Adolf Carl Noé (born Adolf Carl Noé von Archenegg; 28 October 1873 10 April 1939) was an Austrian-born

paleobotanist Paleobotany or palaeobotany, also known as paleophytology, is the branch of botany dealing with the recovery and identification of plant fossils from geological contexts, and their use for the biological reconstruction of past environments (pale ...

. He is credited for identifying the first coal ball in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

in 1922, which renewed interest in them. He also developed a method of peeling coal balls using

nitrocellulose Nitrocellulose (also known as cellulose nitrate, flash paper, flash cotton, guncotton, pyroxylin and flash string, depending on form) is a highly flammable compound formed by nitrating cellulose through exposure to a mixture of nitric acid and ...

. Many of the paleobotanical materials owned by the University of Chicago's Walker Museum were provided by Noé, where he was also a curator of fossil plants. He was also a research associate at the

Field Museum of Natural History The Field Museum of Natural History (FMNH), also known as The Field Museum, is a natural history museum in Chicago, Illinois, and is one of the largest such museums in the world. The museum is popular for the size and quality of its educationa ...

, where he assisted with their reconstruction of a

Carboniferous The Carboniferous ( ) is a Geologic time scale, geologic period and System (stratigraphy), system of the Paleozoic era (geology), era that spans 60 million years, from the end of the Devonian Period Ma (million years ago) to the beginning of the ...

forest.

Biography

Early years

From 1894 to 1897, Noé attended the

University of Graz The University of Graz (, formerly: ''Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz'') is a public university, public research university located in Graz, Austria. It is the largest and oldest university in Styria, as well as the second-largest and second-old ...

, studying paleobotany under

Constantin von Ettingshausen Constantin Freiherr von Ettingshausen (or Baron Constantin von Ettingshausen) (16 June 1826 in Vienna – 1 February 1897 in Graz) was an Austrian botanist known for his paleobotanical studies of flora from the Tertiary era. He was the son o ...

. After Ettinghausen's death, Noé moved to Germany in 1897, having been transferred to the

University of Göttingen The University of Göttingen, officially the Georg August University of Göttingen (, commonly referred to as Georgia Augusta), is a Public university, public research university in the city of Göttingen, Lower Saxony, Germany. Founded in 1734 ...

. While a young man, Noé served briefly in the

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...

as a member of the 8th Austrian Hussars.Adolf Carl Noé, ''Golden Days of Soviet Russia.'' Chicago: Thomas S. Rockwell Co., 1927; biographical information on inside dust jacket flap. He studied there until 1899, when he moved to the

. During that year, Noé began his work at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

. He obtained a B. A. in 1900. Later in that year Noé married the former Mary Evelyn Cullatin. The pair had two daughters, Mary Helen Noé (who later married Nobel laureate Robert S. Mulliken) and Valerie Noé. In 1901, he moved to California to teach German at

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

. Four years later, in 1905, Noé earned a Ph.D. in Germanic Languages and Literatures. Noé taught at the

from the 1910s, continuing his interest in the mounted soldiery as member of the 1st Illinois Cavalry in 1915 and 1916, during which he attended training camps at Fort Sheridan and Plattsburg. Near the end of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Noé removed "von Archenegg" from his name to avoid

anti-German sentiment Anti-German sentiment (also known as anti-Germanism, Germanophobia or Teutophobia) is fear or dislike of Germany, its Germans, people, and its Culture of Germany, culture. Its opposite is Germanophile, Germanophilia. Anti-German sentiment main ...

. Noé also stopped teaching German classes to research paleobotany, due to overstaffing and the public's disinterest in taking the German courses. Following the war, Noé participated in reconstruction efforts in his native Austria, work for which he was awarded a gold medal from the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (, ) is a public university, public research university in Vienna, Austria. Founded by Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria, Duke Rudolph IV in 1365, it is the oldest university in the German-speaking world and among the largest ...

and the gold cross of honor from the government of the Republic of Austria.

Paleobotanical work

Noé became a geologist for the Allan and Garcia Coal Commission in the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

in 1927, ten years after the

October Revolution The October Revolution, also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution (in Historiography in the Soviet Union, Soviet historiography), October coup, Bolshevik coup, or Bolshevik revolution, was the second of Russian Revolution, two r ...

. There, in the Donets coal basin, Noé did work as a mining geologist, where he fulfilled a contract granted by the Soviet government assessing the state of coal production in the region. Upon his return to the United States he published a memoir of his journey, ''Golden Days of Soviet Russia.'' In 1934, Noé became the

's research associate, and assisted in the construction of a Pennsylvanian coal swamp there.

Studies on coal balls

Coal balls in North America were found in

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

coal seams since the 1890s, although the connection to European coal balls was not made until Noé (whose coal ball was actually found by Gilbert Cady) drew the parallel in 1922. There was some disbelief over Noé's discovery. For instance, in 1922, Noé was contacted by David White, who strongly believed that coal balls could not be found in North America. Noé later managed to convince him otherwise by showing him a wheelbarrow full of Illinois coal balls, after which White never spoke to Noé again.

Death

While translating the final chapter of a publication about coal in his office, Noé suffered a paralytic stroke on March 11, 1939. He died on the morning of April 10, five months before his planned retirement date of October 1939.

References

Bibliography

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External links

Guide to the Adolf Carl Noé Papers 1892-1939
at th
University of Chicago Special Collections Research Center
{{DEFAULTSORT:Noe, Adolf Paleobotanists 1873 births 1939 deaths People associated with the Field Museum of Natural History Scientists from Graz Emigrants from Austria-Hungary to the United States American paleontologists University of Chicago faculty