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, 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, Livingston County, Missouri, United States. The population was 9,107 at the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census. The name "Chillicothe" is Shaw ...

, 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 or MU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri, United States. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Univers ...

, where he was also a founding member of

FarmHouse FarmHouse (FH) is a men's social fraternity founded at the University of Missouri on April 15, 1905. It became a national organization in 1921. Today FarmHouse has 34 active chapters in the United States and Canada.FarmHouse Fraternity New Memb ...

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 national Mixed-sex education, coeducational Service fraternities and sororities, service Fraternities and sororities, fraternity. It is the largest College fraterniti ...

. He earned a Master of Science from

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

and another from

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

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 cytogenetics, cytogeneticist who was awarded the 1983 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. McClintock received her PhD in botany from Cornell University ...

. Hutchison left Cornell for the

University of California, Davis The University of California, Davis (UC Davis, UCD, or Davis) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Davis, California, United States. It is the northernmost of the ten campuses of the University ...

. 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 university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university, research university system in the U.S. state of California. Headquartered in Oakland, California, Oakland, the system is co ...

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 university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Reno, Nevada, United States. It is the state's flagship public university and prim ...

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 Anglo-Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland, Cali ...

. 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 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 mayors of places in California People from Chillicothe, Missouri University of Nevada, Reno faculty Cornell University alumni Harvard University alumni