Alfred Hulse Brooks
Encyclopedia
Alfred Hulse Brooks was an American Geologist
and served as chief geologist for Alaska
for the United States Geological Survey
from 1903 to 1924. He was a native of Ann Arbor, Michigan
and graduated from Harvard University
in 1894. He is credited with discovering that the biggest mountain range in Arctic Alaska
was separate from the Rocky Mountains
.
In 1898, the federal government announced a systematic topographic and geologic survey of Alaska that would include renewed exploration of the Brooks Range. Alfred Hulse Brooks, the new head of the Alaskan branch of the United States Geological Survey
(USGS), called the project "far more important than any previously done," due in large part because it "furnished the first clue to the geography and geology of the part of Alaska north of the Yukon Basin." Between 1899 and 1911, six major reconnaissance expeditions traversed the mountain range, mapping its topography
and geology
and defining the patterns of economic geology so important to prospectors and miners.
Every year from 1904 to 1916 and from 1919 to 1923, Brooks wrote summaries of Alaska's mineral industries. The missed years, during World War I
, were those that he spent in France as chief geologist for the American Expeditionary Force
in France.
Geologist
A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid and liquid matter that constitutes the Earth as well as the processes and history that has shaped it. Geologists usually engage in studying geology. Geologists, studying more of an applied science than a theoretical one, must approach Geology using...
and served as chief geologist for Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
for the United States Geological Survey
United States Geological Survey
The United States Geological Survey is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten it. The organization has four major science disciplines, concerning biology,...
from 1903 to 1924. He was a native of Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County. The 2010 census places the population at 113,934, making it the sixth largest city in Michigan. The Ann Arbor Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 344,791 as of 2010...
and graduated from Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1894. He is credited with discovering that the biggest mountain range in Arctic Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
was separate from the Rocky Mountains
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
.
In 1898, the federal government announced a systematic topographic and geologic survey of Alaska that would include renewed exploration of the Brooks Range. Alfred Hulse Brooks, the new head of the Alaskan branch of the United States Geological Survey
United States Geological Survey
The United States Geological Survey is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten it. The organization has four major science disciplines, concerning biology,...
(USGS), called the project "far more important than any previously done," due in large part because it "furnished the first clue to the geography and geology of the part of Alaska north of the Yukon Basin." Between 1899 and 1911, six major reconnaissance expeditions traversed the mountain range, mapping its topography
Topography
Topography is the study of Earth's surface shape and features or those ofplanets, moons, and asteroids...
and geology
Geology
Geology is the science comprising the study of solid Earth, the rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which it evolves. Geology gives insight into the history of the Earth, as it provides the primary evidence for plate tectonics, the evolutionary history of life, and past climates...
and defining the patterns of economic geology so important to prospectors and miners.
Every year from 1904 to 1916 and from 1919 to 1923, Brooks wrote summaries of Alaska's mineral industries. The missed years, during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, were those that he spent in France as chief geologist for the American Expeditionary Force
American Expeditionary Force
The American Expeditionary Forces or AEF were the United States Armed Forces sent to Europe in World War I. During the United States campaigns in World War I the AEF fought in France alongside British and French allied forces in the last year of the war, against Imperial German forces...
in France.
Honors
- 1913 - Received the Charles P. Daly MedalCharles P. Daly MedalThe Charles P. Daly Medal is awarded to individuals by the American Geographical Society "for valuable or distinguished geographical services or labors." The medal was established in 1902. This medal was originally designed by Victor D. Brenner, but the destruction of the dies caused the medal to...
of the American Geographical SocietyAmerican Geographical SocietyThe American Geographical Society is an organization of professional geographers, founded in 1851 in New York City. Most fellows of the society are Americans, but among them have always been a significant number of fellows from around the world...
. - 1913 - Received the Malta-Brun gold medal of the Geographical Society of ParisSociété de GéographieThe Société de Géographie , is the world's oldest geographical society. It was founded in 1821 . Since 1878, its headquarters has been at 184 Boulevard Saint-Germain, Paris. The entrance is marked by two gigantic caryatids representing Land and Sea...
, France. - The mineral Hulsite is named for Mr. Brooks.
- The Brooks RangeBrooks RangeThe Brooks Range is a mountain range in far northern North America. It stretches from west to east across northern Alaska and into Canada's Yukon Territory, a total distance of about 1100 km . The mountains top out at over 2,700 m . The range is believed to be approximately 126 million years old...
, a mountain range that stretches from west to east across northern Alaska and into Canada's Yukon Territory, was named for Mr. Brooks in 1925
Publications
- "Preliminary report on the Ketchikan mining district, Alaska, with an introductory sketch of the geology of southeastern Alaska" by Alfred Hulse Brooks. US Geological Survey Professional Paper No. 1, 1902
- "Mineral resources of Alaska, report on progress of investigations in 1912" by Alfred Hulse Brooks, G.C. Martin, Philip Sidney Smith. US Geological Survey Bulletin No. 542, 1913. 308 p.
- "The iron and associated industries of Lorraine, the Saare district, Luxemburg, and Belgium" by Alfred H. Brooks and Morris F. La Croix. US Geological Survey Bulletin No. 703, 1920.
- "The German defenses of the Lorraine Front" by Alfred Hulse Brooks. United States Army, American Expeditionary Forces. 1918.
- "The geography and geology of Alaska : a summary of existing knowledge" by Alfred Hulse Brooks, Cleveland AbbeCleveland AbbeCleveland Abbe was an American meteorologist and advocate of time zones. While director of the Cincinnati Observatory in Cincinnati, Ohio, he developed a system of telegraphic weather reports, daily weather maps, and weather forecasts. Congress in 1870 established the U.S. Weather Bureau and...
, and Richard Urquhart GoodeRichard Urquhart GoodeRichard Urquhart Goode was an American geographer. He was born in Bedford, Virginia. He attended the University of Virginia before joining the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1878. In 1879, he became a topographer with the newly created U.S...
. US Geological Survey Professional Paper No. 45, 1906.
Sources
- "Alfred Hulse Brooks" by George Otis SmithGeorge Otis SmithGeorge Otis Smith 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 served as director of United States Geological Survey from 1907 to 1922 and 1923 to 1930...
Science, Volume 61, Issue 1569, pp. 80–81 - "Memorial of Alfred Hulse Brooks" by Philip Sidney Smith. Geological Society of AmericaGeological Society of AmericaThe Geological Society of America is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the advancement of the geosciences. The society was founded in New York in 1888 by Alexander Winchell, John J. Stevenson, Charles H. Hitchcock, John R. Proctor and Edward Orton and has been headquartered at 3300 Penrose...
Bulletin; March 1926; v. 37; no. 1; p. 15-48