Joseph Silas Diller — 

 An Appreciation 



Nam. ^j^g jjj^g Joseph Silas Diller, for 

 Stbkb a 40 years a federal geologist, was 



born of Swiss parentage, near Plain- 



field. Pa., Aug. 28, 1850. At 23 years 

 Tsujp of age he became a teacher in the State 



Normal School at Westfield, Mass., 



Name, bolding this position until 1877. He 



then went to Harvard University and 

 STiutB- received the degree of B.S. from the 



Lawrence Scientific School in 1879. 



For the next four years, 1877-1882, he 

 TiLBHi was engaged in post-graduate work at 



Harvard and Heidelberg, Germany, 

 ' specializing in petrology. During part 

 STitBBi "f this time he made a journey to the 



i-egion of the ancient city of Troy, Asia 

 CiTv. Minor, as the geologist of the Assos 



Expedition and published a summary 

 «LBriJ j^.^ results in "Notes on the Geology 

 Namk. of the Troad," in Science, Vol. 2, 



August, 1883. He was married June 5, 

 Street 1883, to Laura L Paul, of Greason, Pa. 



In August, 1883, he was made an 



assistant geologist on the LT. S. Geo- 

 Tbleih logical Survey and was assigned to a 



study of the Cascade Range, under the 



direction of Captain C. E. Dutton, who 

 i„i,j^.^, has written in complimentary terms of 



his work. He was promoted to geolo- 

 ciTv. gist in 1890, a rank which lie held until 



he retired in 1923. On his first assign- 

 im-npii „,ent, he visited Lassen Peak and 

 NvMH, Moimt Shasta, in California, and 



Crater Lake, Mount Scott, Union 

 MUKET, Peak, Mount Thielson, Diamond Peak, 



and the Three Sisters, in Oregon. In 

 ' climbing one of the Three Sisters the 



vvxf.rw party met with a serious accident. 



which nearly ended his career, a high 



