Claude Burton Hutchison (April 9, 1885 – August 25, 1980) was an American botanist, agricultural economist, educator, and politician who served as the

mayor of Berkeley, California This is a list of mayors of Berkeley, California. The list includes people serving in the equivalent position of president, in the city's early history. *Presidents, Town Board of Trustees (1878–1909) **Abel Whitton (Workingman's Party) 1878– ...

, from 1955 to 1963.

Early life

Hutchison was born on April 9, 1885, in Livingston County near

Chillicothe, Missouri Chillicothe is a city in the state of Missouri and the county seat of Livingston County, Missouri, United States. The population was 9,107 at the 2020 census. The name "Chillicothe" is Shawnee for "big town", and was named after their ''Chillico ...

, the son of farmer William Moses Hutchison and his wife Ada Smith. Hutchison earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Universit ...

, where he was also a founding member of

FarmHouse FarmHouse (FH) is a social Fraternities and sororities in North America, fraternity founded at the University of Missouri on April 15, 1905. It became a national organization in 1921. Today FarmHouse has 33 active chapters and four associate ch ...

fraternity. He was also a member of the ''Iota Phi chapter'' of

Alpha Phi Omega Alpha Phi Omega (), commonly known as APO, but also A-Phi-O and A-Phi-Q, is a coeducational service fraternity. It is the largest collegiate fraternity in the United States, with chapters at over 350 campuses, an active membership of over 25,0 ...

. He earned a Master of Science from

Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to teach an ...

and another from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

Career

Hutchison held teaching positions at the

and

. At Cornell he taught genetics to

Barbara McClintock Barbara McClintock (June 16, 1902 – September 2, 1992) was an American scientist and cytogeneticist who was awarded the 1983 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. McClintock received her PhD in botany from Cornell University in 1927. There s ...

. Hutchison left Cornell for the

University of California, Davis The University of California, Davis (UC Davis, UCD, or Davis) is a public land-grant research university near Davis, California. Named a Public Ivy, it is the northernmost of the ten campuses of the University of California system. The institut ...

. where he was professor of agriculture from 1922 to 1952; dean of the College of Agriculture from 1922 to 1925; and vice president of the

University of California The University of California (UC) is a public land-grant research university system in the U.S. state of California. The system is composed of the campuses at Berkeley, Davis, Irvine, Los Angeles, Merced, Riverside, San Diego, San Francisco, ...

from 1945 to 1952. When he left UC Davis, he served as dean of agriculture at the

University of Nevada, Reno The University of Nevada, Reno (Nevada, the University of Nevada, or UNR) is a public land-grant research university in Reno, Nevada. It is the state's flagship public university and primary land grant institution. It was founded on October 12, ...

until his retirement in 1954. From 1955 to 1963, he was the mayor of

Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland and Emer ...

. In the 1920s, Hutchison went to Europe, serving as director of agricultural education for the International Education Board in Paris. In the 1930s, he was a director of the

Giannini Giannini is a Brazilian musical instruments manufacturing company, based in Salto, São Paulo. Products currently manufactured by Giannini include electric, steel-string acoustic, nylon-string acoustic and bass guitars. Other string instrum ...

Foundation of Agricultural Economics.

Personal life

Hutchison married Roxie Pritchard in 1908 and had five children. Hutchison died on August 25, 1980, at the age of 95.

Honors

Hutchison Hall at the University of California, Davis is named for him.

References

External links

Claude B. Hutchison Papers
a
Special Collections Dept.
University Library, University of California, Davis
Photos of Claude Hutchison
from the UCD Library Special Collections

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hutchison, Claude B. Mayors of Berkeley, California Scientists from California 20th-century American educators 20th-century American botanists University of Missouri alumni University of Missouri faculty 1885 births 1980 deaths FarmHouse founders University of California, Davis faculty 20th-century American politicians People from Chillicothe, Missouri University of Nevada, Reno faculty Cornell University alumni Harvard University alumni