Bestor Robinson
Encyclopedia
Bestor Robinson was a California mountaineer
, environmentalist
, attorney and inventor
. He was a law partner of Earl Warren
, later governor of California
and Chief Justice
of the Supreme Court of the United States
. Robinson was a long time leader of the Sierra Club
.
(1914-1918) and went on to Harvard Law (1919-1921) where he received his JD. His father was a prominent attorney and later a Superior Court Judge of Alameda County. After Law school he joined his father's law firm. Bestor went on to marry Florence Breed, daughter of powerful Republican State Senator Arthur Hastings Breed of Piedmont, CA. They had four children Ned, Merritt, Warren and Caroline.
had invited Harvard philosophy professor and Appalachian Mountain Club
member Robert L. M. Underhill
to come to the Sierra Nevada to teach the latest techniques of roped climbing. Underhill had learned these techniques in the Alps
, and had used them earlier that summer in the Tetons and the Canadian Rockies
. After the basic course was completed, the more advanced students, including Robinson, Glen Dawson
, Jules Eichorn
, Norman Clyde
, and Lewis Clark traveled south to the Palisades
, the most rugged and alpine part of the Sierra Nevada. There, on August 13, 1931, the party completed the first ascent of the last unclimbed 14,000+ foot peak in California, which remained unnamed due to its remote location above the Palisade Glaciers
. After a challenging ascent to the summit, the climbers were caught in an intense lightning storm, and Eichorn barely escaped electrocution when "a thunderbolt whizzed right by my ear". The mountain was named Thunderbolt Peak to commemorate that close call.
In 1934, Robinson, along with Dick Leonard
and Jules Eichorn completed the first ascent of the Eichorn Pinnacle on Cathedral Peak
, near Tuolumne Meadows
in Yosemite National Park
.
In 1934, Robinson, Jules Eichorn and Dick Leonard of the Cragmont Climbing Club assembled the most advanced set of climbing gear then in use in North America, much of which they had obtained from Germany, and successfully climbed Higher Cathedral Spire in Yosemite Valley
. This was the first major technical ascent in the famous scenic valley that became a mecca of rock climbing.
From October 9 to 12, 1939 a Sierra Club climbing team including Robinson, David Brower, Raffi Bedayn, and John Dyer, completed the first ascent of Shiprock
, the erosional remnant of the throat of a volcano with nearly vertical walls on the Navajo reservation
in northwestern New Mexico. This climb, rated YDS
III, 5.7 A2, was the first in the United States to use expansion bolts for protection.
. In 1942, he served as chairman of the Committee on Uniform Touring Tests of the National Ski Association, now known as the United States Ski and Snowboard Association
.
and was assigned to the Office of the Quartermaster general
, where he worked on the development of improved equipment and clothing for the army's mountain divisions. He joined a skilled wartime team led by Robert Bates
that included mountaineers William P. House, H. Adams Carter
, Terris Moore
, Bradford Washburn
and Australian arctic explorer Hubert Wilkins
. On July 27, 1943, he was awarded a U. S. patent for his design of a lightweight folding stove for military use. His invention was used in combat by members of the 10th Mountain Division
, and was described as an "ingenious little gasoline-powered stove that Bestor Robinson and the Quartermaster General's office had developed". He was promoted to Lt. Colonel in the U.S. Army.
Mountaineering
Mountaineering or mountain climbing is the sport, hobby or profession of hiking, skiing, and climbing mountains. While mountaineering began as attempts to reach the highest point of unclimbed mountains it has branched into specialisations that address different aspects of the mountain and consists...
, environmentalist
Environmentalism
Environmentalism is a broad philosophy, ideology and social movement regarding concerns for environmental conservation and improvement of the health of the environment, particularly as the measure for this health seeks to incorporate the concerns of non-human elements...
, attorney and inventor
Invention
An invention is a novel composition, device, or process. An invention may be derived from a pre-existing model or idea, or it could be independently conceived, in which case it may be a radical breakthrough. In addition, there is cultural invention, which is an innovative set of useful social...
. He was a law partner of Earl Warren
Earl Warren
Earl Warren was the 14th Chief Justice of the United States.He is known for the sweeping decisions of the Warren Court, which ended school segregation and transformed many areas of American law, especially regarding the rights of the accused, ending public-school-sponsored prayer, and requiring...
, later governor of California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
and Chief Justice
Chief Justice of the United States
The Chief Justice of the United States is the head of the United States federal court system and the chief judge of the Supreme Court of the United States. The Chief Justice is one of nine Supreme Court justices; the other eight are the Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States...
of the Supreme Court of the United States
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
. Robinson was a long time leader of the Sierra Club
Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is the oldest, largest, and most influential grassroots environmental organization in the United States. It was founded on May 28, 1892, in San Francisco, California, by the conservationist and preservationist John Muir, who became its first president...
.
Early life
Bestor Robinson was the son of Edward Constant Robinson (originally from Oregon) and Sarah T. Merritt (daughter of James Bestor Merritt). He was born and raised in Oakland, CA at 552 Montclair Street. He attended the University of California, BerkeleyUniversity of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
(1914-1918) and went on to Harvard Law (1919-1921) where he received his JD. His father was a prominent attorney and later a Superior Court Judge of Alameda County. After Law school he joined his father's law firm. Bestor went on to marry Florence Breed, daughter of powerful Republican State Senator Arthur Hastings Breed of Piedmont, CA. They had four children Ned, Merritt, Warren and Caroline.
Mountaineer
In 1931, Sierra Club leader Francis P. FarquharFrancis P. Farquhar
Francis Peloubet Farquhar graduated from Harvard and came to San Francisco to set up in practice as a Certified Public Accountant...
had invited Harvard philosophy professor and Appalachian Mountain Club
Appalachian Mountain Club
The Appalachian Mountain Club is one of the United States' oldest outdoor groups. Created in 1876 to explore and preserve the White Mountains in New Hampshire, it has expanded throughout the northeastern U.S., with 12 chapters stretching from Maine to Washington, D.C...
member Robert L. M. Underhill
Robert L. M. Underhill
Robert Lindley Murray Underhill was an American mountaineer best known for introducing modern Alpine style rope and belaying techniques to the U.S. climbing community in the late 1920s and early 1930s....
to come to the Sierra Nevada to teach the latest techniques of roped climbing. Underhill had learned these techniques in the Alps
Alps
The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
, and had used them earlier that summer in the Tetons and the Canadian Rockies
Canadian Rockies
The Canadian Rockies comprise the Canadian segment of the North American Rocky Mountains range. They are the eastern part of the Canadian Cordillera, extending from the Interior Plains of Alberta to the Rocky Mountain Trench of British Columbia. The southern end borders Idaho and Montana of the USA...
. After the basic course was completed, the more advanced students, including Robinson, Glen Dawson
Glen Dawson
Glen Dawson is a California rock climber, mountaineer, antiquarian bookseller, publisher and environmentalist.- Early life :...
, Jules Eichorn
Jules Eichorn
Jules Eichorn was a California mountaineer, environmentalist and music teacher.- Early years :Jules Marquard Eichorn was born in San Francisco on February 7, 1912 to Hilmar and Frieda Eichorn, who were immigrants from Germany...
, Norman Clyde
Norman Clyde
Norman Clyde was a mountaineer, mountain guide, freelance writer, nature photographer, and self trained naturalist. He is well-known for achieving over 130 first ascents, many in California's Sierra Nevada and Montana's Glacier National Park...
, and Lewis Clark traveled south to the Palisades
Palisades (California Sierra)
The Palisades are a group of peaks in the central part of the Sierra Nevada in the US state of California. They are located about southwest of the town of Big Pine, California...
, the most rugged and alpine part of the Sierra Nevada. There, on August 13, 1931, the party completed the first ascent of the last unclimbed 14,000+ foot peak in California, which remained unnamed due to its remote location above the Palisade Glaciers
Palisade Glaciers
The Palisade Glacier is a glacier located on the northeast side of the Palisades within the John Muir Wilderness in the central Sierra Nevada of California. The Palisade Glacier is the largest glacier in North America....
. After a challenging ascent to the summit, the climbers were caught in an intense lightning storm, and Eichorn barely escaped electrocution when "a thunderbolt whizzed right by my ear". The mountain was named Thunderbolt Peak to commemorate that close call.
Richard M. Leonard
Richard Manning Leonard was an American rock climber, environmentalist and attorney. He served as president of the Sierra Club and the Save the Redwoods League, and was active in the Wilderness Society and the American Alpine Club...
and Jules Eichorn completed the first ascent of the Eichorn Pinnacle on Cathedral Peak
Cathedral Peak (California)
Cathedral Peak is part of the Cathedral Range, a mountain range in the south-central portion of Yosemite National Park in eastern Mariposa and Tuolumne Counties. The range is an offshoot of the Sierra Nevada...
, near Tuolumne Meadows
Tuolumne Meadows
Tuolumne Meadows is a gentle, dome-studded sub-alpine meadowy section of the Tuolumne River, in the eastern section of Yosemite National Park. Its approximate location is . Its approximate elevation is 8619 feet .-Natural History:...
in Yosemite National Park
Yosemite National Park
Yosemite National Park is a United States National Park spanning eastern portions of Tuolumne, Mariposa and Madera counties in east central California, United States. The park covers an area of and reaches across the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada mountain chain...
.
In 1934, Robinson, Jules Eichorn and Dick Leonard of the Cragmont Climbing Club assembled the most advanced set of climbing gear then in use in North America, much of which they had obtained from Germany, and successfully climbed Higher Cathedral Spire in Yosemite Valley
Yosemite Valley
Yosemite Valley is a glacial valley in Yosemite National Park in the western Sierra Nevada mountains of California, carved out by the Merced River. The valley is about long and up to a mile deep, surrounded by high granite summits such as Half Dome and El Capitan, and densely forested with pines...
. This was the first major technical ascent in the famous scenic valley that became a mecca of rock climbing.
From October 9 to 12, 1939 a Sierra Club climbing team including Robinson, David Brower, Raffi Bedayn, and John Dyer, completed the first ascent of Shiprock
Shiprock
Shiprock is a rock formation rising nearly above the high-desert plain on the Navajo Nation in San Juan County, New Mexico, USA. It has a peak elevation of above the sea level. It lies about southwest of the town of Shiprock, which is named for the peak...
, the erosional remnant of the throat of a volcano with nearly vertical walls on the Navajo reservation
Navajo Nation
The Navajo Nation is a semi-autonomous Native American-governed territory covering , occupying all of northeastern Arizona, the southeastern portion of Utah, and northwestern New Mexico...
in northwestern New Mexico. This climb, rated YDS
Yosemite Decimal System
The Yosemite Decimal System is a three-part system used for rating the difficulty of walks, hikes, and climbs. It is primarily used by mountaineers in the United States and Canada. The Class 5 portion of the Class scale is primarily a rock climbing classification system. Originally the system was...
III, 5.7 A2, was the first in the United States to use expansion bolts for protection.
Environmentalist and Outdoorsman
Robinson served as a director of the Sierra Club from 1935 to 1966. He was the president of the Sierra Club from 1946 to 1948. He also served as a member of the Advisory Committee on Conservation to the Secretary of the InteriorUnited States Secretary of the Interior
The United States Secretary of the Interior is the head of the United States Department of the Interior.The US Department of the Interior should not be confused with the concept of Ministries of the Interior as used in other countries...
. In 1942, he served as chairman of the Committee on Uniform Touring Tests of the National Ski Association, now known as the United States Ski and Snowboard Association
United States Ski and Snowboard Association
The U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association is the national governing body for Olympic skiing and snowboarding. Founded in 1905, the century-old organization provides leadership and direction for tens of thousands of young skiers and snowboarders from over 400 member clubs who share an Olympic...
.
Attorney
Early in his legal career, he was a partner in the firm of Robinson & Robinson. From the 1940s through the 1960s, he was a partner in the law firm of Breed, Robinson & Stewart in Oakland, CA. He specialized in housing and property law.Wartime Inventor
During the Second World War Robinson served in the United States ArmyUnited States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
and was assigned to the Office of the Quartermaster general
Quartermaster general
A Quartermaster general is the staff officer in charge of supplies for a whole army.- The United Kingdom :In the United Kingdom, the Quartermaster-General to the Forces is one of the most senior generals in the British Army...
, where he worked on the development of improved equipment and clothing for the army's mountain divisions. He joined a skilled wartime team led by Robert Bates
Robert Bates
Robert Hinrichs Bates is an American political scientist. He is Eaton Professor of the Science of Government in the Departments of Government and African and African American Studies at Harvard University. Since 2000, he has also served as Professeur associe, School of Economics, University of...
that included mountaineers William P. House, H. Adams Carter
H. Adams Carter
Hubert Adams "Ad" Carter was an American mountaineer, language teacher and was editor of the American Alpine Journal for 35 years....
, Terris Moore
Terris Moore
Terris Moore was an explorer, mountaineer, light plane pilot, and the second president of the University of Alaska....
, Bradford Washburn
Bradford Washburn
Henry Bradford Washburn, Jr. was an American explorer, mountaineer, photographer, and cartographer. He established the Boston Museum of Science, served as its director from 1939–1980, and from 1985 until his death served as its Honorary Director .Washburn is especially noted for exploits in four...
and Australian arctic explorer Hubert Wilkins
Hubert Wilkins
Sir Hubert Wilkins MC & Bar was an Australian polar explorer, ornithologist, pilot, soldier, geographer and photographer.-Early life:...
. On July 27, 1943, he was awarded a U. S. patent for his design of a lightweight folding stove for military use. His invention was used in combat by members of the 10th Mountain Division
10th Mountain Division
The 10th Mountain Division is a light infantry division of the United States Army based at Fort Drum, New York. It is a subordinate unit of the XVIII Airborne Corps and the only division-sized element of the U.S. Army to specialize in fighting under harsh terrain and weather conditions...
, and was described as an "ingenious little gasoline-powered stove that Bestor Robinson and the Quartermaster General's office had developed". He was promoted to Lt. Colonel in the U.S. Army.