John Y. Simon | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1933-06-25)June 25, 1933 |
| Died | July 8, 2008(2008-07-08) (aged 75) |
| Academic work | |
| Main interests | American Civil War, Ulysses S. Grant and the Grant family, Abraham Lincoln, documentary editing, Illinois History |
| Notable works | The Papers of Ulysses S. Grant, 31 volumes of selected correspondence |
John Younker Simon (June 25, 1933 – July 8, 2008)[1] was anAmerican Civil War scholar known for thedocumentary editing of the papers ofUlysses S. Grant.
Born inHighland Park, Illinois, to Jane Younker and Jay Simon, he was on the history faculty ofSouthern Illinois University Carbondale, for 44 years. Simon had MA and PhD history degrees fromHarvard University. As a founding member of the Ulysses S. Grant Association, he began compiling Grant's papers while still a Ph.D. student and continued to accumulate and compile papers throughout his tenure at Carbondale.[2] He received theLincoln Prize Special Achievement Award in 2004 from theCivil War Institute at Gettysburg College for his then-24, later 31 volume Grant series.[3] The same year, he also received The Lincoln Forum'sRichard Nelson Current Award of Achievement.[4]
In January 2008, Southern Illinois University Carbondale officials locked him out of his office and barred him from campus over a complaint of verbal sexual harassment, which the university later determined to be baseless.[5] He was not permitted to see the details of the complaint.[6] In May 2008, the Ulysses S. Grant Association voted to disassociate itself from Southern Illinois University over the poor handling of Simon's case.[7] He was preparing to teach atSouthern Illinois University Edwardsville when he died on July 8, 2008, at the age of 75.[8] Southern Illinois University Carbondale was preparing to officially clear his name and reinstate him at the time of his death.[6][5] His successor at the Ulysses S. Grant Association wasJohn F. Marszalek, who won a lawsuit against the university to retain control of Grant's files and moved them toMississippi State University.[9]
"(He is) one of the finest people I've ever met." --Geoffrey Perret, author ofUlysses S. Grant: Soldier & President
