Melvin Canfield Chapman (1850–1936): Oakland Mayor involved in contentious transition of power

Chapman

Plot 17, Lot 36

Melvin Chapman was an American lawyer, legislator, and civic leader who served as the 28th mayor of Oakland, California, from 1891 to 1893. A central figure in the city’s late nineteenth-century civic development, Chapman is best remembered for his role in securing Lake Merritt as public land and for his contentious transfer of power with successor George Pardee.

Chapman was born in Westfield, Illinois, in 1850 (some sources list 1848). He studied law in California under attorney Henry Vrooman and was admitted to the bar in 1884. Chapman began his practice with Roscoe Havens before forming his own firm, later known as Chapman & Trefethen. Over time, he became a prominent figure in the Alameda County Bar Association, serving as its president.

Chapman entered politics in the late 1880s, winning election to the California State Assembly, where he represented the 50th District in 1887–1888. In 1891, he was briefly nominated for Congress but declined in favor of supporting his colleague Joseph McKenna.

Elected in 1891, Chapman ran on a platform emphasizing public works, infrastructure modernization, and civic beautification. He advocated for street paving, sewer expansion, marsh reclamation in West Oakland, and the improvement of plazas and boulevards.

One of Chapman’s enduring contributions was his role in securing Lake Merritt as public land. The lake, a tidal lagoon that had been designated a wildlife refuge by the state of California in 1870, was surrounded by property controlled by the Oakland Waterfront Company, a private development syndicate. Chapman negotiated with the company to deed portions of the surrounding land to the city, ensuring public access and laying the foundation for the creation of a park encircling the lake. He further advanced plans for dredging, shoreline improvements, and the establishment of a scenic boulevard, anticipating Lake Merritt’s transformation into Oakland’s civic centerpiece.

Chapman’s term ended in 1893 in a controversy that highlighted the factional politics of Oakland at the time. His successor, George C. Pardee (later Governor of California), attempted to assume office at 12:01 a.m. on inauguration day, accompanied by a new city council. Chapman, citing technical issues with the filing of Pardee’s official bond and the timing of the council’s organization, refused to vacate City Hall immediately.

Headline from Oakland Times

 The dispute escalated into a standoff in which, for a brief period, Oakland effectively had two competing municipal governments—one loyal to Chapman and the other recognizing Pardee. The confrontation underscored the growing tension between reform-minded Republicans such as Pardee and the established Democratic and business interests that Chapman represented. Although the matter was ultimately resolved without violence, it was remembered as one of the most contentious mayoral transitions in Oakland’s early history.

After leaving office, Chapman returned to his legal practice and remained active in civic affairs. He served as head of the Oakland Tribune Publishing Company and was a member of the exclusive Athenian Club, a social and political hub for the city’s professional elite. 

Sources: LocalWiki, Oakland Examiner, Oakland Tribune, Find a Grave, LakeMerritt.org, Find a Grave, Oakland Times

 

 

Theodore Doney McCown (1908–1969): Anthropologist and Archaeologist who Reshaped Understanging of Human Evolution

Dr. Theodore McCown

Main Mausoleum, 1st Floor, Section 12, Tier 4, 4th niche from left

Dr. Theodore McCown was an American anthropologist and archaeologist whose work reshaped modern understanding of human evolution. A professor at the University of California, Berkeley, he is best known for his role in the Mount Carmel excavations of the 1930s, his pioneering studies of fossil human remains, and his contributions to forensic anthropology in the United States. His research bridged archaeology, biological anthropology, and forensic science, and he trained a generation of scholars who carried his approaches into diverse fields.

McCown was born in Macomb, Illinois, to Chester Charlton McCown, a biblical scholar, and Harriett Doney. In 1914, the family moved to Berkeley, California, where his father became Dean of the Pacific School of Religion. His father’s subsequent directorship of the Palestine Exploration Fund in the 1920s exposed Theodore to formal archaeological work during extended stays in Palestine. These formative years instilled in him an enduring interest in the material and fossil record of human history.

McCown studied anthropology at the University of California, Berkeley, under Alfred L. Kroeber. He was inspired by Henry Morton Stanley’s In Darkest Africa and gained field experience excavating California shell mounds and studying the Kawaiisu Indians. He graduated with a B.A. in anthropology in 1929, receiving highest honors. In 1930, he was appointed assistant at the American School of Oriental Research in Jerusalem, where he participated in excavations at Jerash. He later joined the American School of Prehistoric Research, which gave American students direct access to European and Near Eastern excavations.

McCown’s scientific career was defined early by his role in the Mount Carmel excavations (1931–1935, 1937) in present-day Israel. Working with British archaeologist Dorothy Garrod and others, he was given responsibility for Skhūl Cave. Between 1931 and 1932, McCown uncovered the remains of at least ten individuals (Skhūl I–X), including children and adults. Several skeletons were found in apparent burials, with grave goods such as a wild boar mandible. His discoveries provided some of the earliest evidence for intentional burial practices among archaic humans.

Dr, Theodore McCown and Skulls

 

The Mount Carmel material included fossils from both Skhūl Cave and nearby Tabūn Cave. McCown, collaborating with the British anatomist Sir Arthur Keith, studied and described these remains. Their monumental publication, The Stone Age of Mount Carmel: The Fossil Human Remains from the Levalloiso-Mousterian (Cambridge University Press, 1939), documented the skeletal material in detail. The analysis highlighted morphological differences between the Skhūl and Tabūn specimens, noting that the Skhūl fossils appeared more modern, while the Tabūn skeleton exhibited more Neanderthal-like traits. McCown argued that the fossils represented a population undergoing evolutionary change, foreshadowing debates on the relationship between Neanderthals and early modern humans. His insistence on interpreting variability within populations rather than through rigid racial categories was a major advance in paleoanthropology.

Although McCown and Keith proposed a new species name (Palaeoanthropus palestinensis), this did not gain acceptance. Today, the Skhūl fossils are regarded as early Homo sapiens, and their association with intentional burial is recognized as a milestone in human behavioral evolution.

Returning to California, McCown joined the Berkeley faculty in 1938 while completing his dissertation on Natufian crania from Mount Carmel. He received his Ph.D. in 1939. His academic progression was steady: Assistant Professor in 1941, Associate Professor in 1946, and full Professor of Anthropology in 1951. He chaired the department from 1950 to 1955 and played a central role in establishing Berkeley’s program in physical anthropology. He also served as Curator of Physical Anthropology at the Lowie Museum (later the Phoebe A. Hearst Museum of Anthropology).

McCown was an exceptional teacher, remembered for his organized lectures, wide-ranging knowledge, and ability to inspire students. He supervised more than 18 doctoral dissertations and numerous master’s theses, helping to establish a strong tradition of physical and forensic anthropology at Berkeley.

During World War II, McCown served as a cryptographer and in Graves Registration with the U.S. Army Quartermaster Corps (1942–1945), based at the Presidio in San Francisco. His work identifying war dead deepened his interest in forensic anthropology, which he would later teach and develop at Berkeley. At a time when only a handful of scholars—such as Earnest Hooton at Harvard and Wilton Krogman at Penn—were training forensic anthropologists, McCown was instrumental in establishing the field on the West Coast.

He participated in prominent identifications, including the remains of Father Junípero Serra in Carmel (in connection with his beatification), Juan Bautista de Anza in Mexico, and the evaluation of remains once claimed to be those of Amelia Earhart. These cases highlighted his expertise and made him a resource for both academic and governmental agencies.

McCown’s research interests extended globally. In 1941–42, he excavated the Pre-Incaic site of Huamachuco in the Peruvian Andes, publishing his findings in The Pre-Incaic Site of Huamachuco (1945). He identified two distinct periods of occupation and analyzed both architecture and pottery. He also examined skeletal collections gathered by earlier anthropologists such as Alfred Kroeber.

Later, McCown turned to India, conducting fieldwork in the Narmada Valley in 1957–58 and again in 1964–65, often accompanied by his wife, Elizabeth Richards McCown, herself trained in anthropology. There he studied Middle Pleistocene deposits and Acheulean stone tools, situating them within broader contexts of human evolution. His international experience also took him to France, Czechoslovakia, and Mexico.

Dr. Theodore McCown, Dorothy Garrod and Francis Turville-Petre

McCown combined scholarship with service to the university. At Berkeley, he was Associate Dean of the College of Letters and Science (1956–1961) and served on numerous Academic Senate committees. Within the department, he was Chair, Undergraduate Adviser, and Coordinator of the Archaeological Research Facility. His deep knowledge of the campus and his collegial personality made him an invaluable figure in faculty governance.

McCown was widely recognized by his peers. He was active in the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the Society for American Archaeology, the American Society of Physical Anthropology, and the American Society for Human Genetics. He was a Fellow of both the American Anthropological Association and the Royal Anthropological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. He also presented influential papers on hominid taxonomy and the education of anthropologists, contributing to the integration of evolutionary theory into paleoanthropology.

McCown died suddenly of a heart attack in Berkeley on August 17, 1969, at the age of 61.  

Sources: The Stone Age of Mount Carmel: The Fossil Human Remains from the Levalloiso-Mousterian (McCown & Keith, 1939); The Pre-Incaic Site of Huamachuco (McCown, 1945); University of California In Memoriam (Hammel, Heizer & Washburn, 1970); Online Archive of California biographical sketch; Harvard American School of Prehistoric Research Directory; British Museum Biographical Records; Institute of Andean Research publications; Anthropology iResearchNet profile of Theodore D. McCown; Virginia Tech online profile, Find a Grave

 

 

Francis Harvey Slocombe (1893–1947): Architect of Berkeley's "Little Chapel of Flowers"

Francis Slocombe grave and Little Chapel of Flowers

Section 66 Lot 1168

Francis Harvey Slocombe (1893–1947) was an American architect based in Oakland, California, active in the early to mid-20th century. He was best known for his work in the Storybook and Period Revival styles, and for his partnership in the firm Slocombe & Tuttle.

Slocombe practiced primarily in the East Bay, where he designed both residential and commercial structures. His work reflected eclectic revival styles popular in the 1920s and 1930s, often characterized by whimsical or romantic design elements.

In 1928, Slocombe’s firm was commissioned by mortician William Hull to design a new chapel adjacent to Hull’s Berkeley mortuary. According to local accounts, Hull’s mother provided Slocombe with a picture of a chapel from her home village in England and asked him to replicate it. Whether influenced by that request or not, Slocombe produced one of Berkeley’s most notable examples of Storybook architecture, known as the Little Chapel of the Flowers.

Completed in 1928, the chapel featured thick plaster walls, a curved roofline, and a distinctive bell tower. Its interior design included large arched dormers, stained-glass galleries, vaulted ceilings supported by timber trusses, and plaster walls tinted with terra-cotta pigments to create a warm glow. A stained-glass window behind the altar completed the design. The chapel became a central feature of Hull & Durgin’s marketing during the Great Depression, with advertisements emphasizing that elegant surroundings did not increase the cost of funeral services.

1650 Trestle Glen Road & 4697 Park Blvd in Oakland

The building was later designated a Berkeley Landmark (Landmark #320, 2015) and is regarded as one of the city’s most enduring examples of Storybook-style architecture.

In addition to the chapel, Slocombe designed other buildings in the East Bay, including a Tudor Revival residence for William Hull in Berkeley (1930). His architectural practice contributed to the region’s stock of eclectic revival homes and commercial structures.

Slocombe lived in Alameda, California, and was a member of the Bethany Gospel Hall. He died suddenly on April 26, 1947, after suffering a medical episode while returning from a golf match.

Sources: Oakland Tribune, Berkeley Architectural Heritage, Association, Edificionado, Berkeley Landmarks Commission 

 

Albin Putzker (1848–1923): First Chair of German Department at Cal; Spoke 27 Languages

  

Plot 26, Lot 125

Albin Putzker was a pioneering linguist, educator, and long-time professor of German at the University of California, Berkeley. Born in Austria, Putzker received his early education in Europe before emigrating to the United States at age nineteen. After further study in the East, he became affiliated with Santa Barbara College as president. In 1874, he was appointed as the first official professor of German language at UC Berkeley. Ten years later, with the addition of another faculty member, a distinct German Department was formally established.

For more than four decades, Putzker shaped German studies at Berkeley. He served as department chair and emeritus chair for decades, overseeing the department’s early growth and guiding it through periods of controversy, including World War I, when the department was criticized for “alleged pro-German sentiments” of some faculty. His contributions extended beyond administration: he was widely recognized as an accomplished scholar, a polyglot with knowledge of 27 languages, and a respected lecturer both in the United States and Europe. His lecture on the German poet, writer and philosopher Friedrich Schiller was widely reported on in newspapers and periodicals.

Putzker gained particular prominence as the author of A Practical German Grammar, which became one of the most widely used textbooks for teaching German in American schools and universities. His reputation was such that about twenty years before his death he was offered the post of United States consul to Greece, owing to his fluency in Greek language and culture, though he declined the appointment to remain in academia.

Beyond the classroom, Putzker was active in community and cultural life. He was a member of Durant Lodge of Masons in Berkeley, the German Teachers’ Association, and the German Club in Oakland. He also built one of the earliest residences along Telegraph Avenue in Berkeley, at 2600 Telegraph Avenue, which became a landmark in the growing college town.

Bruno Putzker (1880-1899)

Putzker’s family life was touched by both distinction and tragedy. He and his wife Caroline raised several children, including Bruno Lane Putzker, who enlisted in the U.S. Army during the Spanish-American War. Bruno was mortally wounded during an assault in Manila on February 12, 1899, and died days later, becoming one of Berkeley’s young war dead. 

In his final years, Putzker retired from Berkeley but remained a noted figure in the academic world. He suffered declining health following the death of his wife in January 1923, and on May 1, 1923, he died at Temple Hospital in Berkeley at the age of 79. His funeral was held under the auspices of the Masons at the Berkeley Masonic Temple.

Sources: Find a Grave, San Francisco Call, Oakland Tribune, University of California at Berkeley website, Berkeley Architectural Heritage Assoc.