DAVID, Sir TANNATT WILLIAM EDGEWORTH (1858 - 1934), geologist and explorer
Date of birth: 1858
Date of death: 1934
Parent: William David
Gender: Male
Occupation: geologist and explorer
Area of activity: Nature and Agriculture; Science and Mathematics; Travel and Exploration
Author: Frederick John North
Born 28 January 1858, son of William David, rector of St. Fagans, Glamorganshire. From Magdalen School he entered New College, Oxford, in 1876, with the intention of taking holy orders, and obtained a 'first' in classical moderations in 1878; but a breakdown in health diverted his course, and he took a pass degree in 1881, having in the meantime taken to geology.
He began his geological career by a study of the glacial phenomena of South Wales, the results of which were communicated to the Geological Society. He joined the Geological Survey of New South Wales, 1882, was appointed professor of geology and physical geography in the University of Sydney, 1891, and retired in 1924.
He led the Royal Society's expedition to the coral atoll of Funafuti in 1897, was chief of the scientific staff in Shackleton's Antarctic expedition of 1907-9, led the climb of Mount Erebus in 1908, and was one of the party which reached the South Magnetic Pole in 1909; he was also adviser for Shackleton's second expedition in 1913. David was largely responsible for the foundation of the Australian mining corps in the first world war, and became geological adviser to the British expeditionary force in France, with the rank of Lieut.-Colonel. He received doctorates (D.Sc. and Ll.D.) from several British and Commonwealth universities, among them a D.Sc. from the University of Wales, 1926, and distinctions and medals from scientific societies in Britain, Australia, New Zealand, and France; F.R.S. (1900), G.M.G. (1910), D.S.O. (1918), K.B.E. (1920). He died 28 August 1934.
Author
- Frederick John North, (1889 - 1968)
- Cardiff Naturalists' Society, xiii, 1881, 60-78, and lxvii, 1934, 13-16
- Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society of London, xxxix, 1883, 39-54, xci, 1935, xc-xciii
- Foster, Alumni Oxonienses: the members of the University of Oxford
- Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, 1931-40
Sources
- Wikipedia Article: Edgeworth David
Further Reading
Published date: 1959
Article Copyright: http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/
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