Lewis, Peirce (1927–)

Peirce Lewis is a noted cultural geographer who has played a key role in developing ways of understanding landscape. Lewis completed his BA (summa cum laude, 1950) in philosophy and history at Albion College. He subsequently earned both his MA (1953) and PhD (1958) in geography from the University of Michigan. After completing a National Science Foundation fellowship at the University of Washington, he joined the faculty in the geography department at Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) in 1958. Over the next 40 years, not only did his name become synonymous with one of the country's leading geography programs, but the quality of his work also cultivated widespread appeal and international recognition. Lewis's 1985 presidential address to the Association of American Geographers (“Beyond Description”) articulates his discontent with mere geographic description. His work has consistently probed great depths, always seeking to better understand space, place, and landscape. As a testament to the high quality of his scholarship, he was honored with numerous awards and fellowships, including a Guggenheim (1986) and a Woodrow Wilson (1987) fellowship. Furthermore, as befits a consummate professor, Lewis's career has shown remarkable balance. He has repeatedly been recognized for teaching excellence, including being the recipient of the highly coveted Lindback Award (1981), Penn State's most distinguished teaching award. In 1995, he retired from academia, yet he has continued to build on his impressive career. Following on the heels of the 2003 J. B. Jackson Award for New Orleans: The Making of an Urban Landscape, in 2007, the Association of American Geographers bestowed on the former association president (1983) the Lifetime Achievement Award.

For over five decades, Peirce Lewis published a series of seminal works on topics such as the American landscape, the cultural geography of North America, human-environmental interaction, cartographic analysis, geography and children's literature, and regional geomorphology. Yet the one component that stands out is his relentless pursuit of understanding the forces that [Page 1773]shape the landscape. During the earlier stages of his career, Lewis's attention was focused primarily on the natural environment and the principles of geomorphology. One of his most influential mentors, Pierre Dansereau, helped cultivate Lewis's appreciation of changes in the physical landscape. Later, the writings of Carl Sauer, J. B. Jackson, and Henrie Glassey (an American folklorist) became more central to his career, as his professional gaze shifted toward cultural phenomena. Lewis's work has repeatedly stressed the importance of looking for patterns that signal the meanings the landscape holds. No work exemplifies his uncanny ability to interpret the landscape more than his 1979 signature piece, Axioms for Reading the Landscape. This publication not only helps readers understand how to appreciate the built environment, but it gives clues to reveal the messages it is sending us.

Lewis's drive for understanding landscape change (both natural and cultural) has remained steadfast throughout his career. Contrary to his unassuming personality, Peirce Lewis's work has inspired and empowered geographers at all stages in their careers. Fledgling graduate students share an equal admiration with seasoned professors for the quality and insightfulness of his publications. Many of today's leading scholars can trace the evolution of their geographic thought back to Peirce Lewis.

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