January 15, 2009
John L. Hancock, professor emeritus of urban planning, to be remembered Jan. 23
Family and friends of John L. Hancock, emeritus professor of urban planning, will gather at 4:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 23, in Gould Hall Court, to remember him.
Hancock died Dec. 7, the anniversary of Pearl Harbor, at the age of 78.
He was 11 when the bombing led to U.S. involvement in World War II. “It helped set his course as someone who believed in the importance of serving one’s country,” said Hancock’s widow, Marga Rose Hancock. He later served with the U.S. Marines during the Korean War.
Hancock came to regard urban planning as patriotism, and taught it at the UW for 34 years.
Hancock would ultimately lecture on six continents, sometimes stopping off to advise former students on their work. Later in his career, he helped establish what’s now the Community, Environment and Planning program at the UW.
“John helped me realize that sometimes being quiet and giving students space to grow is essential. The best teachers know when to speak and when not to … I am a better teacher (and person) for having known John,” said former student Tim Chapin, now chairman of the urban and regional planning department at Florida State University.
Fritz Wagner, who earned his doctorate at the UW and now chairs the Department of Landscape Architecture, remembered Hancock from his early days at the University: “John was just a very caring professor, a special one. We had small seminar classes, and you could just feel the investments he was making in his students.”
As part of teaching, Hancock would later say, “The city is not a problem to solve but an experience to share, and the more equitably shared, the better for all of us.”
In 1973, Wagner knew Hancock was single and looking for a wife. He suggested Marga Rosencranz, who happened to be a staff member in the urban planning department. “I told him, ‘There’s a great catch sitting out there in the office. Take a shot.'”
The Hancocks celebrated their 33rd wedding anniversary in August. By that time, Hancock had “Semper Fi,” the Marine Corp motto, tattooed on his left arm, and a rose on his right. “He wanted me to know he loved me as much as he did the Marine Corps,” Marga Rose Hancock recalled.
Several years ago, Hancock initiated a gift of his extensive collection of Marine Corps texts and material about the Marine Corps Recruit Depot (MCRD) in San Diego to a military heritage center and the University of San Diego.
The MCRD Museum Historical Society welcomes gifts in honor of Hancock. Learn more online at www.mcrdmuseumhistoricalsociety.org.
