Arthur Cornelius Mitchell

2, 2025. Art was born in Wasco, California on Jan 4th, 1928. He was raised in the nearby town

of Lost Hills California teeming with rattlesnakes, coyotes, jack rabbits, road runners and oil

oozing from the ground. One of his favorite pastime activities was shooting the jack rabbits that

would invade the area.

Art’s father, Willard L. Mitchell from Missouri, was an oil company supervisor at Universal Oil

Company, while his mother, Mary Klien, was born in Austria. Her family had Jewish roots and

immigrated to Canada and eventually California due to the growing anti-Semitism in Austria

after World War I. Willard’s lineage can be traced back to the Mayflower. Art had an older

brother, Frank, who was born on November 26, 1925.

After graduating from Wasco Union High School in May 1946, Art enlisted in the Army and

served in the B Troop, 8th Cavalry, as a Mortar Gunner until May 1948. During his service in

Japan as part of the occupation force, Art held the position of armorer, responsible for the care

and maintenance of the weapons. After the war and during high school, Art worked for the

drilling department of General Petroleum, which later became Mobile, alongside his brother

Frank, who was involved in petroleum production. However, Art grew weary of climbing oil

derricks in the cold, damp fog and decided to pursue a career change.

Art pursued his education at Pasadena College/Point Loma College from 1951 to 1955 where

he majored in physics and minored in math. His favorite class was electrical measurements.

In 1956 Art joined the relatively new University of California Radiation Laboratory, Livermore

Branch (later renamed Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory). This facility, originally an

abandoned World War II naval air station, had been repurposed for scientific research. There,

he dedicated over three decades as an experimental physicist specializing in Shock

Compression of Condensed Matter Physics. During this time, he authored more than 100

research papers, which garnered over 6000 citations. His groundbreaking work on metallic

hydrogen earned him the prestigious American Physical Society Shock Compression Science

Award in 1997 (see Scientific American, May 2000, Metallic Hydrogen for an interesting read).

In 1963, Art married the love of his life, Jennie Josephine Bartsch. Their union lasted for an

impressive 50 years until Jennie’s passing in 2013. The couple met in San Francisco through

mutual friends and shared a passion for hiking in Muir Woods and Mount Tamalpais, located

north of the city. Together, they raised two children: their son, Will, who resides in Colorado

Springs, Colorado, and their son, Russ, who lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico. They also have

three grandchildren: Sachi, Anneliese, and Mick.

On June 1, 1964, Art and Jennie purchased their first home in Walnut Creek, California. To be

closer to family, they decided to relocate to Colorado Springs in 2005.

Art will be remembered for his work ethic, his passion for science, and his love of the outdoors.

He was a loving and devoted husband, father, and grandfather and possessed a radiant smile

and a contagious laugh that could light up any room.

A memorial service will be held Friday, January 10, 2025 at 1:30pm at Forestgate Presbyterian Church, 970 North Gate Blvd, Colorado Springs, CO 80921.

A private burial will be held at Memorial Gardens Cemetery, Colorado Springs, CO.