Descriptive Summary
Access
Publication Rights
Preferred Citation
Biography / Administrative History
Scope and Content of Collection
Indexing Terms
Descriptive Summary
Title: Jerome S. Ricard, S.J., Papers
Dates: 1864-1951
Bulk Dates: 1906-1930
Accession number: PP-Ricard
Creator:
Ricard, Jerome S.
Collection Size:
3 linear feet
Repository:
Santa Clara University Archives
Abstract: The Jerome S. Ricard, S.J., Papers consist of biographical materials, publications, research papers, and correspondence relating
to Ricard's work as SCU faculty member, astronomer, meteorologist and seismologist.
Physical location: Stored in the Santa Clara Unviersity Archives.
Languages:
Languages represented in the collection:
English
Access
Santa Clara University permits public access to its archives within the context of respect for individual privacy, administrative
confidentiality, and the integrity of the records. It reserves the right to close all or any portion of its records to researchers.
The archival files of any office may be opened to a qualified researcher by the administrator of that office or his/her designee
at any time.
Archival collections may be used by researchers only in the Reading Room of the University Archives and may be photocopied
only at the discretion of the archivist.
Publication Rights
Permission to copy or publish any portion of the Archives' materials must be given by the Archives.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Jerome S. Ricard, S.J., Papers, Santa Clara University. University Archives.
Biography / Administrative History
Jerome Sixtus Ricard was born in Plaisans, France on January 21, 1850, the only one of Leger and Mary Ann Ricard's seven children
to leave his native land for America. After attending public schools in Plaisans and the Jesuit Colleges at Avignon, France,
and Turin, Italy, he entered the Society of Jesus in 1871 in Monaco and became a member of the Turin Province of the Society
of Jesus.
Ricard came to America in 1873 and studied philosophy for several years at Santa Clara College. From 1877-1880 he taught
grammar and mathematics at Santa Clara, then at St. Ignatius College in San Francisco. From 1883-1887 he completed his theological
studies at Woodstock, Maryland, and was ordained in 1886. Upon completion of his Jesuit tertianship at Florissant, Missouri,
in 1891, he returned to Santa Clara to teach ethics, mathematics, political economy, and history.
Ricard first became interested in astronomy about 1890 when he enrolled in a summer astronomy course at Creighton University.
Around 1900 he began a systematic study of sunspots with an 8-inch telescope mounted in the Mission Gardens. He was elected
a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1907, and thereupon brought forth his theory that terrestrial
weather phenomena are affected by sunspot activity.
Although most of the scientific world scoffed at his proposals, Ricard quietly held his ground. He left the classroom and
began a meteorological career that expanded from ten-day forecasts to monthly and even seasonal predictions. These forecasts
appeared in The Santa Clara and in newspapers throughout the West Coast and other parts of the United States. A conglomeration
of agriculturists, athletic directors, and motion picture companies were regular subscribers to his monthly magazine, The
Sunspot, and would base their activities on his forecasts.
Ricard came to be well-known in his time because of the practical application of his scientific studies to people's everyday
needs, and was affectionately called "Padre of the Rains."
To aid him in his meteorological work, the Ricard Observatory was constructed between 1924 and 1928 through a fund drive organized
by the Knights of Columbus and others who relied on his observations and forecasts. An underground concrete room was built
just to the north of the observatory to house two seismographs, accommodating another of Ricard's scientific interests, seismology,
which he began to pursue after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. Through his efforts, Santa Clara University became an official
Seismological Station and a member of the Jesuit Seismological Association.
Ricard died on 1930 at Santa Clara.
Scope and Content of Collection
The Ricard papers consist of biographical information and personal papers and objects; Ricard's publications; his reference
collection and scientific research papers (e.g., notes, calculations, charts, diagrams); and correspondence. One portion
of his correspondence (1924-1928) deals with the construction of Ricard Observatory on the SCU campus.
Photographs of Ricard and his work are in the Portrait Collection and the SCU Collection respectively, in the Santa Clara
University Archives.
References to Ricard can also be found in the Santa Clara University Archives in the papers of C.J. McCoy, S.J.; Z.J. Macer,
S.J.; The Redwood 1929, 1931; Santa Clara University newspaper clipping scrapbooks; the Albert Newlin papers; the John Weber
papers; and records of the Ricard Observatory.
See "A History of the University of Santa Clara Seismological Station" by E. Shipsey, S.J. for information on Ricard's seismological
work. The surviving seismograms are preserved in the Ricard Observatory Collection in the SCU Archives.
Correspondence between Ricard and Lick Observatory staff (esp. Campbell) is available at U.C. Santa Cruz Shane Archives of
Lick Observatory. (as of 3/31/89, Jokeefe)
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in
the library's online public access catalog.
Santa Clara University (Calif.)
Ricard, Jerome S. (1850-1930)
Ricard Observatory