Remington Kellogg
Encyclopedia
Remington Kellogg was an American naturalist and a director of the United States National Museum
.
He was born in Davenport, Iowa
. His parents named him Arthur Remington Kellogg but he quickly dropped the "Arthur". From a young age he devoted his free time to the study of wildlife. He built up his own small collection of mounted birds and mammals and by the time he came to choose a university he had determined he would become a naturalist. Choosing the University of Kansas
as it offered courses in his chosen field, he first studied entomology
, later switching to the study of mammals. From 1913 to 1916 he worked under Charles D. Bunker, the curator of birds and mammals at the university's Museum of Natural History. He published his first paper as a result of his work with Bunker. Kellogg graduated in 1915 and received his M.A. the following year.
After graduating, he immediately began work with the United States Bureau of Biological Survey
in Kansas
and North Dakota
. At the end of 1915 the Survey paid for him to travel to Washington, D.C.
from where he undertook a tour of the museums of the eastern states. Around this time he decided to specialize in the study of marine mammals and in 1916 enrolled the University of California at Berkeley where he studied for a Ph.D in zoology
. He was given a teaching fellowship at the behest of John C. Merriam
, and studied fossil pinniped
s, producing his first important papers on the subject in 1920 and 1921.
He served in the Army in France during World War I
, but still found time to collect specimens which he sent back to Berkeley and the University of Kansas. He was discharged in July 1919 and returned to Berkeley to complete his doctorate, transferring from zoology to study vertebrate paleontology
under Merriam.
In 1921 he became assistant biologist for the Biological Survey based in Washington, and worked there for the next eight years, concerned chiefly with studying toad
s and the feeding habits of hawk
s and owl
s. He also undertook a study to determine whether alligator
s were a predatory risk to help resolve controversy over their hunting. Merriam encouraged Kellogg to use his free time to study the fossilized marine mammals of Calvert Cliffs
in Maryland
. He added considerably to the collections created by previous expeditions and used the experience he gained as the basis for his Ph.D thesis, entitled The History of Whales - Their Adaptation to Life in the Water in which he studied the specializations needed for mammalian organs to adjust to life in water.
In 1928 Kellogg became assistant curator at the United States National Museum and in 1941 became curator. At the museum he devoted time to studying the Archaeoceti
, primitive whales from the Eocene
and early Oligocene
, and the Miocene
Cetacea
of North America. In 1948 he was appointed director of the Museum and in 1958 was made assistant secretary of the Smithsonian Institution. He was elected to the National Academy of Sciences
in 1951.
His Ph.D thesis had established him as an authority on cetaceans, and with concern growing over the need to protect whales from over-exploitation, in 1930 he was invited to speak at a conference on whaling held by the League of Nations
. Further conferences followed and Kellogg was appointed as a US delegate to the International Conference on Whaling held in London in 1937, which resulted in the first protection for whales, the International Agreement for the Regulation of Whaling
. Kellogg was head of the US delegation in two further conferences in 1944 and 1945 and was chairman of the 1946 conference, after which he became the US commissioner on International Whaling Commission
between 1949 and 1967. He served as vice-chairman of the Commission between 1949 and 1951 and chairman between 1952 and 1954.
He retired from his posts at the Smithsonian in 1962, but continued to work on his study of Miocene Cetacea, publishing nine papers on fossil marine mammals between 1965 and 1969. Ill-health, coupled with frustration over the lack of progress, forced him to abandon his work with the International Whaling Commission after 1964.
He died of a heart attack at his home in Washington on 8 May 1969 whilst recuperating from a broken pelvis.
circa 1871-1969 and undated http://siarchives.si.edu/findingaids/FARU7170.htm
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...
.
He was born in Davenport, Iowa
Davenport, Iowa
Davenport is a city located along the Mississippi River in Scott County, Iowa, United States. Davenport is the county seat of and largest city in Scott County. Davenport was founded on May 14, 1836 by Antoine LeClaire and was named for his friend, George Davenport, a colonel during the Black Hawk...
. His parents named him Arthur Remington Kellogg but he quickly dropped the "Arthur". From a young age he devoted his free time to the study of wildlife. He built up his own small collection of mounted birds and mammals and by the time he came to choose a university he had determined he would become a naturalist. Choosing the University of Kansas
University of Kansas
The University of Kansas is a public research university and the largest university in the state of Kansas. KU campuses are located in Lawrence, Wichita, Overland Park, and Kansas City, Kansas with the main campus being located in Lawrence on Mount Oread, the highest point in Lawrence. The...
as it offered courses in his chosen field, he first studied entomology
Entomology
Entomology is the scientific study of insects, a branch of arthropodology...
, later switching to the study of mammals. From 1913 to 1916 he worked under Charles D. Bunker, the curator of birds and mammals at the university's Museum of Natural History. He published his first paper as a result of his work with Bunker. Kellogg graduated in 1915 and received his M.A. the following year.
After graduating, he immediately began work with the United States Bureau of Biological Survey
United States Fish and Wildlife Service
The United States Fish and Wildlife Service is a federal government agency within the United States Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats...
in Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
and North Dakota
North Dakota
North Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America, along the Canadian border. The state is bordered by Canada to the north, Minnesota to the east, South Dakota to the south and Montana to the west. North Dakota is the 19th-largest state by area in the U.S....
. At the end of 1915 the Survey paid for him to travel to Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
from where he undertook a tour of the museums of the eastern states. Around this time he decided to specialize in the study of marine mammals and in 1916 enrolled the University of California at Berkeley where he studied for a Ph.D in zoology
Zoology
Zoology |zoölogy]]), is the branch of biology that relates to the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct...
. He was given a teaching fellowship at the behest of John C. Merriam
John C. Merriam
John Campbell Merriam was an American paleontologist. The first vertebrate paleontologist on the West Coast of the United States, he is best known for his taxonomy of vertebrate fossils at the La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles, particularly with the genus Smilodon, more commonly known as the...
, and studied fossil pinniped
Pinniped
Pinnipeds or fin-footed mammals are a widely distributed and diverse group of semiaquatic marine mammals comprising the families Odobenidae , Otariidae , and Phocidae .-Overview: Pinnipeds are typically sleek-bodied and barrel-shaped...
s, producing his first important papers on the subject in 1920 and 1921.
He served in the Army in France 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...
, but still found time to collect specimens which he sent back to Berkeley and the University of Kansas. He was discharged in July 1919 and returned to Berkeley to complete his doctorate, transferring from zoology to study vertebrate paleontology
Paleontology
Paleontology "old, ancient", ὄν, ὀντ- "being, creature", and λόγος "speech, thought") is the study of prehistoric life. It includes the study of fossils to determine organisms' evolution and interactions with each other and their environments...
under Merriam.
In 1921 he became assistant biologist for the Biological Survey based in Washington, and worked there for the next eight years, concerned chiefly with studying toad
Toad
A toad is any of a number of species of amphibians in the order Anura characterized by dry, leathery skin , short legs, and snoat-like parotoid glands...
s and the feeding habits of hawk
Hawk
The term hawk can be used in several ways:* In strict usage in Australia and Africa, to mean any of the species in the subfamily Accipitrinae, which comprises the genera Accipiter, Micronisus, Melierax, Urotriorchis and Megatriorchis. The large and widespread Accipiter genus includes goshawks,...
s and owl
Owl
Owls are a group of birds that belong to the order Strigiformes, constituting 200 bird of prey species. Most are solitary and nocturnal, with some exceptions . Owls hunt mostly small mammals, insects, and other birds, although a few species specialize in hunting fish...
s. He also undertook a study to determine whether alligator
Alligator
An alligator is a crocodilian in the genus Alligator of the family Alligatoridae. There are two extant alligator species: the American alligator and the Chinese alligator ....
s were a predatory risk to help resolve controversy over their hunting. Merriam encouraged Kellogg to use his free time to study the fossilized marine mammals of Calvert Cliffs
Calvert Cliffs State Park
Calvert Cliffs State Park is a state park in Calvert County, Maryland, USA, situated on the Chesapeake Bay. On the 1612 John Smith map, the site is called "Rickard's Cliffes"...
in Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. He added considerably to the collections created by previous expeditions and used the experience he gained as the basis for his Ph.D thesis, entitled The History of Whales - Their Adaptation to Life in the Water in which he studied the specializations needed for mammalian organs to adjust to life in water.
In 1928 Kellogg became assistant curator at the United States National Museum and in 1941 became curator. At the museum he devoted time to studying the Archaeoceti
Archaeoceti
Archaeocetes, or "ancient whales", are a paraphyletic group of cetaceans that gave rise to the modern cetaceans.The archaeocetes were once thought to have evolved from the mesonychids, based on dental characteristics...
, primitive whales from the Eocene
Eocene
The Eocene Epoch, lasting from about 56 to 34 million years ago , is a major division of the geologic timescale and the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Eocene spans the time from the end of the Palaeocene Epoch to the beginning of the Oligocene Epoch. The start of the...
and early Oligocene
Oligocene
The Oligocene is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 34 million to 23 million years before the present . As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period are well identified but the exact dates of the start and end of the period are slightly...
, and the Miocene
Miocene
The Miocene is a geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about . The Miocene was named by Sir Charles Lyell. Its name comes from the Greek words and and means "less recent" because it has 18% fewer modern sea invertebrates than the Pliocene. The Miocene follows the Oligocene...
Cetacea
Cetacea
The order Cetacea includes the marine mammals commonly known as whales, dolphins, and porpoises. Cetus is Latin and is used in biological names to mean "whale"; its original meaning, "large sea animal", was more general. It comes from Ancient Greek , meaning "whale" or "any huge fish or sea...
of North America. In 1948 he was appointed director of the Museum and in 1958 was made assistant secretary of the Smithsonian Institution. He was elected to the National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
in 1951.
His Ph.D thesis had established him as an authority on cetaceans, and with concern growing over the need to protect whales from over-exploitation, in 1930 he was invited to speak at a conference on whaling held by the League of Nations
League of Nations
The League of Nations was an intergovernmental organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended the First World War. It was the first permanent international organization whose principal mission was to maintain world peace...
. Further conferences followed and Kellogg was appointed as a US delegate to the International Conference on Whaling held in London in 1937, which resulted in the first protection for whales, the International Agreement for the Regulation of Whaling
International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling
The International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling is an international environmental agreement signed in 1946 in order to "provide for the proper conservation of whale stocks and thus make possible the orderly development of the whaling industry"...
. Kellogg was head of the US delegation in two further conferences in 1944 and 1945 and was chairman of the 1946 conference, after which he became the US commissioner on International Whaling Commission
International Whaling Commission
The International Whaling Commission is an international body set up by the terms of the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling , which was signed in Washington, D.C...
between 1949 and 1967. He served as vice-chairman of the Commission between 1949 and 1951 and chairman between 1952 and 1954.
He retired from his posts at the Smithsonian in 1962, but continued to work on his study of Miocene Cetacea, publishing nine papers on fossil marine mammals between 1965 and 1969. Ill-health, coupled with frustration over the lack of progress, forced him to abandon his work with the International Whaling Commission after 1964.
He died of a heart attack at his home in Washington on 8 May 1969 whilst recuperating from a broken pelvis.
External links
- Finding Aid to Remington Kellogg Papers,
circa 1871-1969 and undated http://siarchives.si.edu/findingaids/FARU7170.htm