Frank Cathcart Calkins (June 7, 1878 – December 31, 1974) was an American

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the structure, composition, and History of Earth, history of Earth. Geologists incorporate techniques from physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and geography to perform research in the Field research, ...

petrologist Petrology () is the branch of geology that studies rocks, their mineralogy, composition, texture, structure and the conditions under which they form. Petrology has three subdivisions: igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary petrology. Igneous an ...

, and mapper of the

U.S. Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), founded as the Geological Survey, is an agency of the U.S. Department of the Interior whose work spans the disciplines of biology, geography, geology, and hydrology. The agency was founded on March ...

known for his work on the geology of

Yosemite National Park Yosemite National Park ( ) is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States in California. It is bordered on the southeast by Sierra National Forest and on the northwest by Stanislaus National Forest. The p ...

. Calkins was born in East Rockport in

Cuyahoga County, Ohio Cuyahoga County ( or , see ) is a large urban County (United States), county located in the Northeast Ohio, northeastern part of the U.S. state of Ohio. The county seat and most populous city is Cleveland. As of the 2020 United States census, ...

on June 7, 1878, the oldest of Caroline Cathcart Calkins and Carlos Gilman Calkins' 5 children. Carlos Calkins was a graduate of the

Naval Academy A naval academy provides education for prospective naval officers. List of naval academies See also

* Military academy {{Authority control Naval academies, Naval lists ...

, and the family moved to Europe when Frank was 9 months old. Frank gained a native level of fluency in

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

while there. In 1895, Carlos Calkins was in charge of a hydrographic office in

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

, and Frank enrolled in 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 ...

, graduating in 1899. That same year, Calkins traveled with

John C. Merriam John Campbell Merriam (October 20, 1869 – October 30, 1945) was an American paleontologist, educator, and conservationist. The first vertebrate paleontologist on the West Coast of the United States, he is best known for his taxonomy of ver ...

to the John Day basin in Oregon. The pair collected samples of fossils and rocks, which became the basis of Calkins' first paper in 1902. Calkins joined the

in 1900 as an assistant to

George Otis Smith George Otis Smith (February 22, 1871 – January 10, 1944) was an American geologist. Life and career Smith was born in Hodgdon, Maine. He graduated from Colby College in 1893 and earned a Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins University in 1896. He ...

, who would later become the agency's director. The pair completed multiple geological studies in Washington state from 1900 to 1902. Calkins also studied the geology near

Coeur d'Alene, Idaho Coeur d'Alene ( ; ) is a city and the county seat of Kootenai County, Idaho, United States. It is the most populous city in North Idaho and the principal city of the Coeur d'Alene Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 54,628 at th ...

in 1903, and began

geological mapping A geological map or geologic map is a special-purpose map made to show various geological features. Rock units or geologic strata are shown by color or symbols. Bedding planes and structural features such as faults, folds, are shown with s ...

Yosemite Valley Yosemite Valley ( ; ''Yosemite'', Miwok for "killer") is a U-shaped valley, glacial valley in Yosemite National Park in the western Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada mountains of Central California, United States. The valley is about long a ...

in 1913. He completed field work from 1913 to 1916, but never published a map during his life. Much of his research in Yosemite was done in collaboration with

François E. Matthes François Émile Matthes ( – ) was a geologist and an expert in topographic mapping, glaciers, and climate change. He mapped remote areas of the American West for the United States Geological Survey (USGS). His maps coincided with the devel ...

, and their collaboration was "the first detailed program of research on the geology of the park and the origin of Yosemite Valley," according to Dallas Peck. Matthes' ''Geologic History of the Yosemite Valley'' was published in 1930, and contained petrologic studies conducted by Calkins as well as glacial and geomorphologic surveys by Matthes. One other contribution by Calkins to the field of geology is devising the current decimal system of

plagioclase Plagioclase ( ) is a series of Silicate minerals#Tectosilicates, tectosilicate (framework silicate) minerals within the feldspar group. Rather than referring to a particular mineral with a specific chemical composition, plagioclase is a continu ...

notation. During his career, Calkins also served as a scientific editor, often revising his colleagues' writings to improve their clarity. He "had a penchant for improving the writing of others," according ''Suggestions to Authors'', a

style guide A style guide is a set of standards for the writing, formatting, and design of documents. A book-length style guide is often called a style manual or a manual of style. A short style guide, typically ranging from several to several dozen page ...

for U.S. Geological Survey publications. He was described as a "grammarian-geologist", and his writing advice is published in the guide. Calkins worked for the U.S. Geological Survey from their office in

Menlo Park, California Menlo Park ( ) is a city at the eastern edge of San Mateo County, California, San Mateo County in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, United States. It is bordered by San Francisco Bay on the north and east; East Palo Alto, California, Eas ...

. When he reached 70 years old, the agency's mandatory retirement age, he received a dispensation and continued to work as an annuitant. He died on December 31, 1974, at the

Stanford University hospital Stanford University Medical Center is a teaching hospital which includes Stanford Health Care and Stanford Children's Health. It serves as a private hospital for the Stanford University School of Medicine. In 2022–23, it was ranked by the U ...

; he was 97 years old. Calkins had retired from the Geological Survey only five years prior, and was living in

Palo Alto, California Palo Alto ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for ) is a charter city in northwestern Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area, named after a Sequoia sempervirens, coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto. Th ...

at the time of his death.

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