Old Missoula

Dr. Harold Chatland – Mathmatician & “Hockey Ace”

MISSOULA – Harold Chatland, who died last Monday after a brief illness, was born in 1911 in Hamilton, Ontario, to Sarah Hewitt Chatland and Albert Chatland.

He graduated from McMaster University in 1934 with degrees in mathematics and physics. His Ph.D. followed three years later from the University of Chicago with a dissertation on the Waring problem directed by L.E. Dickson. In those days, fresh Ph.D’s were always hired at the rank of instructor, and it was at that rank that Harold (Hal) Chatland started his career at the University of Montana in 1937. It was the beginning of a long and productive career which spanned five decades and included teaching, research and administration in both academic and industrial settings.

During the war years, 1941-45, the normal enrollment at the university had dropped by a dramatic 75 percent, but this decline was largely offset by the university’s role in the training of Army Air Force personnel. For the mathematics department (Carey, Chatland, Dubish, Lennes, Lommasson, and Merrill) this meant teaching the rudiments of mathematics and navigation to large numbers of young men under very trying circumstances. Regular university courses, however, were still being taught. Professor Carey was teaching advanced mathematical analysis, but he became ill and was replaced by Dr. Chatland. Among the students were Joe Hashisaki who joined the faculty in the mid-1950s.

In 1946, Harold became an associate professor at Ohio State University. Nearby was Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, and Hal became quite involved in teaching partial differential equations and in doing research for the Air Force. He returned to the University of Montana in 1950 and stayed until 1960. During this period, he became involved with university administration and served as department chair, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, Dean of the Faculty, and finally, as Academic Vice-President.

He always remained an active teacher. During the summer of 1956, he taught number theory and astronomy to a group of enthusiastic but somewhat incorrigible high school students. Jack Silver and Keith Yale were among those of that group who later became mathematicians. Tomme Lu Worden (nee Middleton), the Program Director at the Lodge, was the steady and caring chaperone for the group.

The demand for scientific talent throughout the country was overwhelming in 1960 and Hal Chatland joined Sylvania where, except for a short interlude at Western Washington University, he was to remain until his retirement in November 1970. His work at Sylvania (still classified) mainly dealt with missile detection and missile security systems. Following his retirement, he served as the project director under grants from the National Science Foundation for the water quality in Monterey Bay and for various problems concerning the abalone fisheries of California.

Harold Chatland returned to Missoula last year and lived with his youngest daughter, Lee, and her husband Eric Clemmensen. His daughter, Clare Pearson, practices medicine in Santa Rosa, Calif.

He was predeceased by his oldest daughter, Anne, in 1982, and by his wife, Alice in 1984.

He is survived by three grandchildren, Kathryn Pearson M.D. of Jacksonville, Fla., Kent Douglas Pearson of Studio City, Calif., and Christian Clemmensen of Missoula.

Private burial services are pending and a memorial celebration will be held next month.

Please send any memorial donations to the Joe Hashisaki Memorial Scholarship Fund c/o the Mathematics Department at the University of Montana.

Arrangements are under the direction of the Malletta Family of Funeral Homes Livingston Chapel, 224 W. Spruce.

The above obituary appeared in The Daily Missoulian on August 12, 1999

The article above did not mention Dr. Chatland’s interest in hockey. Once described as a former Canadian hockey “ace”, he was credited in 1958 with starting a “semi-official” hockey team at the University of Montana, composed mainly of Canadian students. These student athletes were designated as “independents,” and their schedule required out-of-town games since Missoula didn’t have a regulation rink at the time. Glacier Ice Rink at the Fairgrounds was Missoula’s first official hockey rink. It was completed in 1996.