PHOTOGRAMMETRIC ENGINEERING & REMOTE SENSING
October 2018
597
In Memoriam
James Anderson
1926-2018
ASPRS Honorary Member
James M. Anderson, a resident of Kensington, California,
passed away peacefully on August 23, at age 92, with his wife
and daughter by his side.
Born on February 14, 1926, in Summerville, Pennsylvania,
Jim grew up in Templeton, a small town near Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania. He served in the Army Air Force from 1944
to 1946 in the Philippines and Japan as a radio operator and
telephone lineman, then attended the University of Pitts-
burgh. With his B.S. in Civil Engineering (1949), he worked
as an engineer and land surveyor in and around Pittsburgh
until 1958, when he began graduate work at Cornell Uni-
versity. After completing his Ph.D., he taught for a year at
the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, before taking a
job at the University of California, Berkeley, in 1966. There,
he taught and did research for thirty-six years. He loved
teaching and was a mentor for many graduate students,
who remained in touch with him long after they had left. His
surveying lab classes were a familiar sight around campus.
He knew his undergraduate students by name and trained
several generations of students in surveying and photogram-
metry. Over the years, as an assignment, he had his survey-
ing students measure the movement of the fault that the UC
Berkeley stadium sits upon. He retired from full teaching in
1991, but continued to teach part-time for another ten years.
With his good friend Ed Mikhail, he co-authored the textbook,
Introduction to Surveying and was also one of the authors of
Surveying: Theory and Practice. He remained active in his
profession until his health declined significantly in fall 2015.
In 1968, Jim married Ruth Sherlock, whom he had met at
Cornell University. Together, they had one daughter, Con-
nie Anderson. A devoted and loving husband and father, he
was steadfast and rock solid, a kind, self-effacing man with a
radiant smile and a deep, rich laugh Though often quiet, he
was a great storyteller who could keep his audience in rapt
attention. He was also a wonderful listener and his equanim-
ity brought peace to many people. He will be sorely missed by
all who knew him and loved him.
Always happiest when he was out hiking or cross-country ski-
ing, especially in the mountains, Jim made sure to get away to
Lake Tahoe or Yosemite several times a year with his family,
as well as to plan road trips to other national and state parks,
passing on his love of the outdoors. He chose to spend three re-
search sabbaticals in Scandinavia, two in Finland and one in
Sweden. Family travels extended to many parts of Europe and
into Asia and South America. He also shared his love of classi-
cal music with his family, especially opera; until the very end,
music brought him comfort and joy. He was an avid reader, par-
ticularly of history, long biographies and mysteries. A lover of
exercise, for over thirty years, he ran three miles three times a
week, in addition to walking three miles down to school often
(and sometimes back). He continued to strive to keep as active
as possible even after his body began failing him.
Jim’s sister, Emily Schock was two years older than he was
and her birthday fell two days before his; she predeceased
him by two days. Jim is survived by his devoted wife and
daughter of Kensington, CA, by his brother-in-law, Arthur
Schock of Pittsburgh, PA, and their children and families,
and by two sisters-in-law and their families.
Friends, family and caregivers attended Jim’s funeral ser-
vice on Saturday, September 1, 2018, at 2 p.m. The burial
service took place at Sunset Cemetery in El Cerrito, Califor-
nia, on September 4, 2018. Donations may be made to Loaves
and Fishes at Newman Hall Holy Spirit Parish in Berkeley,
California.
Published in the San Francisco Chronicle on August. 30, 2018
