J Harlen Bretz
| Harley "J Harlen" Bretz | |
|---|---|
J Harlen Bretz in 1949
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| Born | September 2, 1882 |
| Died | February 3, 1981 (aged 98) Homewood, Illinois |
| Other names | Harlan J. Bretz, Harland J. Bretz |
| Nationality | American |
| Fields | Geology |
| Institutions | University of Washington, University of Chicago |
| Alma mater |
Albion College, AB 1905 University of Chicago, Ph.D. geology 1913 |
| Known for | Missoula Floods hypothesis, overturned uniformitarianism |
| Influences | Joseph Thomas Pardee |
| Notable awards | Penrose Medal, 1979 |
J Harlen Bretz (September 2, 1882 – February 3, 1981) was an American geologist, best known for his research that led to the acceptance of the Missoula Floods and for his work on caves. He was born to Oliver Joseph Bretz and Rhoda Maria Howlett, farmers in Saranac, Michigan, the oldest of five children. He earned a degree in biology from Albion College in 1905, where he also met his wife Fanny Chalis. Thereafter, he became interested in the geology of Eastern Washington State.
Bretz was of German heritage. Bretz graduated with his AB from Albion College in 1905. He then started his career as a high school biology teacher in Seattle. During this time he began studying the glacial geology of the Puget Sound area. He continued his studies at the University of Chicago where he earned his Ph.D. in geology in 1913. He became an assistant professor of geology, first at the University of Washington and then the University of Chicago.
He made important discoveries regarding the origin of the Channeled Scablands.
In the summer of 1922, and for the next seven years, Bretz conducted field research of the Columbia River Plateau. Since 1910 he had been interested in unusual erosion features in the area after seeing a newly published topographic map of the Potholes Cataract. Bretz coined the term Channeled Scablands in 1923 to describe the area near the Grand Coulee, where massive erosion had cut through basalt deposits. The area was a desert, but Bretz's theories required cataclysmic water flows to form the landscape, for which Bretz coined the term Spokane Floods in a 1925 publication.
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