1. George Henry Dern was a German American politician, mining man, and businessman.
23 Facts About George Dern
1. 2.
George Dern served as the sixth governor of Utah for eight years, from 1925 to 1933.
3.
George Dern was the grandfather of actor Bruce Dern and great-grandfather of actress Laura Dern.
4.
George Henry Dern was born in Scribner, Nebraska, on September 8,1872.
5.
George Dern was the son of Johannes Dern, a pioneering Nebraska farmer, mine operator, and industrialist, and wife Elizabeth Margarita, whose maiden name was Dern.
6.
George Dern graduated from Nebraska's Fremont Normal College of Midland University in 1888 and from 1893 to 1894 attended the University of Nebraska.
7.
George Dern was a talented athlete, serving as the University's football captain during that time.
8.
George Dern was co-inventor of the Holt-George Dern roaster, a furnace for carrying out the Holt-Christenson roasting process, a technique for recovering silver and gold from low-grade ores.
9.
George Dern entered politics in 1914, running on a Democratic and Progressive fusion ticket in a Utah State Senate district encompassing Salt Lake County.
10.
George Dern was elected in 1914, serving until 1923 in the state senate, where he was twice selected as the Democratic floor leader.
11.
However, George Dern led a swing to Democratic control of the state which began in 1933 and continued for nearly 20 years.
12.
George Dern took a leading role in resolving important interstate problems related to the building of the Boulder Dam on the Colorado River.
13.
George Dern subsequently served from 1929 to 1930 as chair of the National Governors' Conference, where he worked with New York governor Franklin D Roosevelt.
14.
George Dern initiated a five-year plan to equip the army with newer airplanes, more tanks, semiautomatic rifles, and modernized artillery.
15.
George Dern advocated increased strength for the army Air Corps and investigated charges of lobbying in the War Department, resulting in the court-martial and dismissal of two high-ranking army officers who were found guilty of lobbying.
16.
The army's Corps of Engineers began several important public works projects during George Dern's tenure, including the dredging of the Mississippi and Missouri rivers, the construction of the Florida ship canal.
17.
Secretary George Dern was a distinguished alumnus of the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology having received the degree of Doctor of Engineering in 1935.
18.
George Dern was greatly interested in the stratosphere expeditions Explorer II and fully aware of their importance and placed the needed facilities of the Army organization behind the project.
19.
George Dern worked closely with army chief of staff Douglas MacArthur on such projects and was often at odds with President Roosevelt over plans to coordinate water resource development, and in 1935 and 1936 he opposed legislation to establish a permanent National Resources Board, even though it was strongly supported by the New Deal administration.
20.
George Dern was fond of outdoor sports such as fishing and hiking and is remembered as a hard-working member of the Roosevelt cabinet, one who could be an entertaining public speaker.
21.
Ultimately, George Dern served as Secretary of War during a rather inconsequential time period for that position.
22.
George Dern is buried next to her husband at Mount Olivet Cemetery, Salt Lake City, Utah.
23.
George Dern was grandfather of Academy Award-nominated actor Bruce Dern, and great-grandfather of Academy Award-winning actress Laura Dern.