Department of Geology

Examination papers 1927-1966.

The subject of Geology was initially taught at Glasgow University as part of the Chair of Natural History which was established in 1807  , its first professor being Lockhart Muirhead ( 1807-1829  ). Notable occupants of the post have included Henry Darwin Rogers ( 1857-1866  ) and John Young . In 1876  the Honeyman-Gillespie Lectureship in Geology was established, and Young's assistant, also John Young , was appointed lecturer, giving courses in Zoology and Geology.

Towards the end of the nineteenth century, Geology was increasingly being regarded as a separate subject, with the B.Sc. degree offering three different courses, in Biological Science, Geological Science, and Engineering Science. In 1888  the William Baxter Demonstratorship in Geology was established. However there was still no formal department of Geology. This was resolved with the founding of the Chair of Geology in 1903  , endowed by the gift of the Carnegie Trust , the Bellahouston Trust and other donors. The professorship was first held by John Walter Gregory until 1929  . Other notable occupants of the Chair have included Sir Edward Battersby Bailey ( 1929-1937  ) and Sir Arthur Trueman ( 1937-1947  ). A full list of the University's professors from 1451  to 2001  can be found at http://www.archives.gla.ac.uk/about/publish/elecpubs.html  . The first Lecturer, and subsequently Senior Lecturer, was George Walter Tyrrell , who was formally appointed in 1913  .

The Department of Geology was also involved in a number of collaborative projects with the Isotope Geology Unit of the Scottish Research and Reactor Centre , founded in 1966  jointly by the Scottish universities. In 1987  the Britoil Chair of Geophysics was founded with the appointment of David Kenneth Smythe , who held the post until 1998  . In 1989  the Chair of Applied Geology was founded using the endowment of James S Dixon of Bothwell, the first professor being Michael John Russell . Also that year the Department amalgamated with the Geology and Applied Geology departments of the University of Dundee and the University of Strathclyde to form the Department of Geology and Applied Geology. Geology is now taught within the Earth Sciences division of the Faculty of Physical Sciences.

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University of Glasgow

Subfonds level description compiled by Natalie Milne, archives assistant, January 2002  and John O'Brien, archives assistant, October 2002  .