1. Early life and education

2. Career

3. Applications of science

4. Contributions to science

5. Publications and professional works

6. References

Virginia Harriett Kline (July 14, 1910 – February 5, 1959) was a geologist, stratigrapher, and librarian who was heavily focused on fieldwork.

Early life and education

Virginia Kline was born in Coleman, Michigan to father Ray Kline and mother Abbie Young Kline on July 14, 1910. She attended high school and college in Lansing, Michigan and eventually received her bachelor of science degree from Michigan State College in June 1931. Her undergraduate was completed at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and obtained her Master's degree in June 1933, along with her Doctor of Philosophy degree in geology in June, 1935, with her thesis entitled "Stratigraphy and Paleontology of the Silica Formation (Hamilton Age) of Southeastern Michigan". She earned another bachelor of arts degree in library sciences several years later in May 1942.^[1]

Career

Kline started her career as a temporary stratigrapher in 1937, for the North Dakota Geological Survey in Grand Forks, North Dakota. During this time, she had the opportunity to spend most of her time in the field studying well samples, driller's logs, and fossil collections. Her first published work, "Stratigraphy of North Dakota"^[2] came as a result of the experience she acquired. Kline had a distinguished career working in her respective field of study for a number of companies in the Tri-State area of Illinois, Indiana, and Kentucky during 1940. These companies included Michigan Oil Exploration, Chapman Minerals Corporation and Sohio Producing Company, where she worked as the only geologist for all three during the depression. During this time she became well familiarized with the stratigraphic characteristics of the area, and became proficient in tasks relating to sample studying and well-sitting. 1941 found her doing consulting work in Lansing, Michigan, while she was in school working on her library sciences degree, eventually working briefly as the librarian for the Civil Engineering School at the University of Michigan. The following year, she accepted a position at the University of Mississippi as associate professor of geology in the department of geology, on top of becoming an assistant geologist within the Mississippi Geological Survey. This position granted her the ability to co-author "Geology of Clay County, Mississippi", writing the section "Clay County Fossils: Midway Foraminifera and Ostracoda".^[3] In 1943, during World War II, she became assistant petroleum analyst in Chicago Office of Petroleum Administration. The following year found her accepting a position at the Illinois State Geological Survey as an associate geologist in the oil and gas section, where she worked for fourteen years until the end of her days, making many contributions to the knowledge of geology.^[1] In 1946, she became a member of the AAPG. Kline later accepted an Associate Geologist position in the Oil and Gas section of the Illinois State Geological Survey in November 1944 and remained there until her death in 1959.^[1]

Applications of science

During her college days, Kline co-authored the publication titled "Revision of Alexander Winchell's Types of Brachiopods from the Middle Devonian Traverse Group of Rocks of Michigan."^[2] This publication was an integral piece of literature illustrating the role that women played in geology and showed that science and specifically geology was still evolving during her time. This work also highlights the connection to the concept that science is an ongoing process of understanding knowledge that develops alongside new discoveries and ideas. Historically speaking, many amendments have been made in the name of science to fit newly available data, as illustrated by Ehlers' and Kline's work in correcting previous interpretations of strata, using Steno's rules of stratigraphy. The consequence of which revamps the fossil index of the area, which in turn dictates to companies that are invested in drilling a new approach in looking for areas to commit resources, but also challenging the established thoughts on the history of the area. As Kline's career continued she became heavily involved within the field of petroleum geology and more importantly stratigraphy and fossil indexing. In 1942, while working as an associate professor and geologist at the University of Mississippi, Kline conducted an extensive summary of the lithology and distribution of Geological formations within the state.^[3] Nearing the end of her time at the University of Mississippi, Kline co-authored another important publication on describing and illustrating microfossils, a topic that had only briefly been explored, showing again that science is an evolving process, created through the assimilation of new discoveries and existing understanding.^[4]

Contributions to science

Earning a doctorate in earth sciences was a respectful accomplishment considering that between 1920–1970 women obtained less than 4 percent of all doctorates awarded in this field.^[5] Furthering the advancement of how women were perceived in geology, a majority of Kline's career was heavily focused on fieldwork, which was uncommon for women at the time where even women professors advocated against office or laboratory work.^[5] Kline's contributions are highlighted by the fact that not only was she a women in a field dominated by men at the time, she was also the only geologist for three companies at the same time, and eventually earned enough respect to author her own work, and eventually came to be the sole author on reports put out by the Illinois Geological Survey.^[6]

Publications and professional works

• 'Revision of Alexander Winchell's Types of Brachiopods from the Middle Devonian Traverse Group of Rocks in Michigan', G.M. Ehlers and V. H. Kline, Museum of Paleontology, University of Michigan, Vol. IV, No. 10, Jan. 15 1934
• 'Stratigraphy of North Dakota' - Bulletin of American Association of Petroleum and Geology, Vol. 26, No.3, pp 336–79, March 1942^[3]
• 'Clay County Fossils - Midway Foraminifera and Ostracoda', V. Kline, Mississippi Geological Survey Bulletin 53, Pt. 3, 1943^[4]
• Series of annual reports (1944 - 1957) on oil and gas developments in Illinois
• Joint author with A. H. Bell printed in 'Transactions of the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers', reprinted in the 'Illinois Petroleum Survey' for years 1944 - 1953
• Co-author with A. H. Bell when Illinois Geological Survey issued its annual report on the oil and gas industry in Illinois in its bulletin series, 1954 - 1957
• Principle author of monthly oil and gas drilling report, published by Illinois Geological Survey

References

• The Washington Post
• The Washington Post (march)
• The Washington Post March
• The Washington Quarterly
• The Washington Star
• The Washington Times
• The Wash (movie)
• The Wasp
• The Wasp (book)
• The Wasp Factory
• The Wasps
• The Wasteland
• The waste land
• The Wastelands
• The Waste Land - The Poem
• The Wataugans
• The Watcher (comics)
• The Watcher (Doctor Who)
• The Watchmen (band)
• The Watch on the Rhein
• The Watch on the Rhine
• The Watchtower
• The Watchungs
• The Water
• The Water-Babies