^ a b Beardsley, "Professor Herron," pg. 786.
- ^ Howard H. Quint, The Forging of American Socialism: Origins of the Modern Movement: The Impact of Socialism on American Thought and Action, 1886-1901. Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina Press, 1953; pg. 127.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Francis X. Gannon, A Biographical Dictionary of the Left: Volume 4. Boston: Western Islands, 1973; pp. 400-404.
- ^ a b c d Beardsley, "Professor Herron," pg. 789.
- ^ Howard Quint, The Forging of American Socialism, pg. 128.
- ^ Quint, The Forging of American Socialism, pp. 128-129. Herron's full sermon appears in The Christian Society (1894), pp. 99-122.
- ^ Beardsley, "Professor Herron," pg. 784.
- ^ Howard Quint, The Forging of American Socialism, pg. 126.
- ^ Howard Quint, The Forging of American Socialism, pp. 126-127.
- ^ Quint, The Forging of American Socialism, pg. 130.
- ^ a b Quint, The Forging of American Socialism, pg. 140.
- ^ Mitchell P. Briggs, George D. Herron and the European Settlement. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 1932; pg. 11.
- ^ a b Quint, The Forging of American Socialism, pg. 134.
- ^ a b Eldon J. Eisenach, The Social and Political Thought of American Progressivism. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Co., 2006; pg. 182.
- ^ Briggs, George D. Herron and the European Settlement, pg. 12.
- ^ Briggs, George D. Herron and the European Settlement, pg. 13.
- ^ Briggs, George D. Herron and the European Settlement, pp. 13-15 passim.
- ^ Briggs, George D. Herron and the European Settlement, pg. 15.
- ^ "Le Retour", 26 chemin des Cottages (act. avenue Eugène-Pittard).
- ^ Briggs, George D. Herron and the European Settlement, pg. 28, citing the Herron Papers at Stanford, vol. 1, pg. 15, "Preparatory Remarks."
- ^ See: Briggs, George D. Herron and the European Settlement, pp. 17-19.
- ^ Briggs, George D. Herron and the European Settlement, pg. 19.
- ^ Keserich, Charles (1976). "George D. Herron, « Il nostro americano »". Il Politico. 41 (2): 315–332.
- ^ a b Briggs, George D. Herron and the European Settlement, pg. 29.
- ^ Briggs, George D. Herron and the European Settlement, pg. 31.
- ^ Briggs, George D. Herron and the European Settlement, pp. 32-33.
- ^ Briggs, George D. Herron and the European Settlement, pp. 62-63.
- ^ Briggs, George D. Herron and the European Settlement, pg. 71.
- ^ The article first appeared in New Europe on July 17, 1919, reprinted in The New York Times on August 3. Cited in Briggs, George D. Herron and the European Settlement, pg. 163.
- ^ George D. Herron, Dedication to The Defeat in the Victory. London: Cecil Palmer, 1921; pg. vii.
- ^ Lloyd E. Ambrosius, Woodrow Wilson and the American Diplomatic Tradition: The Treaty Fight in Perspective, [2][3]
- ^ Revival of Italy
- ^ George Davis Herron papers, 1916-1927[permanent dead link], Stanford University Library.
Further reading
- Babík, Milan, "George D. Herron and the Eschatological Foundations of Woodrow Wilson's Foreign Policy, 1917–1919," Diplomatic History 35 (Nov. 2011), 837–57.
- Charles Beardsley, "Professor Herron: A Character Sketch," The Arena, vol. 15, whole no. 77 (April 1896), pp. 784–796.
- Mitchell P. Briggs, George D. Herron and the European Settlement. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 1932.
- Robert M. Crunden, Ministers of Reform: The Progressives' Achievement in American Civilization, 1889-1920. New York: Basic Books, 1982.
- Susan Curtis, A Consuming Faith: The Social Gospel and Modern American Culture. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1991.
- Peter J. Frederick, Knights of the Golden Rule: The Intellectual As Christian Social Reformer in the 1890s. Lexington, KY: University Press Of Kentucky, 1976.
- David Goldstein, Socialism: The Nation of Fatherless Children. Boston: Union News League, 1903. See especially the chapter "Two Socialist Leaders."
- Jacob Henry Dorn, Socialism and Christianity in Early 20th Century America. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1998.
- Peter Grose. Gentleman Spy, The Life of Allen Dulles. Boston, 1995.
- Robert T. Handy, George D. Herron and the Social Gospel in American Protestantism, 1890-1901. Dissertation, University of Chicago Divinity School, 1949.
- Adeline Knapp, et al., "Prof. George D. Herron: The Man and His Work in California: A Symposium," The Arena, vol. 14, whole no. 70 (Sept. 1895), pp. 110–128.
External links
- Finding Aid for George Davis Herron Papers, Grinnell College, Grinnell, Iowa.
- Guide to the George D. Herron Papers, Elmer Holmes Bobst Library, New York University, New York City.