Edward Silberman was link to U's past

For decades after his retirement until weeks before his death, Prof. Edward Silberman returned to his office in the St. Anthony Falls Laboratory each Wednesday. Sometimes, he lectured. During graduate students' presentations, he asked tough questions, gave his opinion and, on occasion, revealed a bit of history about the laboratory itself.

Silberman, who from 1963 to 1974 acted as the University of Minnesota laboratory's director and became its resident historian, died July 5. He was 97.

"He was the last of the original crew of faculty members of this laboratory," said Heinz Stefan, U professor of civil engineering. "It will be strange, without him. He won't be able to tell us, 'Well this is how it was. Before you were born, this is what happened here.'"

Silberman was born in Minneapolis and grew up in Streeter, N.D., 140 miles west of Fargo. After it rained, he would crawl in the mud in the alley behind his house, redirecting water through canals left by wagon wheels.

"I was an expert at this at the time," Silberman says in a short video filmed by U staff. "And I never thought about doing anything else than being a civil engineer to bring these thoughts to fruition."

He earned bachelor's and master's degrees in engineering at the University of Minnesota, where he also began his military career as a member of the ROTC. Silberman was called to active duty in 1941 and served in the Army Corps of Engineers.

Silberman's four children remember their dad "always busy, doing things," said Sheldon Silberman, 59, the youngest.

"He challenged me and my siblings with all kinds of unsolvable problems," his son Cyril said.

"He was very much a teacher, even at home," said Marilyn Condon, the eldest of the four.

At the lab, Silberman was fascinated by flows, turbulence, bubbles. With Silberman as its director in the 1960s and 1970s, the laboratory expanded its research reach and nabbed new National Science Foundation dollars. Silberman was the author or co-author of more than 50 publications, according to the U's website.

His curiosity continued well past his retirement in 1981.

"A year ago, Ed came to my office all excited about a new research idea," said Prof. Fotis Sotiropoulos, the lab's current director.

"[Recently] he and I talked extensively about this and were planning to pursue some preliminary experiments with a graduate student," Sotiropoulos said. "We may very well end up pursuing some of these ideas in the future."

He served on the Bassett Creek Water Management Commission not just because of his background, but because as a Golden Valley resident, he often hiked along the creek.

Until the age of 91, despite several joint replacement surgeries, Silberman played tennis. He beat friends in bridge.

A few years ago, he lectured -- with very few notes -- on the subject of "shovel-ready projects," a hot topic at the height of federal stimulus funding.

Usually, a dozen people show up for such lectures. But that day, the place was packed.

Added Sheldon Silberman: "He had a unique talent of making his experience very relevant to today."

Silberman's survivors also include his son Marc, sister Clara Margolis, brother Orell, three grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

Services have been held.