CSUF Philosophy Professor, 49, Dies En Route to Conference

A respected philosophy professor at Cal State Fullerton died of an apparent heart attack while traveling to a conference in Oregon, university officials said Thursday.

John Cronquist, 49, was found dead on an Amtrak train about 2:45 p.m. Wednesday just as it neared the station in Salem, Ore., said Thomas P. Klammer, associate dean of humanities and social science at Cal State Fullerton. Cronquist was en route to Portland to attend a meeting of the American Philosophical Assn. and preferred to travel by train.

“This has been really a shock to the entire campus,” Klammer said. “He was a very respected faculty member, both as a teacher and a scholar.”

Cronquist is survived by his wife, Linda, and their young daughter, Catherine.

Klammer said Linda Cronquist was not aware that her husband suffered from any health problems. But, he added, Salem’s deputy medical examiner reported that an autopsy conducted early Thursday found evidence of arterial sclerotic disease, suggesting that the cause of death was probably a heart attack.

Cronquist, who received his bachelor’s degree from Duke University, a master’s degree from Harvard and a doctorate in philosophy from Stanford, joined the Fullerton faculty in 1967. Described as an intense man with an abiding interest in ethics and the philosophy of science and logic, he had published several articles and was at work on a book about medieval thought.

He was considered a popular teacher by both students and colleagues.

“The faculty of the philosophy department is very close. . . . I know this will be very difficult for them,” Klammer said. “His students also were very upset at the news.”

Funeral arrangements had not been made as of late Thursday. But Klammer said the philosophy department would soon be announcing the date and location of a memorial service.