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Gilbert Klingel (-1983)

by Joe McSharry

The Board of the Natural History Society of Maryland has awarded Gilbert C. Klingel, writer, avid sailor and one of the founding members of the NHSM, the 2000 Fladung Award. Mrs. Errana Lubbert nominated Mr Klingel for his years of service to the NHSM and his contributions to our understanding of the natural history of the Chesapeake Bay.

Klingel served on the first Board of Trustees of the Society and later as vice-president. He also held the position of Curator of Marine Research. In addition to contributing many articles to the Bulletin of The Natural History Society of Maryland, he wrote articles for the Baltimore Sun. He is also the author of several books, including Inagua and The Bay.
First published in 1940, “Inagua” chronicles his sailing expedition with Wallace Coleman to Great Inagua Island in the Bahamas. The expedition was a joint effort between the NHSM and the American Museum of Natural History. It has since been reprinted, and translated into several foreign languages.

On the wall of the NHSM’s office, a map of the east coast of the United States and the Bahamas depicts the first leg of the trip from the Chesapeake Bay to the coast of Great Inagua. A hand-written note on the map after December 4th, 1930 states, “Man of War Bird Sighted” and “Tropic Bird comes out of S.W.” On December 10th, they shipwrecked on the island, loosing the ship, but managing to salvage a great portion of their equipment. Coleman returned home to Maryland shortly thereafter. However, Klingel remained on the island for three months, studying and photographing the flora and fauna. The American Museum published several of his articles in its journals, Natural History, and American Museum Novitates.

Nearly every naturalist with an interest in the Chesapeake has read The Bay. Klingel gave us a detailed account of life in and around the bay through the window of his “bentharium.” This was heavy metal cylinder with a “window” on its side. An observer was sealed inside the cylinder, which was suspended from a floating wooden platform. The bentharium was then lowered into the waters of the Chesapeake.

In addition to his love of natural history and sailing, Klingel had always had a deep interest in boat building. In 1963 he moved from Baltimore to Gwynn’s Island, Virginia, mainly to pursue this interest. In 1983 at the age of 74, he passed away.

The biography on the back of his first book Inagua states that Gilbert Klingel believed “that the animals and plants of one’s own state are just as fascinating to the observer and as important to science as the more bizarre types of foreign lands.” This is reason enough to award him the 2000 Fladung Award.