Geological Society of America Memorials, v. 41, May 2012 5 Charles “Charlie” Collinson died unexpectedly on
25 November 2011, in Champaign, Illinois. Charlie joined the Illinois State Geological Survey (ISGS) in 1952, retiring in 1991 after an outstanding career of research and service. Early in his career, he distinguished himself as an invertebrate paleontologist specializing in conodont biostratigraphy. In later years, he spearheaded a major effort to better understand the sedimentary processes associated with coastal erosion along the Lake Michigan shoreline. In addition to conducting and directing research efforts, he served many national and international organizations. During his retirement, he remained active in public outreach and educational extension activities. Charlie was a friendly, affable, generous, and kind man who inspired and encouraged the many students, staff, and colleagues who
surrounded him during his 59-year association with the ISGS and the University of Illinois. Charlie was born on 15 December 1923 in Wichita, Kansas. Orphaned at age five, Charlie and his younger brother Don were raised by their aunt and uncle in Moline, Illinois. At age 19, after graduating from Moline High School, he volunteered for the World War II Army Air Force. There he attended technical schools and trained as a bombsight and auto pilot technician. As part of his training, he participated in more than 120 flights of B-24 and B-29 heavy bombers. Test flights over Colorado, Oregon, New Mexico, Washington, and Wyoming awakened a keen interest in landforms and rock types. Charlie bought a junk car and spent leave days exploring canyons, rivers, and mountains he had seen from the air. Discharged in 1946, he spent the following year in the family-owned quarry in Moline, Illinois, as a rock blaster. The fossil-rich Silurian dolomite that he was mining caught his eye, and his interest in geology continued to grow.
In 1947, knowing of the geologic legacy at nearby Augustana College, he made an appointment with Professor Fritiof Fryxell who counseled Charlie on the requirements for a career in geology. With the support of the GI Bill, Charlie attended Augustana, receiving a bachelor’s degree (1949) in a remarkably short period of two and a half years. While at Augustana, he volunteered for work in the Geology Museum and quickly became a museum assistant working on vertebrate paleontology exhibits.
Professor Fryxell encouraged Charlie, upon his graduation, to apply for an assistantship in geology at the University of Iowa. He was accepted and after a semester as a teaching assistant he became a research assistant to Professor Arthur K. Miller, a well-known paleontologist and a prolific researcher with many published monographs and journal articles. The assistantship was unusual in that it involved a colleague-like relationship. It was a fast-track lesson in scientific writing, manuscript preparation, publication techniques, and critical review, skills that prepared Charlie for new challenges.
For his master’s degree (1950), Charlie made a comprehensive study of Mississippian cephalopods from Missouri. His doctorate degree (1952) was based on Upper Ordovician
Memorial to Charles Collinson
(1923–2011)
DENNIS R. KOLATA
Section of the ISGS. Professor Fryxell recommended Charlie, stating he “is an indefatigable worker, is unfailingly cooperative and considerate of others, and has a warm, friendly personality. Teachers and fellow students alike have held him in high regard, both at Augustana and at the University of Iowa. He is the type of man who radiates a wholesome and constructive influence.” Charlie was hired, and time would show these words to be an accurate characterization of him.
Charlie excelled at the ISGS and quickly moved up through the ranks from assistant geologist to associate geologist (1953) to geologist (1959). Following H.B. Willman’s retirement in 1969, Charlie was promoted to head of the Stratigraphy and Areal Geology Section, a position he held until his retirement in 1991.
During the 1950s and 1960s, he focused his research on the stratigraphy and paleontology of the standard reference sections for the Devonian and Mississippian Systems in the Mississippi Valley region. He was one of the first researchers to utilize conodonts in the biostratigraphic zonation of the Mississippian System. Working in collaboration with Alan J. Scott, Carl B. Rexroad, Gilbert Klapper, Willi Ziegler, R.I. Pinney, and R.W. Orr, Charlie showed that the presence of conodonts in Mississippian rocks provide geologists with a high degree of accuracy in correlating these rocks over global distances. He also played a key role in the development of laboratory techniques for mass processing of conodont samples.
Charlie was also a pioneer in popularizing fossils and geology. He recognized the benefits of writing about and illustrating these topics in non-technical publications that would appeal to the grade and junior high school levels, where children have a natural interest in the world around them. His most notable effort was A Guide for Beginning Fossil Hunters (Collinson, 1956), which became the most popular publication in the history of the ISGS with 10 printings and over 100,000 copies distributed. Updated and reformatted in 2002, the guide is as popular as ever.
In 1960, he was a visiting professor at Stanford University, where he taught graduate courses in paleoecology and marine biology. Charlie had a long working relationship with the Geology Department at the University of Illinois. He taught graduate courses in marine environments and conducted graduate workshops in the Florida Keys.
His outstanding research and service work landed him the prized Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship in 1963. Guggenheim Fellowships are intended for mid-career men and women who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship. Charlie used the fellowship to travel and study in Great Britain, Germany, Austria, and Italy.
Charlie was well known for his service to the Society of Economic Paleontologists and Mineralogists (SEPM). He served as editor of the Journal of Paleontology (1959–1964) and was president of SEPM (1973–1974). In addition, he served on the Publication Committee (1964– 1967), Technical Program (chairman, 1974), SEPM Nominating Committee (1975), Presidential Advisory Committee (1975–1984), and Twenhofel Medal Committee (1975). He was made an Honorary Member of SEPM in 1985 and received an Appreciation Award for Service in 1986.
Charlie also served as an officer, on committees, and editorial boards of the Geological Society of America, American Geological Institute, American Association of Petroleum Geologists, Paleontological Society, International Association of Great Lakes Research, Pander Society, International Sub-commission for Carboniferous Stratigraphy, and Illinois Academy of Sciences.
In the late 1960s, Charlie began to focus his research and service efforts on the sedimentary processes that were causing increased coastal erosion along the Lake Michigan shoreline. He authored over three dozen major reports on lake geology and coastal processes. He worked as an advisor and collaborator with the Chicago Department of Planning, Chicago Park District,
Illinois Department of Conservation, Chicago Lakeshore Erosion Commission, many riparian residents, as well as engineering firms. A certified scuba diver, he examined many underwater structures and was ever present on the shore during major storms.
He was active in the International Association for Great Lakes Research and was an associate editor for the organization in 1974 and 1975. He was a long-time member of the SEPM Coastal Research Group and Association of Coastal Sedimentologists. He was program chairman of the SEPM Great Lakes Section in 1974, and vice-chairman of the U.S. Great Lakes Commission Technical Advisory Committee in 1984.
Following his retirement in 1991, Charlie kept regular office hours at the ISGS, where he continued to interact with the staff and pursued his keen interest in Illinois fossils. In 2002, the ISGS published a new version of his Guide for Beginning Fossil Hunters (ISGS Ed Series 15) and a series of colorful hand-drawn fossil bookmarks. Charlie’s artistic talent and sharp eye for detail are revealed in some of his final drawings, which included reconstructions of Paleozoic trilobites and Quaternary mammals of Illinois. He received the ISGS Distinguished Lifetime Achievement Award in 1990.
He is survived by his wife of 33 years, Charlene Anchor; his daughter, Crystal (David) Chen of Amherst, New Hampshire; his son, Charles W. (Betty) Collinson III of Hudson, New Hampshire; and his brother, Don Collinson of West Des Moines, Iowa. Also surviving are seven grandsons, Paul (Joanne Pons) Chen of San Francisco, California; Brian (Jennifer) Chen of Washington, D.C.; and Ian Smith, Collin Collinson, Dylan Collinson, Harlan Collinson, and Gavin Collinson all of Hudson, New Hampshire. Charles was preceded in death by his first wife, Mary Collinson, the mother of his two children.
Charlie felt lucky to have experienced the life he had. Daily he was grateful for his family, friends, and the opportunity to continue doing the things he loved. He was always upbeat and ready with a warm smile and handshake. Charlie had a genuine interest in the well-being of others. He will be missed deeply by those who knew and loved him.
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY OF CHARLES COLLINSON
1950 (with Miller, A.K.) A unique Mississippian nautiloid from Kentucky: Journal of Paleontology, v. 24, p. 673–674.
1951 (with Miller, A.K.) A clymenoid ammonoid from New Mexico: American Journal of Science, v. 248, p. 600–603.
1951 (with Miller, A.K.) Lower Mississippian ammonoids of Missouri [Master’s thesis]: Journal of Paleontology, v. 25, p. 454–487.
1951 (with Miller, A.K.) A new species of Hercoglossa from Maracaibo: Journal of Paleontology, v. 25, p. 377–379.
1952 (with Miller, A.K.) A new Jurassic nautiloid species from Morocco: Journal of Paleontology, v. 26, p. 626–627.
1952 (with Miller, A.K.) A trochoceratoid nautiloid from the Henryhouse Shale (Silurian) of Oklahoma: Journal of Paleontology, v. 26, p. 622–623.
1952 (with Miller, A.K.) Two cephalopods from near the Kinderhook-Osage boundary in Missouri: Journal of Paleontology, v. 26, p. 624–625.
1953 (with Miller, A.K.) An aberrant nautiloid of the Timor Permian: Journal of Paleontology, v. 27, p. 293–295.
1954 (with Miller, A.K., and Youngquist, W.L.) Ordovician Cephalopod Fauna of Baffin Island: Geological Society of America Memoir 62, 234 p.
1955 Mississippian prolecantid goniatities from Illinois and adjacent states: Journal of Paleontology, v. 29, p. 433–438.
1956 A guide for beginning fossil hunters: Illinois State Geological Survey Educational Series 4, 37 p.
1956 The Mississippian nautiloid genus Tylodiscoceras in Kentucky and Tennessee: Journal of Paleontology, v. 30, p. 1367–1369.
1958 Age of the Springville Shale (Mississippian) of southern Illinois: Illinois State Geological Survey Circular 254, 12 p.
1958 An addition to the holotype of the Chester nautiloid Endolobuschorenses: Journal of Paleontology, v. 32, p. 370–372.
1958 (with Benson, R.H.) Three ostracode faunas from lower and middle Mississippian strata in southern Illinois: Illinois State Geological Survey Circular 255, 26 p.
1958 (with Scott , A.J.) A Chitinous anaptychus from the Pennsylvanian of Illinois: Journal of Paleontology, v. 32, p. 369–370.
1958 (with Scott, A.J.) Chitinozoan faunule of the Devonian Cedar Valley Formation: Illinois State Geological Survey Circular 247, 34 p.
1959 A guide for beginning fossil hunters: Illinois State Geological Survey Educational Series no. 4 (rev. ed.), 37 p. (reprinted 1964, 1966, 1973, and 1980).
1959 (with Scott, A.J.) Intraspecific variability in conodonts: Palmatolepis glabra Ulrich & Bassler: Jounal of Paleontology, v. 33, p. 550–565.
1959 (with Rexroad, C.B., and Scott, A.J.) Abundance and stratigraphic distribution of Devonian and Mississippian conodonts in the upper Mississippi Valley: Journal of Paleontology, v. 33, p. 692–696.
1960 (with Skartvedt, R.) Field book of Pennsylvanian plant fossils of Illinois: Illinois State Geological Survey Educational Series 6, 30 p.
1961 The Kinderhookian Series in the Mississippi Valley: Missouri Division Geological Survey and Water Resources Report of Investigations no. 27, p. 100–109.
1961 (with Scott, A.J.) Conodonts from the McCraney and Louisiana Formations of the Mississippi Valley: Missouri Division Geological Survey and Water Resources Report of Investigations no. 27, p. 110–136.
1962 (with Scott, A.J., and Rexroad, C.B.) Six charts showing biostratigraphic zones and correlations based on conodonts from the Devonian and Mississippian rocks of the Upper Mississippi Valley: Illinois State Geological Survey Circular 328, 32 p. 1963 Collection and preparation of conodonts through mass production techniques: Illinois
State Geological Survey Circular 343, 16 p.
1963 (with Rexroad, C.B.) Conodonts from the St. Louis Formation (Valmeyeran Series) of Illinois, Indiana and Missouri: Illinois State Geological Survey Circular 355, 28 p. 1965 (with Rexroad, C.B.) Conodonts from the Keokuk, Warsaw and Salem Formations
(Mississippian) of Illinois: Illinois State Geological Survey Circular 388, 26 p. 1967 Devonian of the north-central region, United States: International Symposium on the
Devonian System, Alberta Society of Petroleum Geologists, v. 1, p. 933–939. 1967 (with Becker, L., James, G.W., Keonig, J.W., and Swann, D.W.) Illinois Basin:
International Symposium on the Devonian System, Alberta Society of Petroleum Geologists, v. 1, p. 940–962.
1967 (with Carlson, M.P., Dorheim, F.H., and Keonig, J.W.) Central Iowa Basin: International Symposium on the Devonian System, Alberta Society of Petroleum Geologists, v. 1, p. 963–967.
1967 (with Willman, H.B., Atherton, E., Buschbach, T.C., Clegg, K.E., Frye, J.C., Lineback, J.A., and Simon, J.A.) Geologic map of Illinois (scale 1:500,000): Illinois State Geological Survey.
3300 Penrose Place • P.O. Box 9140 Boulder, CO 80301-9140, USA Printed in U.S.A. on Recycled Paper
1970 (with Gross, D.L., Lineback J.A., White, W.A., Ayers, N.J., and Leland, H.V.) Preliminary stratigraphy of unconsolidated sediments from the southwestern part of Lake Michigan: Illinois State Geological Survey Environmental Geology Note 30, p. 1–20.
1971 (with Klapper, G., Sandberg, C.A., Huddle, J.W., Orr, R.W., Richard, L.V., Schumacher, D., Seddon, G., and Uyeno, T.T.) North American Devonian conodont stratigraphy: Geological Society of America Memoir 127, p. 285–316.
1971 (with Rexroad, C.B., and Thompson, T.L.) Conodont zonation of the North American Mississippian: Geological Society of America Memoir 127, p. 353–395.
1972 (with Avcin, M.J., Norby, R.D., and Merrill, G.K.) Pennsylvanian conodont assemblages from La Salle County, northern Illinois: Illinois State Geological Survey Guidebook Series 10, 37 p.
1975 Illinois State Geological Survey—Lake Michigan Studies, Report to the House of Representatives and the 78th General Assembly–Special Committee on Lake Michigan (Mann Committee), p. 101–111.
1975 (with Atherton, E.) Devonian System, in Handbook of Illinois Stratigraphy: Illinois State Geological Survey Bulletin 95, p. 104–123.
1975 (with Berg, R.C.) Bluff erosion, recession rates, and volumetric losses on the Lake Michigan shore in Illinois: Illinois Division of Water Resources Coastal Zone Management Program, vol. II, Coastal Geological Studies, 39 p.
1975 (with Lineback, J.A.) Sediment movement in southern Lake Michigan monitored by the satellites LANDSAT and SKYLAB: Illinois Division of Water Resources Coastal Zone Management Program, vol. II, Coastal Geological Studies, 35 p.
1975 (with Atherton, E., and Lineback, J.A.) Mississippian System, in Handbook of Stratigraphy: Illinois State Geological Survey Bulletin 95, p. 123–163.
1975 (with Drake, P.L., and Anchor, C.K.) Inventory of physical characteristics of the Illinois shore north of Chicago: Illinois Division of Water Resources, Coastal Zone Management Program, vol. II, Coastal Geological Studies, 72 p.
1977 (with Norby, R.D., Drake, P.L., Berg, R.C., and Anchor, C.K.) Coastal Zone Atlas showing maps of the coastal zone, the Lake Michigan 100-year open coast flood plain, the Lake Michigan sheltered flood, the 100-year open risk erosion area and proposed geographic areas of particular concern: Illinois Division of Water Resources Coastal Zone Management Program, Atlas, 71 p.
1979 (with Norby, R.D., Thompson, T.L., and Baxter, J.W.) Stratigraphy of the Mississippian Stratotype–Upper Mississippi Valley, U.S.A.: Ninth International Congress of
Carboniferous Stratigraphy and Geology, Field Trip Guidebook 8, Urbana, Illinois, 109 p. 1986 (with Smith, L.) Geology of the Illinois-Michigan Canal National Heritage Corridor:
National Park Service Contract Report published by the Illinois-Michigan Canal National Heritage Corridor Commission, Joliet, Illinois, 159 p.
1988 (with Sargent, M.L., and Jennings, J.R.) Illinois Basin region, in Sloss, L.L., Vail, P.R., and Mankin, C.J., eds., Sedimentary Cover—North American Craton U.S.: Boulder, Colorado, Geological Society of America, Geology of North America, v. D-2, 41 p. 2002 Guide for beginning fossil hunters: Illinois State Geological Survey, Geoscience
