Ralph was a great Texas surveyor and practiced primarily in the Austin area. He was also a husband, father, friend, mentor and business owner. He served the professional surveying community in many capacities: as an instructor at professional seminars; as an active member of the Texas Society of Professional Surveyors (TSPS) holding offices at every level up to president (1985), serving on numerous committees and selected as Surveyor of the Year in 1986; as an active member of the National Society of Professional Surveyors (NSPS) holding the office of Area 8 Director 1986-1991 and Board of Governors 1991-1993, and serving on various committees; active member of the American Congress of Surveying and Mapping (ACSM) holding office as a Director of Board of Direction 1993-1996.
The Final Point monument was sponsored by the National Society of Professional Surveyors Foundation and was dedicated to the memory of the outstanding, selfless service to the surveying community by Ralph Harris. Ralph is the second recipient of this honor. The first was Mr. Soderberg of Michigan who passed away in April 2003.
The monument, a 3-inch bronze disk stamped
"FINAL POINT * RALPH HARRIS LAND SURVEYOR TEXAS RPLS No.1729
LAT.
N.30-13-57.1, LONG. W.097-51-42.5
NATIONAL SOCIETY OF PROFESSIONAL SURVEYORS FOUNDATION 2003",
it was
manufactured by Berntsen International, Inc. and Mr. Sam Best of Alaska provided the
funds for the monument.
A limited
number of brass paperweight replicas of Ralph's Final Point monument are
available for a cost of $15. Please contact Bill O'Hara via email at bohara@loomisaustin.com
to purchase one.