I never met Dr. Wilton Krogman, but I knew his sister, Lucy, quite well. Lucy worked for George Bruckert, attorney-at-law at 115 N. Marion. Lucy was a very good friend of my mother’s, and when I first met Lucy in 1961, she was a very spry lady of 71. She loved to tell me about her brother, Wilton, and this is what I learned about this famous scientist.
Wilton (Bill) was born in Oak Park in 1903.One of four children, he was raised on the 200 block of South Kenilworth Avenue in a home that still stands. Wilton’s dad was a well-known carpenter, renowned for his woodworking skills and his stress on perfection. Wilton graduated from Emerson School in 1917 and from Oak Park and River Forest High School in 1921, where he was a member of the debate club and a star student. He didn’t participate in sports because he had to work to make money for college.
When he started college at the University of Chicago, he planned to become a minister, but his plans changed when a course he took in anthropology led him to believe that man evolved and was not created. Instead, he majored in anatomy and physical anthropology.
After earning a Ph.D., Wilton taught anatomy and physical anthropology at Western Reserve, the U. of Chicago, and the U. of Pennsylvania, respectively, retiring from the latter in 1983.
Dr. Krogman was described by his sister as a witty man who was a great scholar, teacher, and humanitarian. He was known internationally for his investigations into fire deaths — especially spontaneous combustion. His talent in facial reconstruction was utilized by the FBI in many criminal investigations. He was also known for his skill in unifying studies of skeletal remains into the science of forensic anthropology, which opened the door for him to become an expert in children’s structural development.
Wilton Krogman, who died in 1987, was a frequent visitor to Oak Park, where he spent time with his many friends and family members. I feel that I knew him because of the many stories told to me by his sister Lucy.
Percy Julian Jr.’s mom was Anna Johnson Julian, Ph.D. Over the years, when Percy and I attended grade school and high school together, I learned from him that his mother was a member of Phi Beta Kappa, a sociologist, a tireless worker for civil rights, and the first African-American female to earn a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of Pennsylvania. She also worked with her husband, Dr. Percy Julian Sr. at Julian Labs, where chemical components were synthesized and used in the treatment of arthritis, glaucoma, and certain allergies.
I not only knew Percy, but I also knew his sister, Faith, and his cousin, Leon Ellis (who lived with the Julians), because we often walked home at noon from Holmes School, and I always crossed them after lunch from my patrol post on Oak Park and Chicago avenues.
I met Mrs. Julian a number of times at Holmes School, and my mother served with her on various PTA committees.
Mrs. Julian lived with her daughter, Faith, in the family home at Chicago and East until her death at age 93 in 1994.
John Stanger is a lifelong resident of Oak Park, a 1957 graduate of OPRF High School, married with three grown children and five grandchildren, and an English professor at Elmhurst College. Living two miles from where he grew up, he hasn’t gotten far in 71 years.