Portrait of George Mercer Dawson

People/geologist

George Mercer Dawson

George Mercer Dawson (1849–1901), geologist, from Canada. Linked to coal, gold.

The lucky break

In the 1870s he joined the Geological Survey of Canada, mapping the western territories and assessing their mineral wealth and fuel; he mapped and analysed Tertiary lignites as a crucial fuel in a treeless region.1,2

Legacy

His survey reports and his ethnological work earned international attention.1,2

Story cards

Where next

People

Partner ofAlfred SelwynSelwyn held a Geological Survey post open for the young Dawson.1

Sources

  1. DAWSON, GEORGE MERCER Dictionary of Canadian Biography
  2. File pages and licence metadata for portraits (via the Commons imageinfo/extmetadata API) Wikimedia Commons

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.

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Cover photos from Wikimedia Commons: Super Pit, Kalgoorlie by Kgbo, CC BY-SA 4.0; Underground mining equipment by Kaupo Kikkas, 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).