Many of the specimens in the San Diego Natural History Museum's collection came from Laurence Klauber, who donated his personal collection of 44,481 specimens to the Museum in 1961.
© Klauber Family Photograph Collection

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Laurie Klauber, as all of his friends called him, was born in San Diego, at the family home on the north side of C Street, between 8th and 9th. He was the youngest of 12 children, of whom nine grew to be adults. His parents were both immigrants from Bohemia, in Austria-Hungary. They had married in Sacramento and came to San Diego in 1869.

Laurie attended San Diego High School and Stanford University, and was present during the 1906 earthquake and fire in San Francisco. One of the family treasures is a long letter he wrote soon afterward describing his experiences there, an annotated version of which he published 50 years later for his friends and grandchildren.

He received an AB from Stanford in 1908 in Electrical Engineering, and was elected to Sigma Xi and Tau Beta Pi. Then he worked two years as an apprentice engineer at the Westinghouse Company in East Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Returning to San Diego in 1911, Laurie got a job with San Diego Consolidated Gas & Electric Company (forerunner of today's SDG&E) selling electric signs. He rose up the ladder in engineering and management posts, and after 43 years retired in 1953 as Chairman of the Board and CEO.

In 1922 Laurie became interested in collecting snakes, lizards and amphibians for the then struggling young San Diego Zoo, and after a time was appointed its first Curator of Reptiles--a non-paid position. Later he was elected to the Board of Trustees and was President of the Zoological Society of San Diego in 1949-51.

At various other times he was president of two trade associations, four scientific societies, the San Diego Rotary Club, and for the last 26 years of his life, the San Diego Public Library Commission.

The study of reptiles, particularly statistical analyses applied to the taxonomy of species, became an all-consuming hobby with Laurie, and in the 1930's his specialty in the rattlesnakes began to evolve. In 1956 the University of California Press published his two-volume work "Rattlesnakes: Their Habits, Life Histories and Influence on Mankind". After 33 years and a second edition which he prepared and was published in 1972, it is still regarded as the definitive work in its field.

He published often in the scientific press, and during his lifetime described 53 new species of reptiles and amphibians. Fourteen new species were named by other scientists after him. Laurie was given an honorary Ll.D. by UCLA in 1940, and this may be why many called him "Dr. Klauber". However he never used that term himself.

In retirement Laurie was often invited to speak to the Wednesday Club, to Rotary Clubs and elsewhere, and many of his Scholia talks were given double and triple duty that way. This sample of his titles show the diversity of his interests:

* The Atomic Bomb and its Aftermath
* Darwin After 100 Years
* A Delayed Book Review: the Life of Pliny
* The Population Explosion Smog: Is it a Threat to San Diego

He also was a great humorist, and often wrote poems for the birthdays or anniversaries of friends. I'll close with this excerpt from one he did at age 78 for the 50th anniversary of his marriage to Grace:

So now I've told you all I know
On how to make a marriage go.
Be always adamant and stern
Maintain your rights at every turn
Unless your spouse objects.

In that case it is well to know
It pays to be a peaceful Joe;
So turn around, reverse your course
And let your partner be the boss,
Which has benign effects

Driven by the pursuit of knowledge and the joy of discovery, Laurence M. Klauber (1883-1968) was an amateur naturalist who applied unusual skills and precision to his study of reptiles. Born in San Diego in 1883, he was a Renaissance man. He loved books, theatre, music, and opera, wrote poetry, served in several civic and scientific organizations, and held seven U.S. patents for his electrical inventions.

He rose through the ranks of San Diego Gas & Electric Company from an electric sign salesman to become president, then chairman and CEO. In the field of herpetology, he left his mark as the world authority on rattlesnakes. He was an outstanding scientist esteemed by his peers.

When horned lizards outnumbered people in San Diego, the young Laurence Klauber explored the local world of reptiles. In 1923, Mr. Klauber was asked by the San Diego Zoo to identify some snakes. He began studying books and actively corresponding with herpetologists, who encouraged him to conduct research and publish his findings. He wrote 100 scientific papers on the systematics of Southwest snakes and lizards and described 53 new species and subspecies of reptiles and amphibians. He was honored by other scientists with 14 new genera, species and subspecies named for him.

Fascinated with probabilities, he was a pioneer in applying statistical analysis to biology. "Night-driving" for snakes was a technique he invented by driving his car on desert roads. His research, which brought him face to face with more than 12,000 rattlesnakes in his lifetime, culminated in his monumental 1533-page definitive study Rattlesnakes: Their Habits, Life Histories, and Influence on Mankind, published in 1956.

Throughout his career, Klauber kept detailed journals of his daily life and research. By the time of his death in 1968, Klauber had meticulously chronicled his entire career - over 40 years of dedication to scientific pursuit.

Mr. Klauber put San Diego on the map in the field of herpetology. He donated 36,000 reptile and amphibian specimens to the San Diego Natural History Museum, including the most comprehensive collection of rattlesnakes in the world. A discriminating bibliophile, he amassed an extraordinary herpetological library: 1462 books, 19,000 pamphlets, 20 drawers of hand-written catalog cards, and 198 looseleaf binders of scientific notes, all generously donated to our Museum.

To honor a man of keen intellect and kindness of heart, who tirelessly pursued knowledge and generously shared information, the Museum dedicated REPTILES! Real and Robotic -- at the Museum February 21 to September 7, 1998 -- to Laurence M. Klauber.

Photo taken Jul 9, 2017. San Diego Natural History Museum Citizen Scientist exhibit, Balboa Park.