George Henry Hargreaves

George Henry Hargreaves passed away peacefully on Sept. 5, 2009. Throughout his life and distinguished career as a civil engineer, he was deeply concerned with the dignity of each human being and the future of humanity. He tried to make people aware that we are globally interconnected and that actions in one place have global consequences. In particular, he worked in more than 30 countries to ensure that future generations would have food and potable water. He is internationally famous for developing the "Hargreaves Method" of predicting crop water requirements. In his later years he promoted the use of renewable energy, focusing on sustainable development and strategies that could benefit all of humanity. George was born in Chico, Calif., on April 2, 1916. He spent his high school years in Ukiah, near the family farm in Redwood Valley, Calif. In 1939 he earned his bachelor's degree in soils from the University of California, Berkeley and a civil engineering degree in 1943 from the University of Wyoming. In 1943 he married Elizabeth A. Gardner, who died in 1947. In 1951 he married Sara Romero Sevilla in San Jose, Costa Rica. During WWII he was a naval officer in charge of activities related to mine warfare and sonar research. After the war he worked in soils, irrigated agriculture and water resources development for various governmental agencies - as civil engineer for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, Sacramento, Calif., 1946-48; reclamation engineer, Greece, 1948-49; engineer for the Agency for International Development in Costa Rica, Peru, Haiti, Philippines, Brazil and Colombia, 1950-68; and chief civil engineer Natural Resources Division Inter American Geodetic Survey, Panama Canal Zone, 1968-70. After retiring from government service he joined the staff at Utah State University as an irrigation research engineer, 1970-86; research professor emeritus, 1986. He authored "World Water for Agriculture," 1977; served as lead author for Irrigation Fundamentals, 1998 (Fundamentos Del Riego, 2000); and wrote numerous technical papers published in professional journals. In 1997 he received the American Society of Civil Engineers' prestigious Royce J. Tipton award. This award is made to a member who has made a definitive contribution to the advancement of irrigation and drainage engineering through notable performance and long years of service. The "Hargreaves Formula" for estimating evapotranspiration is used worldwide. Since the 1950s, he has been listed in Who's Who in America, Who's Who in the West, and Who's Who Internationally. When George moved to Logan, he became a member of the Logan Kiwanis Club. He enjoyed playing bridge and was a man of few words with a great sense of humor. George is survived by his wife, Sara; four children, Margaret Stolpmann, Mark Hargreaves, Sonia Hart and George Leo Hargreaves; six grandchildren, Darwin, Thea, Sara Carolina, Sofia Cristina, Frances and Oliver; and four great-grandchildren, Renée, Isabella, Dimitri and Diego. He was preceded in death by two sons, Ronald and Henry. Memorial contributions in honor of George H. Hargreaves may be sent to the College of Engineering Irrigation Program, Utah State University, 4100 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322-4100, or at www.usu.edu/giving . Per his desires, there will not be a viewing. Interment will be at a later date.