Position:
Geography Faculty
To: : All Faculty Members
From: James G. Martin, Vice-President and Provost
Date: June 14, 1973
Dr. John Lynden Kirby, Professor of Geography and Far Eastern Studies, died Wednesday, June 13, 1973, at Allen Memorial Hospital of a heart attack.
Dr. Kirby was born at Charlevoix, Michigan, November 7, 1921. He earned his B.S. degree in Public Law and Government at Columbia University in 1952, his M.A. degree in Chinese Area Studies in 1961, and his Ph. D. in Geography in 1964 at the University of Washington.
Dr. Kirby was a member of the American Oriental Society, the Association of Economic Geographers, and the Association of American Geographers. His translations from Chinese poetry were published in the Assay Magazine in 1960 and a book review was published in the Journal of Asian Studies in 1962.
An acknowledged China specialist, Dr. Kirby received a UNI/Ford Foundation grant in 1969-70 for intensive study of the Chinese language and urban research with respect to Taiwan, and spent that year working and studying in the Far East.
Not only was Dr. Kirby rated as among the best professors by the students in his courses, he also chaired university committees including the Budget Committee, the Committee on the Administration of Faculty Personnel, and the Asia Committee,and acted as a consultant to Brice-Petrides and Associates in 1972.
His body will be donated to the University Hospital at Iowa City. The Geography Department is planning a scholarship in Dr. Kirby's name.