Memorial - Young D

MEMORIAL RESOLUTION
DONOVAN HAROLD YOUNG

(1904 – 1980)
Donovan H. Young, a member of the Stanford University faculty since 1937 and
the holder of the Silas H. Palmer Professorship in Civil Engineering, died on March 4,
1980 at his home in Palo Alto. He was age 75 and had been ill with cancer for many
months. His wife, Betty, to whom he had been married for forty-six years, cared for him
to the end.
Professor Young was known worldwide as an author and teacher in the fields of
applied mechanics and structural engineering. He wrote with the late Professor Stephen
P. Timoshenko five textbooks that have been used extensively by engineering students
for over forty years. These books have been translated into a total of thirty-two languages
and have been kept current by as many as five editions. He also wrote technical reports
and papers in the same fields and directed the research of many doctoral students. He was
a faculty member in both the Department of Civil Engineering and the Department of
Applied Mechanics (now the Division of Applied Mechanics).
Early life was not easy for Don Young's family. He was born in Kooskia, Idaho
on April 26, 1904 and was raised on a fruit ranch in Wenatchee, Washington. Every
member of the family worked hard either in the orchards or packing the apples, peaches,
and cherries. He graduated from Wenatchee High School in 1923 and then studied civil
engineering for four years at the State College of Washington in Pullman, receiving the
Bachelor of Science degree with high honors in 1927. During summer months he worked
in the orchards or for the highway department as a surveyor, one such job was laying out
the highway to Sunrise in Mount Rainier National Park.
After teaching civil engineering for two years at State College, Don Young went
to the University of Michigan for postgraduate study. He received the degrees of Master
of Science in Civil Engineering in 1930 and Doctor of Science in Engineering Mechanics
in 1934. His doctoral research on steel columns was supervised by Timoshenko, the
world's leading figure in applied mechanics, who at that time taught at Michigan but who
later joined the Stanford Faculty. Thus began the long association of these two men, and
the names Timoshenko and Young soon became bywords in applied mechanics.
Dr. Young came to Stanford as an Assistant Professor of Civil Engineering in

1937, became an Associate Professor in 1938, and became a full Professor in 1945. He
was a member of the Executive Committee of the Department of Applied Mechanics
until his retirement in 1969, and he was Acting Head of the Department of Civil
Engineering in 1952-53 and 1957-58.
Professor Young's greatest contributions to Stanford were his classroom teaching
and textbook writing, both of which brought fame to him and to the University. His
courses ranged from elementary mechanics to the most advanced graduate subjects, and
they included statics, dynamics, strength of materials, vibrations, structural analysis,
advanced dynamics, arch analysis, and theory of suspension bridges. Only two years
before retirement he created a new course in random vibrations for structural engineering
students. He was outstanding as a lecturer and his classes always were popular. In 1967
he received from the American Society for Engineering Education the Western Electric
Award for "excellence in the instruction of engineering students;" the well-earned prize
money was immediately donated by him to Stanford. He gave invited lectures to college
teachers of mechanics at three National Science Foundation Summer Institutes (1962,
1963, and 1965) held at the University of Colorado. His writing as well as his lectures
were models of clarity of expression and precision of meaning. As one former student
said, "His books were readable and understandable, he didn't take shortcuts, and he never
dangled a participle." He became famous for his ability to emphasize what was relevant
in a physical sense and to avoid wasting time on mathematics for its own sake. It was his
nature to be supportive of younger teachers, to help and counsel them, and to share his
knowledge and experience with them.
His teaching skills reached far beyond the classroom through the textbooks he co-
authored with Timoshenko. Their collaboration began with the publication in 1937 of the
first edition of Engineering Mechanics - Statics and Dynamics. This book
revolutionized instruction in mechanics in the U.S. by emphasizing basic principles
rather than specialized applications that would soon be out of date. The fourth edition of
this book was published in 1956. Timoshenko and Young's next book was Theory of
Structures (1945) followed by Advanced Dynamics in 1948. They also collaborated on
Vibration Problems in Engineering and Elements of Strength of Materials. Every
Stanford engineering undergraduate for over a quarter of a century used one or more of
these books, but these students amounted to only a fraction of the hundreds of thousands
from all over the world who studied from these books either in English or in one of the
numerous translations.
Even during the busiest part of his career, Don Young found time for family and
hobbies. At one time he made all the architectural drawings and supervised the
construction for a house the family built. Photography was a lifelong hobby of his, he
also collected and repaired old Edison and Victor phonographs. Reading and collecting
early 20th century American novels became a major interest after he retired, and that in
turn led to bookbinding, which he learned and pursued with great skill. He played golf
avidly for many years, and then when that became too difficult he began to repair old golf
clubs. In pursuits of this kind he brought together his inquisitive and analytical mind, his
patience and perseverance, and considerable skill in using his hands.
While he was an engineering student at the University of Michigan he met Betty
(Elizabeth) Fagg, a student in the School of Education, and they were married on July 27,
1933. They have a son Stephen and two daughters, Janet and Martha (Mrs. Jarett
Kaplan). There are also six grandchildren. A memorial service was held at St. Mark's
Episcopal Church in Palo Alto, the church to which they belonged and which Betty
helped to establish.
We will remember Don Young for many things, but most of all we will remember
his kind and friendly manner, his sense of humor, his skills as a teacher and writer, his
concern for students, and his quiet courage as the end drew near.
James M. Gere, Chairman

Thomas R. Kane
William Weaver, Jr.
Harry A. Williams

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MEMORIAL RESOLUTION

DONOVAN HAROLD YOUNG

Dr. Young came to Stanford as an Assistant Professor of Civil Engineering in

James M. Gere, Chairman

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