Pauline Louise Sauer, age 82, died May 4, 1999, at the Lutheran Home and Hospital in Arlington Heights, Illinois. She was born July 13, 1916, in Chicago to the Reverend and Mrs. Paul Sauer of First St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church. She is survived by her sister, Margaret, of Maywood, Illinois. Pauline graduated from St. John's Lutheran Elementary School and Luther Institute High School in Chicago. She received a B.Ed. from the Chicago Teachers College, an M.A. in botany from the University of Michigan, and a Ph.D. from Cornell University, Ithaca, New York. In 1949 she came to Iowa State Teachers College as a faculty member in the Biology Department. In 1958 she joined the Museum staff working under Dr. Emmett J. Cable, whom she admired greatly.
In 1963, after Dr. Cable's retirement, Pauline took over direction of the Museum. She remained director until her own retirement from the University of Northern Iowa in 1981. During her tenure as director, Pauline actively collected for the Museum in biology, geology, history, and anthropology. She saw the Museum through its move from the Library (now Seerley Hall) to the Physical Plant Building where it remained for almost twenty years. One of the most remembered and popular of Pauline's contributions to the campus was her bimonthly Sunday programs at the Museum, where speakers gave presentations on a wide variety of topics in the sciences and humanities. It was Pauline's persistence in preserving and protecting the collection that in part made it possible for the University Museum to celebrate its 100th anniversary in 1992.
During her career, Pauline was a member of several museum associations, including the American Association of Museums and the International Council of Museums. She was active in local, state, and national professional, religious, and service organizations. Donations to the Pauline L. Sauer Memorial Fund in support of the University of Northern Iowa Museum can be made through the UNI Foundation.
Archives Record Series: 26/08/10 Pauline Sauer Papers