Description

George Frederick Kunz (1856-1932) was an American mineralogist who had an active life dedicated to science and public service. He began an interest in minerals at a very young age. By his teens, he had amassed a collection of over four thousand items, which he sold for four hundred dollars to the University of Minnesota. He gained much notoriety for identifying a new variety of the mineral spodumene which was named "Kunzite" in his honor. He was a member of the Mineralogical Society of America, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, New York Academy of Sciences (of which he was once a vice president), the New York Mineralogical Club, the American Scenic and Preservation Society (for which he served as president), the American Chemical Society, the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers (of which he was once a vice president), and many other cultural, scientific, and naturalist organizations. Kunz had an active life dedicated to science and public service.