birth_date: 1839-12-17 00:00:00
avg_rating: 4
name: Newton Horace Winchell
about: See also his brother, Alexander WinchellProfessor Newton Horace Winchell (1839–1914) was an American geologist responsible for the six-volume The Geology of Minnesota: Final Report of the Geological and Natural History Survey of Minnesota, which is the work of Winchell and his assistants. A bibliography of his publications by Warren Upham in the Bulletin of the Geological Society of America (volume 26, pp. 27–46) contains almost 300 titles.Born in North East, Dutchess County, New York State on 17 December 1839, Winchell attended public school in Salisbury, Connecticut. He then taught at schools in New York State, Connecticut and Michigan from 1855. Prior to the Civil War he held the post of superintendent of schools in St. Clair, Michigan a See also his brother, Alexander WinchellProfessor Newton Horace Winchell (1839–1914) was an American geologist responsible for the six-volume The Geology of Minnesota: Final Report of the Geological and Natural History Survey of Minnesota, which is the work of Winchell and his assistants. A bibliography of his publications by Warren Upham in the Bulletin of the Geological Society of America (volume 26, pp. 27–46) contains almost 300 titles.Born in North East, Dutchess County, New York State on 17 December 1839, Winchell attended public school in Salisbury, Connecticut. He then taught at schools in New York State, Connecticut and Michigan from 1855. Prior to the Civil War he held the post of superintendent of schools in St. Clair, Michigan and he was a member of the Michigan Geological Survey. While he was granted the rank of lieutenant during the American Civil War (1861-1865), Winchell never actually saw service due to illness. In 1866 Winchell successfully graduated with a BA degree from the University of Michigan, and in 1867 received a Master of Arts degree from the same institution. Following this he undertook geological studies in Michigan, Ohio, and New Mexico. At the same time as he started his MA degree, Winchell was appointed superintendent of schools and also as a school principal in Port Huron, Michigan, where he remained in post until 1872. During this time he was a member of the Michigan Geological Survey alongside his elder brother Alexander (1824-1891).Winchell moved to Minnesota in 1872 when he was appointed to direct "The Geological and Natural History Survey of Minnesota" as the state geologist for Minnesota. At the same time he taught courses in geology, botany, and zoology at the University of Minnesota. He had a reputation for "great diligence and honesty" (Merrill, 1964) and was considered "an honest, very competent geologist" (Thrapp, 1990). He remained in post with the state of Minnesota until 1900 when he took up the post of archaeologist to the Minnesota Historical Society.When he accompanied the Custer expedition to the Black Hills of South Dakota in 1874, Winchell prepared the first geological map of that area. Winchell was also one of the founders of the Geological Society of America, a chief organizer of the Minnesota Academy of Sciences, and president of several societies. In 1888 Winchell co-founded the journal American Geologist with his brother Alexander and a few other geologists.In his personal life, Winchell was married to his wife Charlotte for 50 years. Charlotte Winchell was also a geologist and was on the faculty of Alboin College in Michigan prior to their marriage. They had five children, Horace, Alexander, Ima, Avis, and Louise. He died in Minneapolis on 2 May 1914 following a surgical operation.His papers are held by the Library of the Minnesota Historical Society.See also: http://www2.mnhs.org/library/findaids... ...more
death_date: 1914-05-02 00:00:00