M. ALBERT LINTON

1887-1966

The Philadelphia group of the American Alpine Club lost one of its most distinguishd members with the death of M. Albert Linton on Monday, May 2, 1966 at his home in Moorestown, New Jersey at the age of 79.

He was graduated from Moorestown Friends School, then Haverford College with a B.S. and an M.A. in 1909. He also attended the Federal Polytechnic Institute in Zürich, Switzerland and began his climbing in the Alps in that year. At that time too, he joined the Provident Mutual Life Insurance Co. of Philadelphia and became a vice-president in 1916. He was President from 1931-1952 and from 1952-1958 Chairman of the Board. He was an authority on life insurance, wrote books on the subject, established the Linton Tables used by many insurance companies to calculate risks. He was an advisor to the U. S. Senate on Social Security. He was on the Board of Directors of Haverford College, on the American Friends Service Committee; was active in the American Philosophical Society, and many other organizations too numerous to mention. On his retirement as President of the Provident Life Insurance Company in 1952, he became President of the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadelphia and served until 1962.

Albert returned to the Alps in 1912 and 1920 and many times in later years. He joined the American Alpine Club in 1923 In 1924 he climbed in the Canadian Rockies and Selkirks and became very fond of the Mount Assiniboine area. His last visit there was in 1955, when he climbed the lesser peaks and ridges. He was an enthusiastic skier and in many winters flew to Switzerland for a few weeks of that sport. He made two trips to Africa, one in 1960 and one in 1963.

Albert was an amateur ornithologist and his knowledge of birds was far greater than the term amateur indicates. He attended ornithological meetings in various countries and the authorities in the field were his good friends. A man of great energy and an alert, brilliant mind, he pursued business and recreation with tireless enthusiasm. He was an expert photographer in both movies and stills and brought back from his travels superb pictures of the mountains, lands, peoples, birds, and animals. He lectured extensively before various clubs and organizations and his pictures were always in great demand. He was always an enthusiastic supporter of the American Alpine Club and served for a number of years on the Club’s Finance Committee.

To his wife, Margaret, who accompanied him on most of his adventures, the club extends its sympathy. He is also survived by a son, Albert, Jr. and seven grandchildren.

Lillian Gest