American Geology
William
Maclure was born in Scotland in 1763 and made his fortune
in a London mercantile firm before he devoted his life to
science and philanthropy.
He
had become an American citizen by 1803, when President Jefferson
appointed him to a commission to settle claims between the
U.S. and France. Then, mostly alone, Maclure set out to survey
the regions east of the Mississippi River. He made a geological
map of the U.S., one of the first of its scope ever prepared,
which he published with “Observations on the Geology
of the United States” in 1809.
An
early member of the Academy of Natural Sciences, Maclure was
elected its president in 1817, a position which he held until
his death in 1840. He was the Academy’s major benefactor
in those years, giving it his library and scientific collections,
as well as financial support. A correspondent of Jefferson’s
on scientific matters, Maclure is known as the “father
of American geology.” In 1824, he visited Robert Owen’s
cotton mill at New Lanark, Scotland, and the following November,
he met Robert Owen in Philadelphia and decided to join his
group at New Harmony, Indiana. In 1818, Thomas Nuttall named
the genus Maclura to honor William Maclure. It is a medium-sized
tree native to parts of Oklahoma, Texas and Arkansas. Osage
Orange (Maclura pomifera) is noted for its beautiful glossy
leaves and curious citrus-like fruit. Because native Americans
prized its wood for making bows, the French called it Boisd’arc.
The
University of Pennsylvania houses a Maclure Collection that
contains more than 25,000 items mostly materials on the French
Revolution. Maclure was an “enthusiastic advocate of
the benefits of the French Revolution to the people of France.”
The
University of Indiana also has a collection of his work where
he is recognized as the founder of free libraries in both
Indiana and Illinois. Maclure spent the last years of his
life in Mexico and died there in 1840. His place of burial
is unclear.
