The University of California Museum of Paleontology (UCMP) is a
paleontology
Paleontology (), also spelled palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of life that existed prior to, and sometimes including, the start of the Holocene epoch (roughly 11,700 years before present). It includes the study of fossi ...
museum located on the campus of the
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant un ...
.
The museum is within the Valley Life Sciences Building (VLSB), designed by
George W. Kelham and completed in 1930. Its collections are primarily intended for research and are, thus, not accessible to the public. A limited number of fossils from the collection is on display in the VLSB. Although located on the Berkeley campus, the museum is the primary locality for storing fossils collected statewide. The original fossils, around which the current collection has grown, were those gathered as part of the
California Geological Survey
The California Geological Survey, previously known as the California Division of Mines and Geology, is the California state geologic agency.
History
Although it was not until 1880 that the California State Mining Bureau, predecessor to the Cal ...
from 1860-1867.
Website
UCMP was one of the first museums to have its own
website
A website (also written as a web site) is a collection of web pages and related content that is identified by a common domain name and published on at least one web server. Examples of notable websites are Google, Facebook, Amazon, and W ...
in the early 1990s, due to its location within a technology-oriented university with a good
Internet
The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, p ...
connection. The site has been applauded for its use of visually appealing graphics, was nominated for a
Webby Award
The Webby Awards are awards for excellence on the Internet presented annually by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, a judging body composed of over two thousand industry experts and technology innovators. Categories includ ...
five times, and received a medal from the
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Found ...
. It also had a cameo appearance in the movie ''
Deep Impact'', albeit under an incorrect name.
Notable figures
Annie Montague Alexander
Annie Montague Alexander (29 December 1867 - 10 September 1950) was an explorer, naturalist, paleontological collector, and philanthropist.
She founded the University of California Museum of Paleontology (UCMP) and the Museum of Vertebrate Zoolo ...
was the first benefactor of the museum, and led some early expeditions.
Faculty
Many notable paleontologists have worked as staff at UCMP. Dates given after each name indicate when the person was part of the university faculty or working in the museum.
*
John C. Merriam (1869–1945)
*
Charles Lewis Camp
Charles Lewis Camp (March 12, 1893 Jamestown, North Dakota – August 14, 1975 San Jose, California) was a palaeontologist and zoologist, working from the University of California, Berkeley. He took part in excavations at the ' Placerias Quarry', ...
(1921-1975)
*
William Diller Matthew
William Diller Matthew FRS (February 19, 1871 – September 24, 1930) was a vertebrate paleontologist who worked primarily on mammal fossils, although he also published a few early papers on mineralogy, petrological geology, one on botany, one on ...
(1927–1930)
*
Ruben Arthur Stirton (1930–1966)
*
Samuel Paul Welles
Samuel Paul Welles (November 9, 1907 – August 6, 1997) was an American palaeontologist. Welles was a research associate at the Museum of Palaeontology, University of California, Berkeley. He took part in excavations at the Placerias Quarry in ...
(1940–1997)
Directors
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Bruce L. Clark (1880-1945)
#
William Diller Matthew
William Diller Matthew FRS (February 19, 1871 – September 24, 1930) was a vertebrate paleontologist who worked primarily on mammal fossils, although he also published a few early papers on mineralogy, petrological geology, one on botany, one on ...
(1871-1930)
#
Charles Lewis Camp
Charles Lewis Camp (March 12, 1893 Jamestown, North Dakota – August 14, 1975 San Jose, California) was a palaeontologist and zoologist, working from the University of California, Berkeley. He took part in excavations at the ' Placerias Quarry', ...
(1893-1975)
#
Ruben Arthur Stirton (1901-1966)
#
Donald E. Savage (1917-1999)
#
Joseph T. Gregory (1914-2007)
#
William B. N. Berry
#
William A. Clemens Jr.
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Jere H. Lipps
#
David R. Lindberg
David R. Lindberg (1948, U.S.A.) is an American malacologist and professor of integrative biology at the University of California, Berkeley. He is also the Curator for the University of California Museum of Paleontology and co-editor of the journ ...
#
Roy L. Caldwell
#
Charles R. Marshall
See also
*
Paleontology in California
Paleontology in California refers to paleontologist research occurring within or conducted by people from the U.S. state of California. California contains rocks of almost every age from the Precambrian to the Recent. Precambrian fossils are pres ...
*
Museum of Vertebrate Zoology
References
External links
UCMP websiteThe Paleontology PortalUnderstanding Evolution website
{{Authority control
Museums established in 1921
1921 establishments in California
Museum of Paleontology
Paleontology websites
California Museum of Paleontology
Natural history museums in California
Geology museums in California
Museums in Berkeley, California
Arthur Brown Jr. buildings
Science and technology in the San Francisco Bay Area
Dinosaur museums in the United States
Paleontology in California