Ulrich Grubenmann (mineralogist)

Ulrich Grubenmann

Ulrich Grubenmann (born April 15, 1850 in Trogen ; † March 16, 1924 in Zurich ; resident in Trogen) was a Swiss mineralogist and university professor . He was the founder of the Mineralogical-Chemical Institute of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich and a pioneer of chemical rock analysis.

life and work

Ulrich Grubenmann was the son of the baker Hans Kaspar and Katharina, née Eugster. He grew up in poor conditions. Thanks to sponsors, he was able to attend the Trogen Cantonal School and, until 1869, the Kreuzlingen teacher training college . He then taught as a primary school teacher in Trogen for a few years. Grubenmann passed the diploma examination at the ETH Zurich in 1874 as a subject teacher for natural sciences. In 1876 he married Ida, née Baumer. He married Lisette, nee Fisch, five years later.

From 1879 to 1886 he was vice rector and then rector at the canton school in Frauenfeld . Here he taught chemistry, mineralogy, geology and zoology as a professor from 1874 to 1893. In addition, Grubenmann was secondary inspector and, from 1884, head of cantonal food control.

During her vacation, Grubenmann learned the new methods of crystallographic and microscopic mineral and rock analysis in Munich (1875/1876), Heidelberg (1886) and Vienna. The laboratory work was followed by study trips to German and Italian volcanic areas. Grubenmann received his doctorate in 1886 at the University of Zurich with a dissertation on Die Basalte des Hegnau , a petrographic study . In 1888 he completed his habilitation as a lecturer at both Zurich universities. In 1893 he was appointed to the ETH and at the same time to the University of Zurich, where he succeeded Gustav Adolf Kenngott (1818–1897). Until 1929 he was a full professor of mineralogy and geology at the two Zurich universities and director of the large mineralogical-petrographic collection.

Grubenmann was the first to set up a system of rock metamorphosis . In the geology course, which is mainly intended for geologists, and in special lectures, he taught how to view minerals and rocks as products of geological, physical-chemical factors to be assessed.

Architects, engineers, foresters and agronomists were introduced to the questions of rock and soil quality by Grubenmann with the lecture "Practical Petrography". In 1904 and 1907 his groundbreaking two-volume publication Die Kristallinen Schiefer appeared .

Grubenmann was President of the Geotechnical Commission of the " Swiss Natural Research Society " and for a period of 15 years President and later Honorary President of the "Thurgau Natural Research Society". From 1904 to 1906 he was also President of the “ Natural Research Society in Zurich ”.

Grubenmann resigned from his teaching post in 1920. He was succeeded by Paul Niggli . For his services, the government of the Canton of Zurich appointed Ulrich Grubenmann honorary professor .

literature

• Paul Hui: Ulrich Grubenmann - A mineralogist. In: Thurgauer Jahrbuch . Vol. 55, 1980, pp. 57-62. ( e-periodica.ch )
• Jakob J., Hans Schinz: List of publications by Prof. Dr. U. pit man. 1920, pp. 93-99. ( PDF )
• Paul Niggli: Necrology for Ulrich Grubenmann. In: Quarterly journal of the Natural Research Society in Zurich. 1924, pp. 344-349. ( PDF )

Web links

• Thomas Fuchs: Ulrich Grubenmann. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
• Pit man, Ulrich. In: University of Zurich , historical course catalogs