People/geologist

Alfred Selwyn

Alfred Selwyn (1824–1902), geologist, from United Kingdom. Linked to gold, coal.

The lucky break

Appointed in 1852 geological surveyor to the new colony of Victoria, whose Silurian strata were rich in gold, and later director of its survey for 16 years.1

The downfall

Resigned in 1869 after the legislature stopped funding the survey over a disagreement about its priorities.1

Legacy

He assessed the coal and gold fields of Tasmania and South Australia, then succeeded William Logan as director of the Geological Survey of Canada.1

Story cards

Where next

People

InspiredWilliam LoganThe man who mapped Victoria's goldfields took over Logan's survey in Canada.1,2Partner ofGeorge Mercer DawsonSelwyn held a Geological Survey post open for the young Dawson.3

Sources

  1. SELWYN, ALFRED RICHARD CECIL Dictionary of Canadian Biography
  2. LOGAN, Sir WILLIAM EDMOND Dictionary of Canadian Biography
  3. DAWSON, GEORGE MERCER Dictionary of Canadian Biography

Pictures on this page: George Mercer Dawson - McCord Stewart Museum (II-97765).jpeg, William Notman and Son (Public domain).

From the Prospector Trails mining history dataset: each fact links to the source it was checked against. Figures are as the source gives them, in the money of their day. Not investment advice.

Keep exploring

Stories with these minerals

The Super Pit gold mine at Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, at sunsetMining historyGold rushes, then and nowGold and lithium · WorldwideHistory of miningGold fever: the rushes that filled continents1848-1900Lessons from historyPrice shocks and the supply response1893-2025Lessons from historyThe deposits that made fortunes, and who kept them1485-2008

All mining storiesThe world runs on rockAll mineralsMining by country

Cover photos from Wikimedia Commons: Super Pit, Kalgoorlie by Kgbo, CC BY-SA 4.0. Pictures: Gold prospectors constructing a long box with a filter for panning gold. Process print after H.M. Paget, 1899., Henry Marriott Paget (Public Domain Mark 1.0); Pangkalpinang. Mijn 3b. Een reeks koelies bezig met het transporteeren van grond, Europeana (Public Domain Mark 1.0); Kimberley, South Africa: miners and washing gear at the Bultfontein diamond mine. Woodburytype, 1888, after a photograph by Robert Harris., Harris, Robert, active 1881-1888. (Public Domain Mark 1.0).