(1820-1899) Canadian Paleontologist
Sir (John) William Dawson was one of the most influential geologists ever in Canada. He is known not only for his detailed research in paleontology, but also for his associations with such geological dignitaries as Charles Lyell and for his work in professional service. He brought Canada from a relative backwoods reputation to one of respect within the profession on an international basis almost single-handedly. Dawson’s fieldwork in Nova Scotia and Quebec yielded more than 200 new post-Pliocene fossil discoveries. He also discovered a method for perfecting the examination of thin fossil slices using a microscope. This technique aided Dawson in identifying more than 125 new Paleozoic Canadian plant fossils reaching from the coastal areas of Nova Scotia to midwestern Canada.
Sir William Dawson’s relationship with Charles Lyell was legendary. While exploring Jog-gins, Canada, together, they discovered bones of small amphibians in fossil trunks while examining a thick section of Carboniferous strata. These fossils were the first of their kind in this area and the earliest North American Carboniferous reptile, Dendrerpeton acadianum, ever to be collected. Dawson also discovered the earliest land snail, Pu-pavetusta, and remains of Devonian plants. With all of this extensive research in eastern Canada, Dawson wrote his opus, Acadian Geology, which was first published in 1855. It is the most complete volume of the geology of coastal towns in Canada ever published.
In the early 1860s, Dawson began working on SIR WILLIAM EDMOND LOGAN’s Laurentian fossils. He discovered colonial forms of strange jellylike structures that contained limestone filled walls. These strange new discoveries were named Eozoon canadense which means “dawn animal of Canada.” Dawson strongly believed that his new discoveries were foraminifers (single-celled creatures usually classified in the protist kingdom). Dawson was met with resistance from several geologists and paleontologists from Ireland and Germany who believed that his discoveries were not organic in nature at all. Dawson and his supporters continued to steadfastly maintain their position and prevailed.
John William Dawson was born October 13, 1820, in the small coastal fishing village of Pic-tou, Nova Scotia. He was given the opportunity to earn a reputable education through Pictou Academy, a public school in town that concentrated on teaching the natural sciences. He was also fortunate enough to be surrounded by sandstone and shale formations in his hometown of Pictou that contained Carboniferous plant fossils. This environment allowed the already science-oriented youth to investigate the disciplines of both geology and paleontology. In the fall of 1840, Dawson’s father sent him to the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. There were only a few colleges and universities in the world at that time that included a natural science major that concentrated in geology and botany in their curriculum. Due to financial difficulties, however, Dawson was forced to return to Nova Scotia to help his family business for one year. During his trip back to Canada, Dawson met geologist William Logan, who was about to become director of the Geological Survey of Canada.
He returned to the University of Edinburgh in 1841 to complete his studies. It was then that he met his future wife, Margaret Ann Young Mercer. Upon completion of his second period of study in 1947, Dawson again returned to Canada and joined the General Mining Association of London. He completed a geological survey of Cape Breton and investigated coal and other mineral deposits for the government of the province and for several small mining companies. In 1849, he gave a series of lectures on several disciplines of natural history including geology to his former grade school, the Pictou Academy, the Halifax Mechanic’s Institute, and at Dalhousie College in Halifax, Nova Scotia.
From 1850 to 1853 Dawson held the position of the first-ever superintendent of education for the province of Nova Scotia. The public school system was poorly managed and unorganized when Dawson took it over in 1850. During his tenure with the Nova Scotia school system he worked so tenaciously that he reformed the entire school system in less than three years. He was also able to continue his scientific research during this time. The job required extensive traveling and Dawson used this time to gather data and investigate several paleontological inquires. Some of Dawson’s greatest paleontological discoveries were made during his extensive travel for the school system. Dawson had the opportunity to work with the great Charles Lyell in 1853 during one of his trips to North America to continue his research there. In 1855, Dawson became principal of McGill University in Montreal. Dawson’s hard work is the reason that the university became one of Canada’s most best-known and most reputable colleges. It was a huge accomplishment for a school that was attended by the non-English minority. Sir William Dawson retired from McGill University in 1893, but remained active until his death on November 19, 1899, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Sir William Dawson led an extremely productive career, especially for those years. He was an author of some 200 publications ranging from popular essays on both scientific and religious topics. His technical research papers ranged from earthquake accounts to descriptions of fossil amphibians and mollusks and include such titles as the “Geological History of Plants,” among others. His first popular book, Arcadia, or Studies of the Narrative of Creation in the Hebrew Scriptures did not raise public interest until it was reissued as Origin of the World after Darwin stirred up the controversy between Christian theology and science. Dawson attempted to quell that controversy in his next topic, Nature and the Bible and in Facts and Fancies of Natural Sciences. He also wrote Links in the Chain of Life, which illustrated several plants and animals through geologic time.
Sir William Dawson received many scientific awards and honors in recognition of his many contributions. In 1854, he became a Fellow of the Royal Society of London. He also formed the Royal Society of Canada in 1882, serving as its first president. He was also the fifth president of the Geological Society of America. In 1884, he was knighted by Queen Victoria for his contributions to geology and was given the title of Sir William Dawson. He also received the Lyell Medal from the Geological Society of London. His son, George Mercer Dawson, also went on to become the director of the Geological Survey of Canada and the 12th president of the Geological Society of America.
