Three British Scientists That Changed The World! William Smith, Charles Darwin, and Mary Anning

It is President's Day here in the United States of America.  I am a very big fan of Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, and Theodore Roosevelt.  But today I am posting about Charles Darwin, who was born on the same day as Abraham Lincoln... and William Smith.  You probably have never heard of William Smith, but Geologists revere him and what he was able to do in his life.  And I am again talking about the work and contributions of Mary Anning the Paleontologist and Fossilist. 

William Smith and his Geological Map of the United Kingdom

William Smith is considered the Father of  British Geology.  Or at the least he was the Father of British Stratigraphy.  William Smith was a commoner.  So he had to work for a living.  He was a surveyor and he noticed how different fossils were found in different rock layers.  He was an expert at draining land and he surveyed the path for canals.  Sometimes the Gentry disrespected him because he was not one of them.  However, he was so good at surveying canals and draining land that the Gentry grew to respect his knowledge and skill.   In 1815 he made the first geological map in history.  It was a map of England, Wales, and Scotland.  His map has proven to be remarkably accurate.   William Smith's map was in color.  Each color represented a unique layer of sediment.  Different fossils were found in each layer.  Below is a copy of his colored map. You could print the drawing up top, and color in the different stratigrophic layers.  (That WOULD be a LOT of work!)

William Smith's Geological Map

Charles Darwin on board HMS Beagle

Charles Darwin is much more well known than William Smith.  Charles Darwin went to college to become a doctor, like his father.  He changed his mind and switched to Divinity School.  So Charles graduated and was waiting for a congregation to open up when he was chosen to go on a voyage around the world.  He was to be the captain's gentleman companion and Ship's Naturalist.  You see, Charles Darwin had been an amateur naturalist for years.  He had even studied with leading scientists while he was in college.  In fact, another man, a professional naturalist or basically natural scientists was chosen to go first.  But his kids said, "Daddy, don't go!"  So he did not go and Charles was chosen to go instead.

The drawing of Charles Darwin includes both Frigate Birds and a Galapagos Gull.  Charles would have seen those birds on his voyage.

This voyage changed Charles Darwin's life.  He never became a minister or clergyman.  He became a professional naturalist.  His observations on the voyage, especially his observations in the Galapagos Islands planted the seed of the idea of Evolution by means of Natural Selection.  Of course his book he eventually wrote was called:  On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection.  This book changed the world.

Now, a few words on Charles Darwin and religion.  Charles suffered terribly when his little girl died.  He had a faith crisis because he could not accept the fact that God let his sweet little girl die.  He did not ever go into a church again.  He did NOT become an athiest.  He just could no longer believe in a loving god.  This is what philosophers call "The Problem Of Evil... or Why do bad things happen to good people?"

As someone who has experienced many bad things happening to me and my loved ones... I have an answer.  I believe that life is a test.  God sent us here to be tested.  We come from our Heavenly Parents in our pre-mortal life.  We come to Earth to be tested and to live by faith.  We also are expected to learn and grow as much as we can while here in mortality.  Yes, bad things happen to us and to our loved ones.  This is all part of life's test.  And of course, life's greatest test comes with the death of a loved one.  We just have to keep an eternal perspective.  The next life is just as real as this one.  But we live there as spirits.  We can continue to learn and grow there, if we choose to.  I do not judge anyone, including Charles Darwin, on how they handle the death of a child.  I firmly believe that we will one day see and live with our loved ones again.

By the way, Darwin even said at the end of his most famous book that he viewed it as the Creator putting things into action for evolution to occur.  Darwin was persecuted for his theory, but he never said that God was nonexistent.  

Mary Anning and 3 Species she Discovered

(This is a drawing from an older post.)

I think that the contributions of Mary Anning are also very important.  She was not gentry so, like William Smith, she had to work for a living.  Her father was a carpenter.  Her discoveries help prove that extinction really happened.  Her discoveries also helped establish that the Earth was very very old.  Mary found many fossilized marine animals and she and or her family sold them.  But she also was a self educated paleontologist and knew more about the fossils she found than the great gentry scientist men who made their reputations on her discoveries.  Some of these men DID give her credit, but many did not. . . because she was female and not of the English gentry.  Also, Mary had to be self educated because she and her family were dissenters.  They were not members of the Church of England, so she never would have been allowed to attend a university.  Of course, she was too poor to go anyway.  In her later years the minister retired in her Congregationalist church and she didn't like the new minister, so she converted to Anglicism or Church of England.  So she was no longer a dissenter.
Mary found Plesiosaurs, Ichthyosaurs, and the first Pterosaur outside of Germany.  She also was influential in identifying cropolites.  Cropolites are fossilized feces... A.K.A. petrified poop.  At first these fossilized feces were called bezoar stones.  .   . because they looked like things goats cough up.

When Mary Anning died of breast cancer in her 40s, Charles Darwin referred to her as the carpenter's daughter who deservedly won a name for herself.   His theory of evolution was greatly benefited by Mary Anning's discovery and preparation of fossilized Plesiosaurs, Ichthyosuars and Pterosaurs... as well as fossilized fish and fossilized invertebrate sea creatures. 

My wife and I are reading a biography of Mary Anning by Nigel Clarke.  He points out that she had a very friendly and funny nature.  She had many friends.  Even Charles Dickens complimented her. 

NOTE:  All these drawings are based on paintings of these famous English scientists.  I took a few years off of Mary and Charles.  My drawings of them are from when they were in their twenties.  My drawing of William Smith is from his middle-age, like their portrait.   I had to draw him at that age because that was when he made his map.  These drawings can be found in printable form, by clicking on the category buttons up top.  Click on: . . . . . All Printables. . . . . . or . . . . Paleontology.    I don't have a Geology category. 

Finally, I want to let you know... especially my readers in the UK...WE ARE COMING!  My wife and I are taking a tour of the UK and we are going to be with a BYU Geology group.  We will be studying the history of British Geology.  After our tour we are coming to Lyme Regis to stay a few days and hopefully find a few fossils ourselves!  In fact, we are going on a fossil hunting expedition with Nigel Clarke, who wrote the book we are reading on Mary Anning.   Then we are taking a tour of Ireland!