John W. Olmsted

John W. Olmsted
Born	1903 Denver, Colorado
Died	1986 (aged 82–83)
Education	BA in Engineering and Geology, University of California, Berkeley (1925) BA in Modern History, Oxford University (1928) MA in Modern History, Oxford University (1931) PhD Cornell University (1944)[1][2]
Spouse(s)	Ruby Elizabeth Ross
Children	John Olmsted William Olmsted

John W. Olmsted (1903–1986) was an American Rhodes scholar and historian of early modern Europe.^[3] He taught history at University of California, Los Angeles for 24 years and served as faculty representative to the Pacific Coast Conference for seven years. He also served as the first chairman of University of California, Riverside's Humanities Division.^[4]

Education

Olmsted attended Los Angeles Polytechnic and Alhambra high schools. Olmsted received a scholarship from L. L. Nunn to attend Deep Springs College before finally enrolling at University of California, Los Angeles in 1920.^[2] Olmsted played varsity tennis at UCLA before transferring to University of California, Berkeley during his junior year. Olmsted graduated Berkeley in 1925 as a member of Phi Kappa Sigma, Phi Beta Kappa, and Theta Tau with degrees in Engineering and Geology.^[5] He turned down a position as geologist with Union Oil Company and accepted a Rhodes scholarship.^{[6][7][lower-alpha 1]} Olmstead attended Oxford for his graduate degree in history. While there, he played for their lawn tennis team, earned his "Blues" in 1927, and captained the team in 1928.^[2][8][9]

Teaching

Olmsted joined the faculty of UCLA in 1928 as an assistant professor of history^[1][10] and was promoted to full professor in 1951.^[11] From 1939 to 1945, Olmsted served as the faculty representative to the Pacific Coast Athletic Conference, acting as president of the conference in 1946. Olmsted also served as assistant to UCLA's Dean of Letters and Sciences, Gordon S. Watkins. When the University of California, Riverside created its College of Letters and Science in 1953, Olmsted was appointed by Watkins (UCR's first provost) as both a professor of history, the chairman of the humanities division, and the college's first faculty member.^[12][13][14] Olmsted was involved in many extracurricular activities. He was a member of the Pacific Coast Committee for the Humanities. He was a charter member of the Los Angeles chapter of Sigma Xi^[15] and he established the chapter of Phi Beta Kappa at UCR. Olmstead retired from teaching in 1970.^[2] Circa 2004 a new humanities building on the UCR campus, Olmsted Hall, was named in his honor.^[16]

Publications

• Jean Picard et les débuts de l'astronomie de précision au XVIIe siècle: actes du colloque du tricentenaire (in French). Paris: Ed. du Centre national de la recherche scientifique. 1987. ISBN 9782222041047.^[17]

Notes

1. As of 2014, Olmsted is one of only 11 UCLA students to become a Rhodes scholar.^[6]

References

1. "News from the Campuses". University Bulletin: A Weekly Bulletin for the Staff of the University of California (University of California) 1 (21): 107. January 19, 1953.
2. F.M. Carney; N. Ravitch; L.M. Van Deusen; R.V. Hine (1986). Krogh, David, ed. "John W. Olmsted, History: Riverside". University of California: In Memoriam: 225–227.
3. "Notes on Contributors". Isis (University of Chicago Press) 65 (2): 294–296. June 1974. doi:10.1086/isis.65.2.229413. JSTOR 229413.
4. Cook, Howard S. (April 1953). "The Riverside Campus". California Monthly (University of California).
5. "Blue and Gold Yearbook". University of California, Berkeley. 1925: 109.
6. "UCLA Students and Alumni Honored as Rhodes Scholars". University of California, Los Angeles.
7. Lee, Cynthia (November 24, 2008). "UCLA student and recent graduate earn Rhodes Scholarships for 2009". UCLA Today.
8. "Briefs" (PDF). Telluride News Letter XIII (1): 23. January 1927.
9. "Club Records (1889–Present)". Cambridge University Lawn Tennis Club.
10. General Catalog 1941–42:Primarily for Students in the departments at Los Angeles (PDF). University of California. p. 195.
11. "Historical News". Pacific Historical Review (University of California Press) 20 (4): 431–435. November 1951. doi:10.2307/3635471. JSTOR 3635471.
12. "UCR Announces First Faculty Member". The San Bernardino County Sun (San Bernardino, California). January 14, 1953. p. 14.
13. "Riverside UC Names Dean for College of Letters, Sciences". Corona Daily Independent (Corona, California). January 30, 1953. p. 7 – via newspaperarchive.com.
14. "Riverside: Colleges and Schools". University of California, Berkeley.
15. Soper, E. K. (June 1933). "Installation of the California Chapter at Los Angeles". Sigma Xi Quarterly (Sigma Xi) 21 (2): 94–95. JSTOR 27824498.
16. "Seismic Safety Program" (PDF). University of California, Riverside.
17. Chapin, Seymour L. (1989). "Book Review: Jean Picard et les debuts de l'astronomie de precision au XVIIe siecle / Editions du CNRS, Paris, 1987". Journal for the History of Astronomy 20: 143–145. Bibcode:1989JHA....20..143C. doi:10.1177/002182868902000211.