Papers of Louis R. Weber

Louis R. Weber, a noted professor of physics, oversaw the growth and development of the physics department at Colorado State University.

Louis Russell Weber was born October 15, 1901, in St. Joseph, Missouri to George and Sarah Weber. After graduating high school, Weber enlisted in the Navy and achieved the rank of radioman 2nd class. He earned his A.B. in physics in 1925 from Park College in Kansas City, Missouri, and his M.A. in 1926 and Ph.D. in 1932 from the University of Michigan. Weber married Gladys Zimmerman in 1926 and had two daughters, Marilyn and Margaret.

Weber was hired in 1926 to develop a bachelor's degree program in physics at Friends University, in Wichita, Kansas. He continued at Friends University until 1938 when he was hired as the chair of the department of physics at Colorado State College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts (now Colorado State University). At the time of Weber's hiring, physics education on campus was minimal, and Weber was tasked to transition the program to a degree-granting department. The first bachelor degree awarded at CSU in physics was in 1947, the first master's in 1950, and first Ph.D. in 1957. From 1958 to 1960, as part of an exchange program, Weber taught at the University of Peshawar in Pakistan. In addition to teaching, he helped establish physics curriculum and set up laboratories.

Honors awarded to Weber include numerous Fulbright scholarships, the Oliver P. Pennock Distinguished Service award in 1963 from CSU, and the National Association of Physics Teachers Distinguished Service Citation in 1965. He was elected a fellow of the Optical Society of America and Friends University named a physics laboratory after him in 1973. Additionally, Park College presented him with their Distinguished Alumni Award in 1975, and in 1981 CSU renamed the old chemistry building on the Oval the Weber Building.

Louis Weber retired as professor emeritus in 1965 and died on May 18, 1989, in Fort Collins.