Joseph Nisbet LeConte
Joseph Nisbet LeConte | |
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Sierra Nevada |
Joseph Nisbet LeConte (February 7, 1870 – February 1, 1950) was an American
.Early life
Joseph Nisbet LeConte was born in Oakland, California to Joseph and Caroline (Nisbet) LeConte.[1] He went by "Little Joe" among friends, because he was of short stature and was the son of geology professor Joseph LeConte. He often went by J. N. LeConte in photographs and articles. He entered the University of California, Berkeley in 1887, earning a B.S. degree in 1891. He received a Master of Mechanical Engineering from Cornell University in 1892, and was appointed assistant professor of mechanical engineering at U.C. Berkeley that August, beginning by teaching kinematics of machinery.
Career
Starting in 1912, he taught analytical mechanics for over 20 years. German physicist
LeConte loved mountaineering from the time he was a teenager and went all over the Sierra Nevada exploring, sometimes for several weeks. He produced the first map of the central Sierra Nevada for the Sierra Club, based on his exploration. At that time, USGS maps were not available.[3] Along with James S. Hutchinson and Duncan McDuffie, he pioneered a high mountain route in 1908 from Yosemite National Park to Kings Canyon, roughly along the route of the modern John Muir Trail. In 28 days, they completed a trip of 228 miles through the high mountains, including several previously unexplored sections.[4]
An avid photographer, he took many photos of the Sierra Nevada, including the
A charter and lifelong member of the Sierra Club, he held several positions of leadership in it. After
In 1901 he married Helen Gompertz,[1] whom he met in the Sierra Club.
LeConte Point in Hetch Hetchy Valley and Le Conte Avenue at the southern border of
References
- ^ a b c "Singleton and Related Families: Joseph Nisbet LeConte". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2009-08-27.
- ^ a b "University of California: In Memoriam, 1950. Joseph Nisbet LeConte, Mechanical Engineering: Berkeley". Retrieved 2009-08-27.
- ^ a b c d "Key Figures in Sierra Club History: Joseph Nisbet LeConte". Archived from the original on 2010-06-13. Retrieved 2009-08-27.
- ^ Parsons, Harriet, edited by David R. Brower, Sierra Club: A Handbook, "Mountaineering", Sierra Club, San Francisco, 1947, page 16
- ISBN 0-8047-3703-7
- ^ Starr, Walter A. (November 1947). "Trails". Sierra Club Bulletin. 32 (10). San Francisco: Sierra Club: 48–50.
- Joseph N. LeConte, A Yosemite Camping Trip 1889 (Bancroft Library, 1990). Diary and Kodak snapshots of a family camping trip.
- Holway R. Jones, John Muir and the Sierra Club: The Battle for Yosemite (Sierra Club, 1965). Has portrait of Joseph N. LeConte and about 16 large photographic plates taken by him of Hetch Hetchy Valley.
External links
- Works by or about Joseph Nisbet LeConte at Internet Archive
- Guide to the LeConte Family Papers at The Bancroft Library
- John Muir Exhibit (Sierra Club) sketch Archived 2013-05-06 at the Wayback Machine
- The Peaks and The Professors by Ann Lage
- The role of the Engineer's Office in the development of the University of California campuses : transcript, 1960