Medora Louise Krieger

Medora Louise Krieger (1904–1994) was an American geologist known for becoming the first female field geologist in the United States Geological Survey (USGS). During her work with the USGS, Krieger was assigned to create geological maps of the area around Prescott Arizona in 1947, where she remained until her death in 1994. Krieger is noted as being one of the pioneering figures in the history of geology in the United States and was posthumously inducted into the American Mining Hall of Fame in 2018 by the Mining Foundation of the Southwest.

Biography

Personal life and education Vassar College, where Medora Louise Krieger earned her Bachelor's Degree in Geology in 1928. Medora Louise Krieger (née Hooper) was born in Ticonderoga, New York in 1905. She displayed an early interest in geology, as her father, grandfather and two uncles were mining engineers. She attended Vassar College from 1924 to 1928, earning a bachelor's degree in geology. From there, she went on to Columbia University in pursuit of her masters and PhD. While attending Columbia, she met her husband Philip, who was an assistant professor at the institution, also in the field of geology.

Time at the United States Geological Survey (USGS)

Her time at the USGS began in 1944, when she was placed at a desk job in Washington, DC. Medora Louise Krieger was considered a "Pioneering geologist" and posthumously inducted into the American Mining Hall of Fame by the Mining Foundation of the Southwest in 2018.

Large Landslides, composed of megabreccia, interbedded in Micene basin deposits, southeastern Arizona

This 1977 paper addresses the topic of landslides present in the Kearny and El Capitan mountain regions. Krieger included detailed measurements on multiple factors such as composition, depth, length, and analysis on the underlying playa and alluvial deposits. Krieger concludes by theorizing that compressed air may play a larger role in landslides than previously thought.