Field Museum Curator Dies On African Expedition

By Marielle Shaw in News on Oct 6, 2015 9:53PM

Photo via The Field Museum website

The Field Museum is in mourning Tuesday after the untimely death of its head of collections, Bill Stanley. In a statement issued by the The Field Museum this afternoon, staff reported that Stanley, 58, had suffered a heart attack while on a Field Museum led expedition to Ethiopia. Stanley led yearly biological surveys and safari trips to Africa, and before coming to the Field Museum had even lived there for a while, graduating from high school in Kenya.

The statement touched on his numerous achievements, including "two species of animal—a mouse and a frog—named after him," but makes it clear that the loss was personal for the staff of the museum and the community at large, stating that "we feel his loss most deeply as a friend."

Bill Stanley was well-known by colleagues and patrons of the Field Museum alike. He was an enthusiastic speaker for the museum, often appearing for interviews and promoting the Field's scientific endeavors. By all accounts, he was passionate about his work. As he said in this interview from 2013: "I'm not gonna retire...I'm gonna do this until the day I die."

We at Chicagoist are grateful for Stanley's countless contributions to the Field Museum and offer our condolences to his colleagues, family and friends.