Dayton Stoner

 

1883-1944

 

Stoner was born on November 26, 1883 in North Liberty, Iowa to Marcus and Nancy (Koser) Stoner.  After graduating from Iowa City High School in 1902, Stoner began attending the University of Iowa (then known as the State University of Iowa) in 1903 and graduated in 1907.  He continued his education at the University of Iowa and received an MS in 1909, thesis titled “A comparative study of the facial bones of the mammalia.”  During this time, Stoner studied with several other prominent scientific figures of Iowa: Calvin, Houser, MacBride, Nutting, Shimek, Stromsten, and Wickam.  After graduation Stoner worked at the Iowa Natural History Museum and as an adjunct professor.  In 1913 and 1914, Stoner served as the zoologist for an expedition to Vancouver Island and began lecturing at Iowa State University.  Soon after he began work on his dissertation titled “The Scutelleroidea of Iowa” and graduated in 1919. It was also during this time that he published his well known book “The Rodents of Iowa.”  Stoner was then appointed as a professor at the University of Iowa from 1919 until 1928.  While at U of I, Stoner led several departmental field trips, the Iowa Okoboji Lakeside Laboratory, Douglas Lake Biological Station in Michigan, in addition he was a part of the University of Iowa expeditions to Barbados in 1918, Antigua 1918, Fiji 1922, and New Zealand also in 1922. 

.

Crew of the University of Iowa Barbados-Antigua Expedition April 23rd, 1918

Back: Charles Cleveland Nutting, Mrs. Nutting, Mrs. Thomas, Mrs. Stoner
Middle: Willis Nutting, Carl Nutting, Miss Mullin, Miss Sykes, Mr. Henderson, Mrs. Job, Mr. Job
Front: Mr. Wehman, Mr. Greenlaw, Mr. Dwight Ensign, A.O. Thomas, Mr. Ricker, Mr. Stoner, Miss Van Wegenen, Mr. Fisher

.

The 1918 expedition to Barbados and Antigua was led and chronicled by Charles Cleveland (C.C.) Nutting, in his log he noted that Dayton Stoner provided the evening entertainment by playing the mandolin.  Nutting also noted that Stoner encountered difficulty from the indigenous people who came to believe that he was a German spy.  Stoner then began receiving threats that he would be captured, stoned, and questioned.  Yet as Nutting explains: "Mr. Stoner proceeded on his way and is still at large."

.

After the death of C.C Nutting on January 23, 1927, Stoner took a leave of absence during the 1927-1928 academic year citing health reasons, however on May 1, 1928, he sent a letter of resignation to W.A. Jessup and severed all ties to the university stating that he had been forced to shift his studies away from his research interest-ornithology.  Shortly after, Stoner began working at the United State Bureau of Entomology, and after four years he accepted a position teaching and serving as the State Zoologist of New York.  Throughout his academic career Stoner held many interests from general zoology, entomology, mammalogy, to ornithology. His expertise in these subjects is reflected in his over 160 published works.  Besides academic publications, Stoner was known for bringing zoology and the natural world to the average person through publishing several guides for identifying highway wildlife casualties. 

.

In 1912, Dayton Stoner married Lillian R. Christianson.  Christianson was born on June 12, 1885 in Norway, graduated from the University of Iowa, and accompanied her husband on several trips.  She served as the state ornithologist in New York for twenty years and died on March 25, 1978 at the age of 92.

.

During his career Stoner was a member or fellow of the following professional societies: Sigma Xi, Baconian Club, American Association for the Advancement of Science, Entomological Society of America, Wilson Ornithological Club, National Audubon Society, Iowa Academy of Science, American Society of Mammalogists.  Dayton Stoner died on May 8, 1944 from lung cancer after recovery from a serious illness in 1943, he was 61 years old.

.

For more information on the 1918 Barbados and Antigua expedition follow the links below:

http://fossils.its.uiowa.edu/paleo/Barbados/Homepage.htm

 

Additional information on Dayton Stoner may be found through these resources:

 

Snyder, LL.  1945.  Dayton Stoner. 1883-1944.  Journal of Mammalogy, 26:111-113.