Ruth Schnapp

Ruth Gordon Schnapp

September 19, 1926 to                               January 1, 2014

The first woman to be licensed as a structural engineer in the State of California, and a lifelong advocate for women's rights, passed away peacefully on January 1, 2014, in Los Banos, California at the age of 87.

She was born in Seattle, Washington in 1926 to Russian immigrants. She was a child prodigy in math at an early age, a gift that would ultimately lead to a career in engineering.  After graduating from Stanford University's School of Engineering in 1949, she received her civil engineering license from the state of California in 1953 and in 1959 passed the rigorous California structural engineering exam to become the first woman licensed as a structural engineer in the State of California. 

Ruth's engineering career spanned 41 years. She worked for the California Office of the State Architect for 29 of years, then in her own consulting practice, Pegasus Engineering, where she worked on many high-profile public building projects such as the San Francisco Public Library and the Palace of the Legion of Honor. She retired in 2001.

Ruth was active professionally and politically and was a tireless advocate for equal rights for women. She spent much of her retirement years speaking publicly and meeting with students to discuss engineering professions.  She was the first woman member of the Structural Engineers Association of Northern California (1953); the first woman president of the Bay Area Engineering Council (1982); and the first woman to receive the Tau Beta Pi's Eminent Engineer Award (1995).

Ruth was not all business.  She married Michael Schnapp in 1949 and together raised three children.  She was active in the Golden Gate Yacht Club for more than 50 years and traveled extensively with her husband. 

Ruth was preceded in death by her husband, Mike in 2000.  She is survived by her three children, Madeline, Marcia and Michael, and her four grandchildren.

A celebration of Ruth's life will be held at the Golden Gate Yacht Club in San Francisco on Saturday, February 22 from 2PM to 5PM.

No gifts please.  Donations in her honor to the Alzheimer's Society and the Society of Women Engineers are welcome.