Francis J. Herron

Francis Jay Herron (February 17, 1837 – January 8, 1902), was a Union general during the American Civil War. Francis J. Herron attended the Western University of Pennsylvania, but left at the age of sixteen without completing his degree to become a bank clerk. In 1855, he joined his three brothers in Dubuque, Iowa, where they established a bank. In 1859, he organized and was elected captain of a militia company known as the "Governor's Grays," wh... more

Francis Jay Herron (February 17, 1837 – January 8, 1902), was a Union general during the American Civil War. Francis J. Herron attended the Western University of Pennsylvania, but left at the age of sixteen without completing his degree to become a bank clerk. In 1855, he joined his three brothers in Dubuque, Iowa, where they established a bank. In 1859, he organized and was elected captain of a militia company known as the "Governor's Grays," which Herron offered to President-elect Abraham Lincoln in January 1861, two months prior to Lincoln's inauguration. In April 1861, Herron was appointed captain of the 1st Iowa Volunteer Regiment. He served with Nathaniel Lyon's forces in Missouri, participating in the battles of Boonville and Wilson's Creek. Herron was promoted to lieutenant colonel of the 9th Iowa Volunteer Regiment and fought in the battle of Pea Ridge, where he was wounded and taken prisoner, but exchanged shortly afterwards. He received a promotion to brigadier general of... less