1956 President Francis Garritt Gilchrist

Francis Garritt Gilchrist was born in the manse of the Gettysburg Presbyterian Church, where his father was minister, in Gettysburg Pennsylvania. His family moved to the west when he was two years old.

1956 - FRANCIS GARRITT GILCHRIST

He was educated in the grammar schools of San Anselmo and San Jose, California, and in high school at San Jose and Lowell High School in San Francisco. He went to Occidental College in Los Angeles from 1914-1916. In 1917 he was Field Assistant to the U.S. Geological Survey in the Bellingham area. From 1917-1919 he served in the U. S. Army, A.E.F., 26th Engineers. After World War I he went back to college at the University of California, where he received his B. A. degree in 1921. He continued there as a graduate student and assistant in the Department of Zoology from 1921-1924 and received his PH.D in 1927. On graduation he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and Sigma Xi.

From 1924-1936 Dr. Gilchrist taught at Pomona College, Claremont California in the Department of Zoology. In 1936 he had a Research Fellowship at Yale University. From 1937-1946 he taught at Riverside Junior College, Riverside,  California. In 1946 he began teaching at Lewis and Clark College in Portland in the Department of Biology.

Dr. Gilchrist was married to Pearl May Brown on June 6, 1922. She was born at Prosser, Washington. There were two sons, Kenneth Wells, (1925-1943), and Alden Hugh, (1930-), who is a musician and composer.

Dr. Gilchrist has contributed several articles in scientific journals dealing with experiments on regeneration of coelenterates and development of amphibia. He was trustee of the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry from 1955-1959, and Secretary from 1956-1959. He has served as committee Member of the Arboretum since 1957.  From 1949-1960 he has been an Elder of the First Presbyterian Church.

He has been a member of the Geological Society of the Oregon Country for about ten years. Beside the office of President he has served on the Executive Committee from 1955-1960, and as Editor of Newsletter from 1954-1955.