Baron, Frank, 1914-1994

Biographical Information

Francis (Frank) Martin Baron, born July 7, 1914 in Chicago, Illinois, served as professor of civil engineering at University of California, Berkeley and held an international reputation as a an expert in the fields of bridge and roof-structure design, and seismic and wind analysis. He was twice the recipient of the prized Leon S. Moisseiff Award issued annually by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), and among his manifold professional affiliations, served as chairman of the US Council of the International Association for Bridge and Structural Engineering.

Baron's research interests traced the current of cutting-edge theory in civil engineering design and construction. As an undergraduate architecture and engineering student and masters-level graduate student in structural engineering at the University of Illinois, Baron had the privilege of studying under two premier names in engineering design: H.M. Westergaard, known for his research on the use of reinforced concrete for pavement and dams, and Hardy Cross, an undisputed authority on contemporary structural frame analysis. He formed lasting bonds with both of these scholars, later reuniting with Westergaard at Harvard University and Cross at Yale University.

Baron married Milena Yaneva in September 1938, and shortly thereafter received his Sc. D. in structures and mechanics at Harvard University. The following year, Baron accepted a position on the civil engineering faculty at Yale University. While at Yale, Baron further explored his dissertation interest in the shearing stresses of slabs, and also spearheaded the formulation of a new departmental curriculum in transportation studies. After spending four years in New Haven, Baron accepted a full-professorship at Northwestern University, where he stayed for seven years. Plasticity and the comparative behavior of riveted and bolted steel joints served as his principal research interests.

In 1953, Baron accepted an invitation from the University of California at Berkeley to assume a dual position as Director of the Structural Engineering Laboratory and Professor of Civil Engineering. Shortly after his arrival, Baron resigned his position as head of the laboratory and devoted himself fully to his role as educator and researcher, increasing his course load and adopting a more expansive research methodology. Theory of design and planning became his primary instruction matter. Baron continued to teach at UC Berkeley for another thirty years, and was known by faculty and students alike as an unparalleled educator whose enthusiasm for his research was matched only by his concern for the intellectual and professional growth of his students.

Baron was perhaps best known in the Bay Area for his structural design work on the Dumbarton, Golden Gate, and Bay Bridges, as well as for his role in designing the roof structure of St. Mary's Cathedral in San Francisco. Other projects in which he served as consultant include the retrofitting of bridges across Saudi Arabia, the proposed bridge across the Strait of Gibraltar, and the proposed Inter-Continental Peace Bridge (ICPB) which would have joined Alaska and Siberia.

Frank Baron died October 17, 1994. Always interested in the history and progression of engineering and its role in society, one of his final activities was helping to ensure that the unacknowledged principal designer of the Golden Gate Bridge, Charles Ellis, gain proper recognition. To the end, he was man of integrity, who recognized and took pride in the ability of one engineer to change the world.

From the guide to the Frank Baron Papers, 1886-1994, (bulk 1931-1982), (The Bancroft Library.)