He briefly attended Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and the Sheffield Scientific School.

Upon his arrival in San Francisco, he worked for the United States Army Corps of Engineers as a civilian assistant and participated in the construction of fortifications on the coast (later named Fort Mason) and on Angel Island.

From 1880 to 1886 he was also a member of the state board of health and was instrumental in establishing proper sewage systems throughout New York.

She died four years later and in 1881 he married Eliza Greene Doane of Albany, New York.

[3] Mount Gardiner in Kings Canyon National Park was named in his honor by the California Geological Survey.