Merwin Coad
Encyclopedia
Merwin Coad was a Democratic U.S. Representative
from Iowa's 6th congressional district
for six years—January 1957 to January 1963. His election snapped the Republican Party's fourteen-year hold on every U.S. House seat from Iowa.
, Coad moved with his parents to a farm near Auburn, Nebraska
. He graduated from high school in Auburn in 1941.
He attended Peru State Teachers College
in Peru, Nebraska
in 1941 and 1942, and Phillips University
in Enid, Oklahoma
from 1942 to 1944, and then graduated from Texas Christian University
at Fort Worth, Texas
in 1945. He also studied at Drake University
in Des Moines, Iowa
.
He was ordained to the ministry of Disciples of Christ
Church, in Boone, Iowa
, in 1945. He served as associate minister in St. Joseph, Missouri, in 1948 and 1949, as a Minister at Lenox, Iowa
from 1949 to 1951, and as a Minister in Boone, from 1951 to 1956.
. Coad's initial margin of victory was 83 votes out of over 129,000 votes cast, prompting a recount (which reaffirmed his victory with a margin of 198 votes). Dolliver then tried and failed to convince the U.S. House to overturn the election. Coad would win re-election twice.
into several districts. Coad's home county (Boone) was included in Iowa's 5th congressional district
, which had been represented since 1959 by popular fellow Democrat Neal Smith.
There were reports that Coad was considering a 1962 bid for either the Senate or the Iowa governorship. However, on June 8, 1961, Coad, then only 36, announced that he was withdrawing from politics, effective at the end of his current term (in 1962). Coad gave no reasons. However, it was soon front-page news that the former minister had obtained an Alabama divorce from his Iowa wife in March 1961, allegedly without first notifying her, and that in May 1961, Coad had married Carol Peters, a member of his staff who had just obtained a Nevada divorce from Coad's executive assistant. She then received a raise, making her his highest-paid staffer. Meanwhile, stories of Coad's financial problems, including gambling debts, and losses from his grain market investments, were published in the Des Moines Register
and Time Magazine.
Before his term ended in 1962, Coad weighed a way to run again for the U.S. House, and considered moving to Carroll County
and running for the seat in the 7th congressional district
then held by thirteen-term Representative Ben F. Jensen
. In the end, however, he stayed out of the 1962 race. Coad's congressional service, which began on January 3, 1957, ended on January 3, 1963.
Coad then became involved in real estate lending in the Washington D.C. area, but by the late 1960s he faced at least one civil suit, and later a grand jury investigation. In one civil suit U.S. District Court Judge John Sirica
enjoined Coad from foreclosing on the plaintiff's home, reportedly stating, "This is a racket . . . That's all it is, just a racket."
By the early 1980s, Coad was speaking at free seminars, marketed in newspaper advertisements with the headline, "YOU CAN BUY REAL ESTATE WITH $10 DOWN AND BECOME WEALTHY IN YOUR SPARE TIME." One such ad stated that Coad was "America's most effective and dynamic instructor on real estate and is the foremost consultant on no money down purchasing techniques."
He is a resident of Washington, D.C.
, and Harpers Ferry, West Virginia
, and now promotes on-line training courses in real estate investing.
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from Iowa's 6th congressional district
Iowa's 6th congressional district
Iowa's 6th congressional district is a former congressional district in Iowa. It existed from 1862 to 1992, when it was lost due to Iowa's declining population....
for six years—January 1957 to January 1963. His election snapped the Republican Party's fourteen-year hold on every U.S. House seat from Iowa.
Personal background
Born in Cawker City, KansasCawker City, Kansas
Cawker City is a city in Mitchell County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 469. The city is located along the north shore of Waconda Lake.-Geography:Cawker City is located at...
, Coad moved with his parents to a farm near Auburn, Nebraska
Auburn, Nebraska
Auburn is a city in Nemaha County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 3,350 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Nemaha County. The City of Auburn is actually an incorporation of two towns. Calvert and Sheridan combined to form Auburn in 1882, in part to have the voting power to...
. He graduated from high school in Auburn in 1941.
He attended Peru State Teachers College
Peru State College
Peru State College is a public four-year institution located in the rural city of Peru, Nebraska, in the Midwest region of the United States. Founded by members of the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1865, making it the first and oldest institution in Nebraska, it would undergo several name changes...
in Peru, Nebraska
Peru, Nebraska
Peru is a city in Nemaha County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 569 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Peru is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land....
in 1941 and 1942, and Phillips University
Phillips University
Phillips University was a private, coeducational institution of higher education located in Enid, Oklahoma, United States, from 1906 to 1998. It was affiliated with the Christian Church . It included an undergraduate college and a graduate seminary...
in Enid, Oklahoma
Enid, Oklahoma
Enid is a city in Garfield County, Oklahoma, United States. In 2010, the population was 49,379, making it the ninth largest city in Oklahoma. It is the county seat of Garfield County. Enid was founded during the opening of the Cherokee Outlet in the Land Run of 1893, and is named after Enid, a...
from 1942 to 1944, and then graduated from Texas Christian University
Texas Christian University
Texas Christian University is a private, coeducational university located in Fort Worth, Texas, United States and founded in 1873. TCU is affiliated with, but not governed by, the Disciples of Christ...
at Fort Worth, Texas
Fort Worth, Texas
Fort Worth is the 16th-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city in the state of Texas. Located in North Central Texas, just southeast of the Texas Panhandle, the city is a cultural gateway into the American West and covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, Denton, and...
in 1945. He also studied at Drake University
Drake University
Drake University is a private, co-educational university located in Des Moines, Iowa, USA. The institution offers a number of undergraduate and graduate programs, as well as professional programs in law and pharmacy. Today, Drake is one of the twenty-five oldest law schools in the country....
in Des Moines, Iowa
Des Moines, Iowa
Des Moines is the capital and the most populous city in the US state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small portion of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines which was shortened to "Des Moines" in 1857...
.
He was ordained to the ministry of Disciples of Christ
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
The Christian Church is a Mainline Protestant denomination in North America. It is often referred to as The Christian Church, The Disciples of Christ, or more simply as The Disciples...
Church, in Boone, Iowa
Boone, Iowa
Boone is a city in and the county seat of Des Moines Township, Boone County, Iowa, United States. It is the principal city of the 'Boone, Iowa Micropolitan Statistical Area', which encompasses all of Boone County. This micropolitan statistical area, along with the 'Ames, Iowa Metropolitan...
, in 1945. He served as associate minister in St. Joseph, Missouri, in 1948 and 1949, as a Minister at Lenox, Iowa
Lenox, Iowa
Lenox is a city in Adams and Taylor counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 1,401 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Lenox is located at ....
from 1949 to 1951, and as a Minister in Boone, from 1951 to 1956.
Election and re-election to Congress
In 1956, Coad ran as a Democrat against six-term incumbent Republican Congressman James I. DolliverJames I. Dolliver
James Isaac Dolliver served six terms as a Republican U.S. Representative from Iowa's 6th congressional district, beginning in 1944. He was the nephew of U.S. Senator Jonathan Prentiss Dolliver of Iowa....
. Coad's initial margin of victory was 83 votes out of over 129,000 votes cast, prompting a recount (which reaffirmed his victory with a margin of 198 votes). Dolliver then tried and failed to convince the U.S. House to overturn the election. Coad would win re-election twice.
Withdrawal from politics
The 1960 census caused Iowa to lose a seat in Congress, and the 1961 Iowa Legislature's resulting reapportionment placed parts of the old 6th congressional districtIowa's 6th congressional district
Iowa's 6th congressional district is a former congressional district in Iowa. It existed from 1862 to 1992, when it was lost due to Iowa's declining population....
into several districts. Coad's home county (Boone) was included in Iowa's 5th congressional district
Iowa's 5th congressional district
Iowa's 5th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Iowa that covers most of Western Iowa and includes the cities of Council Bluffs and Sioux City...
, which had been represented since 1959 by popular fellow Democrat Neal Smith.
There were reports that Coad was considering a 1962 bid for either the Senate or the Iowa governorship. However, on June 8, 1961, Coad, then only 36, announced that he was withdrawing from politics, effective at the end of his current term (in 1962). Coad gave no reasons. However, it was soon front-page news that the former minister had obtained an Alabama divorce from his Iowa wife in March 1961, allegedly without first notifying her, and that in May 1961, Coad had married Carol Peters, a member of his staff who had just obtained a Nevada divorce from Coad's executive assistant. She then received a raise, making her his highest-paid staffer. Meanwhile, stories of Coad's financial problems, including gambling debts, and losses from his grain market investments, were published in the Des Moines Register
Des Moines Register
The Des Moines Register is the daily morning newspaper of Des Moines, Iowa, in the United States. A separate edition of the Register is sold throughout much of Iowa.-History:...
and Time Magazine.
Before his term ended in 1962, Coad weighed a way to run again for the U.S. House, and considered moving to Carroll County
Carroll County, Iowa
-2010 census:The 2010 census recorded a population of 20,816 in the county, with a population density of . There were 9,376 housing units, of which 8,683 were occupied.-2000 census:...
and running for the seat in the 7th congressional district
Iowa's 7th congressional district
Iowa's 7th congressional district is a former congressional district in Iowa. It was eliminated after the 1970 election, leaving Iowa with six congressional districts. The state has since been reduced to five congressional districts.-Redistricting:...
then held by thirteen-term Representative Ben F. Jensen
Ben F. Jensen
Benton Franklin Jensen served thirteen consecutive terms as a U.S. Representative from Iowa's 7th congressional district in the southwestern corner of the state. While on the floor of the U.S...
. In the end, however, he stayed out of the 1962 race. Coad's congressional service, which began on January 3, 1957, ended on January 3, 1963.
Activities after Congress
In July 1963 Coad began working in the Kennedy Administration as a $75-per-day consultant for the Agency for International Development's office of material resources. However, when Iowa Senator Bourke Hickenlooper — serving as the ranking Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee — learned of this, he contacted the head of the agency and raised an objection, based on what he described as Coad's "background and history and utter lack of qualifications for the job." Coad resigned the next day, and flew to Iowa to blast his critics.Coad then became involved in real estate lending in the Washington D.C. area, but by the late 1960s he faced at least one civil suit, and later a grand jury investigation. In one civil suit U.S. District Court Judge John Sirica
John Sirica
John Joseph Sirica was the Chief Judge for the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, where he became famous for his role in the Watergate scandal...
enjoined Coad from foreclosing on the plaintiff's home, reportedly stating, "This is a racket . . . That's all it is, just a racket."
By the early 1980s, Coad was speaking at free seminars, marketed in newspaper advertisements with the headline, "YOU CAN BUY REAL ESTATE WITH $10 DOWN AND BECOME WEALTHY IN YOUR SPARE TIME." One such ad stated that Coad was "America's most effective and dynamic instructor on real estate and is the foremost consultant on no money down purchasing techniques."
He is a resident of Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, and Harpers Ferry, West Virginia
Harpers Ferry, West Virginia
Harpers Ferry is a historic town in Jefferson County, West Virginia, United States. In many books the town is called "Harper's Ferry" with an apostrophe....
, and now promotes on-line training courses in real estate investing.