Emanuel Fritz (1886-1988) was an American

forestry Forestry is the science and craft of creating, managing, planting, using, conserving and repairing forests, woodlands, and associated resources for human and environmental benefits. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands. Th ...

specialist. He worked in the field of California forestry for over 70 years. Upon his death, Fritz was the oldest professor in the history 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, ...

. Fritz was known as "Mr. Redwood," in academic and conservation circles.

Early life and education

Emanuel Fritz was born in 1886 in

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

. He graduated in 1908 with a degree in

mechanical engineering Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and mathematics principles with materials science, to design, analyze, manufacture, and ...

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 ...

. After graduation, he worked at Baltimore Polytechnic University as a professor. In 1912, he left the university to pursue a master's degree in

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

, which he earned in 1914.

Career

After graduation from Yale, Fritz worked in forestry in

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

. In 1915, he joined the

U.S. Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands. The Forest Service manages of land. Major divisions of the agency in ...

, where he worked in Montana and Arizona. He served in World War I, earning a rank of captain for his work in aircraft maintenance in France. He became a faculty member at the University of California, Berkeley in 1919. Fritz led the creation of the University's summer forestry program in

Plumas County, California Plumas County () is a county in the Sierra Nevada of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 19,790. The county seat is Quincy, and the only incorporated city is Portola. The largest community in the county is ...

, which remains a keystone component of the forestry program. In the 1930s, he served as editor of the ''

Journal of Forestry The ''Journal of Forestry'' is the primary scholarly journal of the Society of American Foresters. It aims to advance the forestry profession by keeping professional foresters informed about developments and ideas related to the practice of for ...

''. He consulted the State of California about forestry issues. He influenced policy around state regulation of forests. He also served as a consultant for the California Redwood Association and the

Save the Redwoods League Save the Redwoods League is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to protect and restore coast redwood (''Sequoia sempervirens'') and giant sequoia (''Sequoiadendron giganteum'') trees through the preemptive purchase of development rights ...

. He helped create the forestry program at

Humboldt State University California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt also known as Cal Poly Humboldt, Humboldt or Cal Poly"Cal Poly" may also refer to California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, California or California State Polytechnic Universi ...

. He founded the Redwood Region Logging Conference. In 1950, he became Associate Professor at Berkeley. He retired from Berkeley in 1954.

Later life and legacy

Fritz remained active at the University of California, Berkeley, and in forestry after his retirement. He was a member of the

Bohemian Club The Bohemian Club is a private club with two locations: a city clubhouse in the Nob Hill district of San Francisco, California and the Bohemian Grove, a retreat north of the city in Sonoma County. Founded in 1872 from a regular meeting of journal ...

and used his membership to educate - and influence - members about California forestry. He was also an active member of the

Commonwealth Club of California The Commonwealth Club of California is a non-profit, non-partisan educational organization based in Northern California. Founded in 1903, it is the oldest and largest public affairs forum in the United States. Membership is open to everyone. Act ...

, of which he served on the board of governors. He founded the Regional Parks Association, now known as the

East Bay Regional Park District The East Bay Regional Park District (EBRPD) is a special district operating in Alameda County and Contra Costa County, California, within the East Bay area of the San Francisco Bay Area. It maintains and operates a system of regional parks which ...

. He died on December 15, 1988 at his home in Berkeley, California. Fritz's collection of forestry-related photographs are in the collection of the University of California, Berkeley's Marian Koshland Bioscience & Natural Resources Library.

References

External links

Emanuel Fritz's obituary in the ''New York Times''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fritz, Emanuel 1886 births 1988 deaths American centenarians Men centenarians Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies alumni Forestry researchers Scientists from Baltimore Cornell University alumni People from Berkeley, California Recipients of the Sir William Schlich Memorial Award