✞Memorial to Sherman Kennerson Neuschel 1913-1991 - FRANK C. WHITMORE JR. - U.S. Geological Survey, MS NHB 137, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C. 20560

Sherman K. Neuschel was born in Buffalo, New York, on December 21, 1913, the son of Percy J. Neuschel and Anna Becker Neuschel. He grew up in nearby Hamburg, and, after graduated from high school, entered Denison University in Granville, Ohio. At Denison, in addition to much involvement in extracurricular activities, he soon decided to become a geologist. During his senior year he taught all laboratory sections in physical and historical geology, conducted field trips, and graded all papers for the chairman of the geology department. In college Sherm met Virginia Smith, a Granville girl, classmate, and fellow geologist. They were married, and in 1937 they went to New York City, where Sherm was in graduate school at Columbia University studying geomorphology under Douglas Johnson. As it did for many of his generation, World War II altered the course of Sherm’s career. He completed the course and language requirements and passed the oral exam for his Ph.D., but before he could undertake his thesis, the exigencies of war placed him in the Strategic Minerals Program of the U.S. Geological Survey. From 1942 to 1944 he did both surface and subsurface mapping of strategic minerals, principally manganese, in New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, and Montana. Although she was not employed by the Survey, Ginny Neuschel worked with Sherm on the mapping project. Harry S. Ladd, Sherm’s supervisor, later said “They took turns running the alidade. We got two geologists for the price of one.”

In 1944 the USGS had established the Military Geology Unit, a group of geologists, soil scientists, hydrologists, engineers, and botanists who prepared terrain intelligence reports for the armed services, principally the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. These classified reports dealt with present or potential combat areas, presenting in maps and text the locations of landing beaches, suitability of ground for cross-country movement, construction materials, water supply, airfield siting and other applications of natural science to military operations. By 1944 the demand for these reports had escalated, and many geologists were transferred from the Strategic Minerals Program to the Military Geology Unit. Sherm was one of these, joining the unit in July 1944. The Strategic Engineering Studies, as the unit’s reports were called, had proved so useful that the Corps of Engineers asked the USGS to furnish consultants to theater headquarters and troops in the field. Sherm was assigned to one of the consulting groups, the Engineer Terrain Intelligence Team headquarters, Pacific Ocean area, in Hawaii, from this post he was assigned to the Eighth U.S. Army, reporting for duty on Guam and accompanying the Eighth Army as it secured the island of Okinawa, recently wrested from the Japanese. When this job was finished he moved to Korea with the advance echelon of the Eighth Army. It was September 1945; the war had ended and it had been decided that the U.S. Army would accept the Japanese surrender south of the 38th Parallel and that the Soviet Army would accept surrender north of that line. Thus, North and South Korea were bom, and the U.S. Army was suddenly faced with the task of organizing a country that had been under Japanese subjugation for fifty years. Sherm’s duties in Okinawa and Korea were to advise both headquarters and field units of the Engineers about such matters as location of construction materials, road repairs, and the extension of airstrips to accommodate U.S. aircraft.

In the fall of 1945 Sherm returned to Washington, where he spent about a year as research supervisor in the Military Geology Unit, completing reports begun during the war. Meanwhile, the continued American presence in the western Pacific led to further demands for geological work there. Wartime intelligence studies had demonstrated the dearth of knowledge about the islands. The inclusion of many of them in the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, a United Nations mandate under American administration, made it clear that this gap must be filled quickly. Harry S. Ladd, assistant chief geologist of the USGS, had worked for many years in the Pacific islands. In 1946 he presented to the Office of the Chief of Engineers a long-term plan for geologic and soils mapping of the major islands of the western Pacific. The plan was approved; it was to be financed by the Corps of Engineers, staffed by the U.S. Geological Survey, and administered by the Military Geology Branch (formerly Unit) from an office in Tokyo, attached to the Office of the Engineer, Far East Command. Sherm was appointed chief of the Pacific Island Mapping Program, and in the fall of 1946 he went to Tokyo to establish the new office. Ginny joined him in August 1947; they lived in Tokyo until 1953, and their children Erik and Kristen were born there. The mapping plan derived from the method of preparation of the wartime Strategic Engineering Studies. First a geologic and a soils map (and sometimes a vegetation map) were prepared. Using these for basic data, along with topographic maps and aerial photographs, maps were compiled showing the engineering characteristics of the terrain. The program was designed to produce two types of reports: applied earth science and basic research. In the first category a military geology study was prepared for each island or island group, and published by the Office of the Engineer, Far East Command, U.S. Army. These were quarto volumes accompanied by maps at a scale of 1:25,000 or 1:50,000, covering the basic and applied subjects mentioned above. In the basic research category, scientists in the program were encouraged—and allowed working time—to write scientific papers on significant aspects of their island work. The most comprehensive of these were published as U.S. Geological Survey Professional Papers; many were published in scientific journals. The list of such publications is too long to include here; they covered a wide range of subjects including Cenozoic stratigraphy, fossil faunas and correlation, and petrography of limestones and volcanics.

Sherm’s office in Tokyo was the hub of this complex operation, and he performed admirably in a demanding job that blended pure and applied science, logistics, and diplomacy. There were usually two, and sometimes three, island parties in the field at a time. Each consisted of a party chief, two or three other geologists, and a soil scientist. This cadre would spend one to three years on an island. They were joined for shorter periods by specialists as needed for such subjects as engineering geology, vegetation, and coral reefs. Personnel for the island parties were recruited in Washington and sent to Tokyo, where the parties were organized and dispatched to the islands. This was where both logistics and diplomacy came into play. Sherm’s office was a part of the Intelligence Division, Office of the Engineer, Far East Command. He was thus with the U.S. Army but not of it. All USGS personnel in the program traveled on military orders, and supply of the field parties was through military channels. But once in the field, the parties operated like any USGS field party; the army never interfered in how they did their work. Maintaining this balanced state of affairs was an important part of Sherm’s job, and he did it superbly. Sherm and Ginny participated in the life of an army post; Sherm played tennis with the colonel, and Ginny joined the Engineer Officers’ Wives Club. Meanwhile, at the office, Sherm constantly had to explain the program to officers who tended to regard it as academic; the chief of engineers, who had approved the program, was far away in Washington.

The enormous area of the Pacific Island Mapping Program included the Ryukyu, Mariana, Caroline, and Marshall Island groups. During Sherm’s tenure as chief of the program, the following islands were mapped: Amami-O-Shima, Okinawa, Ishigaki, Guam, Saipan, Tinian, Palau, and Truk. On several of these islands, geological and ecological studies were made of offshore reefs. As backup to the island mapping, Sherm established a staff of translators to make Japanese geological literature available to the field staff. This led to the establishment of Operation RAGMAN-KO (Research and Analysis, Geology of Manchuria and Korea). This project, pursued jointly with the Tokyo Geographical Society, supported Japanese geologists who had worked for the South Manchurian Railway while, using their field notes, they compiled geologic maps of the areas where they had worked. These were later published by the Tokyo Geographical Society. In 1953 the Neuschels returned to Washington, where Sherm as appointed assistant chief of the Geochemistry and Petrology Branch of the USGS—a group of 300 or more people including geologists, chemists, mathematicians, and laboratory assistants. He held this position for five years and then, in 1958, returned to field work. The Geophysics Branch of the USGS, on behalf of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, had recently initiated the Aerial Radiological Measurement Survey I (ARMS I), whose mission was to measure gamma-ray background radiation for areas in and adjacent to nuclear facilities. The USGS had been a pioneer in airborne geophysical observations: first in aeromagnetic surveys, a technique developed from antisubmarine operations of World War II, and later in aeroradioactivity surveys. Sherm joined this program with the assignment of examining the possible correlation between airborne geophysical measurements and the geology of the area observed. The ARMS I program covered some sixteen areas throughout the United States. Of these, preliminary observations indicated that the best correlation between bedrock geology and airborne observations might occur in the Piedmont province of the eastern United States. Sherm undertook to test this hypothesis by field study of fourteen 7.5' quadrangles in the Spotsylvania area of northern Virginia. The possibility of airborne data for geologic mapping is especially attractive for the Piedmont because of the depth of weathering and the paucity of outcrops. Sherm began his survey in a sensible and interesting fashion, with a two-week canoe trip, accompanied by Jean Blanchet, down the Rapidan and Rappahannock Rivers. Using this as a baseline, he tied in an extensive sample series covering the area. In the complex geology of the Piedmont, the correlation between lithology and airborne data (both gamma-ray emission and magnetic measurements) proved to be high. Lithologic boundaries could be more accurately located, and some previously unknown granitic intrusives were delineated.

Sherm’s last assignment, beginning in 1971, was the study and mapping of the environmental geology of Montgomery County, Maryland, and Fauquier County, Virginia. These counties are two of the principal centers of rapid urbanization in the metropolitan area of Washington, D.C. This was a subject to which Sherm had given much thought. Although the phrase “environmental geology” had not been coined in the 1950s, this was what the Pacific Island Mapping Program did—a combination of geology, soils, and vegetation applied to mankind’s impact on our world. Sherm retired in 1974. Ginny, who had worked at the Survey since their return from Japan, continued as chief of the Public Inquiries Office. They lived in Bethesda, Maryland, where Sherm was active in community affairs and continued, as always, his voracious reading of history and biography. In 1979 the Neuschels were invited by the International Institute for Mineral Research and Development to spend a year in Japan teaching English to young geologists and metallurgists. The Institute was a Japanese organization supported by mining companies, and its campus was in a small village on the south slope of Mount Fuji. As Ginny put it, their Japanese students knew more English grammar than the Neuschels did, but had no training in spoken English. During the year, Sherm and Ginny were able to renew old friendships. After their return to Bethesda, Sherm’s health began to decline, and in 1991 they moved to Clemmons, North Carolina, to be near their children. Sherm died shortly after their arrival there, on June 30, 1991. Besides Ginny and their children, Erik and Kristen, Sherm is survived by three grandchildren.

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY OF S. K. NEUSCHEL 

1964 (with Pitkin, J. A., and Bates, R. G.) Aeroradioactivity surveys and geologic mapping, in Adams, J. A. S., and Lowder, W. M., eds., The natural radiation environment: Chicago, University of Chicago Press, p. 723-736. 

1965 Natural gamma activity of the District of Columbia and parts of Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia: U.S. Geological Survey Geophysical Investigations Map GI-475. 

1970 Aeroradioactivity survey and areal geology of the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, MinnesotaWisconsin (ARMS I): U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, Civil Effects Study CEX 51.7.1, p. 1-24, map, scale 1:250,000. 

------ (and Bunker, C. M.) Correlation of uranium, thorium and potassium radioactivity over a high-thorium pluton in the Berea area, Salem Church quadrangle, Virginia [abs.]: Geological Society of America Abstracts, v. 2, no. 3, p. 234. 

------Correlation of aeromagnetics and aeroradioactivity with lithology in the Spotsylvania area, Virginia: Geological Society of America Bulletin, v. 87, p. 3575-3582. 

1971 (and Bunker, C. M., and Bush, C. A.) Correlation of uranium, thorium and potassium with aeroradioactivity in the Berea area, Virginia: Economic Geology, v. 66, no. 2, p. 301-308.

✞Virginia Harrison Smith Neuschel died Tuesday, November 20, 2012. She was born February 16, 1912 in Bluefield, W. VA to the late Edward Howard and Anna Maria Condit Smith. She was preceded in death in 1991 by her husband Sherman K. Neuschel and by her four sisters and one brother. She is survived by her son, Erik J. Neuschel, her daughter, Kristen B. Neuschel and son-in-law, Alan Williams; her grandchildren, Scott Neuschel, Jesse Williams and Rachel Williams, and a number of loving nieces and nephews. Virginia was raised in Bluefield and in Granville, OH, where she graduated from local schools. She graduated from Denison University in Granville in 1934, having been inducted into Phi Beta Kappa in her junior year, with a degree in geology. After three years working in the geology laboratories at Denison, she moved to New York to study geology at Columbia University, where she received her Master of Science degree in 1938. She married fellow geologist Sherman Neuschel in September 1939, the very week that Hitler launched World War II. During the war, Virginia worked much of the time with her husband, locating and mapping strategic minerals in the western United States for the government. Later, she joined Sherm in occupied Japan in 1947, where she led a scientific research team mapping Japan's former island colonies. During their stay in Japan, both of their children were born. Virginia also worked in Tokoyo for the American Red Cross during the Korean conflict. After the family's return to the United States in 1953, Virginia worked for the U.S. Geological Survey, until her retirement in 1977, as one of the editors of Geophysical Abstracts and Bibliography of North American Geology and later as the head of the Office of Geologic Inquiry. In 1979 she and Sherm returned to Japan for a year to teach at the International Institute for Mineral Research and Development. In 1991, she moved to the Winston-Salem area to be near her children. Ginny passed on her appreciation for nature to her children and grandchildren; in addition to geology, she enjoyed, and shared with her family, bird watching, reading and travel. In later years, she enjoyed extensive travel in Europe with old friends as well as time with her much-loved grandchildren. Her eldest sister always called Ginny ""the distinguished sister,"" but she is remembered as an accomplished woman and strong role model who never boasted about her achievements, and who always remained curious about the world as well as friendly towards and tolerant of people different from herself. In recent years of declining health, she maintained her sense of humor and appreciated everything that was done for her. A memorial service in celebration of Ginny's life will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, contributions in her name may be made to Denison University or to Planned Parenthood, an organization that Ginny wholeheartedly supported from its inception. The family wishes to thank the caregivers in the Catered Living Unit, Greystone Cottage and the Healthcare Center at Bermuda Village as well as to those from Hospice of Davie County for making Virginia's last year's happy and comfortable.

✞Several deeds set Robert P. Neuschel apart from his professorial peers at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management. One was the course on managerial leadership he designed and taught for more than 20 years. Another was his habit of starting each day with a chat and cup of coffee with employees in the dean's office. Another was his practice of saluting colleagues as he spoke with them or passed them in the hall.

Mr. Neuschel, 84, who became a professor after more than three decades with the international management consulting firm McKinsey & Co., died of cancer Monday, Feb. 9, in his Lake Forest home. Mr. Neuschel, who became an expert in transportation while at McKinsey, joined Kellogg in 1979 as a professor and was appointed director of Northwestern University's Transportation Center. In 1983 he designed the course that has proven to be one of the most popular at Kellogg.

"He would invite a guest lecturer, one of the luminaries from the Chicago business community, to speak to his students," said Robert Magee, senior associate dean for faculty and research. "It was a very effective way for the students to see examples of leadership and then to understand what those people were doing that made them effective leaders. It was something quite unusual because we don't usually have courses where there is a guest every week."

Born and raised in Hamburg, N.Y., Mr. Neuschel attended Denison University in Ohio before he was drafted in 1942 and served in the Philippines under Gen. Douglas MacArthur. On the first day of his 10-day leave before shipping out, Mr. Neuschel met his wife, Virginia, a friend of his sister-in-law's. Eight days later, they got married. They spent their honeymoon on the train to California. After his discharge, he attended Harvard Business School and earned his master's degree in business administration in 1947. About two years later, he joined McKinsey, where he rose to partner and director. After retiring he began his second career at Kellogg. 

"My father was really dedicated to the idea of servant leadership -- that you lead by serving others and setting a good example," said his daughter Carla Wyckoff. In 1998 he authored the book "The Servant Leader: Unleashing the Power of Your People." He also wrote more than 100 academic articles. "The strength of my father's character was immeasurable; it really permeated everything he did," she said. Every day without fail, Mr. Neuschel would rise, go outside, display his American flag and salute it. Passionate for the Southwest, he traveled there every summer with his son, Fritz, to climb mountains and into canyons. He was chairman of the Lake Forest Symphony, on the board of Loyola University Chicago, an elder of his church and a member of the church choir. Mr. Neuschel is also survived by another daughter, KerrAnne Ziprick; six grandchildren; and one great-grandchild. A memorial service will begin at 1 p.m. Thursday in First Presbyterian Church of Lake Forest, 700 N. Sheridan Rd., Lake Forest.

✞Burton H. Smith, 71, of Middleburg Heights [OH], who was building an unconventional ultralight airplane and helped build the Apollo space program's Lunar Landing vehicle (lunar module), died at his home Saturday of cancer. Born in Buffalo, N.Y., he rode his bicycle 10 miles every day to attend the Technical High School of Buffalo to help him become an engineer. After graduation, he was a draftsman mechanic from 1939-1944 for Curtiss Wright. He made layout drawings for ventilating and heating systems for the C-46 airplane and occasionally went on test flights. He was a World War II Army veteran and served as a radar mechanic in the Army Air Corps. After his military service, be attended Oklahoma Agricultural and Mechanical College and got a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering. He also earned a pilot's license. He returned to Buffalo to work for Bell Aerosystems for 25 years, and contributed to many aircraft projects including the X-22A, a vertical take-off and landing airplane; the Bell Hydroskimmer, helicopters; rockets and the lunar module. 

In 1976, he joined W. L. Tanksley, Inc. in Cleveland, now known as Aerospace Design and Fabrication, Inc. and was a team member on the most recent space shuttle project, working with the surface tension-driven convention experiment. He was a member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, secretary of the Experimental Aircraft Association local chapter 127 and a member of Sigma Tau and Pi Tau Sigma, honorary engineering fraternities. Mr. Smith was a registered professional engineer. He was a member of the Homebuilders Sunday School Class at the United Methodist Church of Berea and served on several boards at the church. At his former church in Buffalo, he served on the Board of Deacons and other committees. He enjoyed traveling, camping, bicycling and jogging. At 65 years old, he ran his first Revco 10-K race in Cleveland. Survivors Include his wife of 45 years, Marlys; sons Gary of Amherst and Randall of Bay City, Texas; a daughter, Vicki Schuller of Avon Lake; and six grandchildren. Friends may call 7-9 p.m. Monday and 2-4 p.m. Tuesday at the Baker Funeral Home, 206 Front St., Berea. Services will be held at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at the United Methodist Church of Berea. Memorials may be made to the church. Chronicle-Telegram (Elyria, Ohio) Sun, Sep 20, 1992