In Memoriam: Professor Roger Grant

December 6, 2023

Roger Grant, Kathryn and Calhoun Lemon Professor of History, died on November 17, 2023. A native of Albia, Iowa, Roger graduated summa cum laude from Simpson College in Iowa in 1966, and went on to earn his Ph.D. from the University of Missouri only four years later. His first academic position was at the University of Akron before he moved to Clemson in 1996, where he served as chair of the Department of History for five years. One of the nation’s foremost railroad and transportation scholars, Roger was the author, co-author, or editor of a remarkable forty academic books, including most recently Sunset Cluster: A Shortline Railroad Saga (Indiana University Press). His book Railroads in the Midwest will be published posthumously, also by Indiana University Press. “Roger was one of the leading historians of American railroads with an amazing record of publications, but what his colleagues will remember is his kindness and generosity, especially to new faculty,” Stephanie Barczewski, Chair of the Department of History and Geography, said. “Beyond his academic accomplishments, Roger was instrumental in building community within the department and university. He will be greatly missed.”