Alice Evelyn Wilson,
MBE Mbe may refer to:
* Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo
* Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria
* Mbe language, a language of Nigeria
* Mbe' language, language of Cameroon
* ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language
Molal ...
,
FRSC,
FRCGS (August 26, 1881 – April 15, 1964) was Canada's first female geologist.
Her scientific studies of rocks and
fossil
A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...
s in the
Ottawa
Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...
region between 1913 and 1963 remain a respected source of knowledge.
Early life
Wilson was born in
Cobourg
Cobourg ( ) is a town in the Canadian province of Ontario, located in Southern Ontario east of Toronto and east of Oshawa. It is the largest town in and seat of Northumberland County. Its nearest neighbour is Port Hope, to the west. It is ...
, Ontario in 1881 to her father Dr. John Wilson, a professor of
classics
Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...
at the
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...
.
From childhood she was often exposed to nature during canoeing and camping trips with her father and two brothers. These trips sparked her interest in
fossil
A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...
s and the study of
geology
Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ear ...
. Going outdoors also assisted in improving her struggling health. During her time in college, her brothers were already critically acclaimed experts in their respective fields of
geology
Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ear ...
and
mathematics
Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...
.
So, scholarly thought and the pursuit of scientific knowledge was encouraged.
Education
In 1901 Wilson began studying
modern language
A modern language is any human language that is currently in use. The term is used in language education to distinguish between languages which are used for day-to-day communication (such as French and German) and dead classical languages such a ...
and
history
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the History of writing#Inventions of writing, invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbr ...
at the
Victoria College in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
originally intending to be a teacher.
She did not finish her last year of studies due to health problems. She eventually completed her degree many years later in 1911.
Despite being eligible to undertake a doctorate in 1915, Wilson was repeatedly denied paid time off from the
Geological Survey of Canada
The Geological Survey of Canada (GSC; french: Commission géologique du Canada (CGC)) is a Canadian federal government agency responsible for performing geological surveys of the country, developing Canada's natural resources and protecting the en ...
(GSC), even though the GSC was granting paid absences at the time. Wilson's direct boss from 1920, Edward M. Kindle, was supportive of Alice and wanted her to take a leave and finish her doctorate though others in leadership roles at the GSC where much less so.
For seven years Wilson persisted, and finally was awarded a scholarship by the
Canadian Federation of University Women
The Canadian Federation of University Women (CFUW) (French: ''Fédération canadienne des femmes diplômées des universités CFDU') is a non-partisan, voluntary, self-funded organization with nearly 100 CFUW Clubs, located in every province acr ...
(CFUW) in 1926. Even then, the GSC contended Wilson's leave. After a lobbying effort from the CFUW, Wilson was granted leave, and graduated in 1929 at the age of 48 from the
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...
with a doctorate in geology.
Career
In 1907 Wilson started her career at the
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...
museum in the mineralogy division, despite not having completed her degree. In 1909, she took an assistant job at the
Victoria Memorial Museum
The Canadian Museum of Nature (french: Musée canadien de la nature; CMN) is a national natural history museum based in Canada's National Capital Region. The museum's exhibitions and public programs are housed in the Victoria Memorial Museum Bu ...
, and then became eligible and took a temporary clerk position at the
Geological Survey of Canada
The Geological Survey of Canada (GSC; french: Commission géologique du Canada (CGC)) is a Canadian federal government agency responsible for performing geological surveys of the country, developing Canada's natural resources and protecting the en ...
(GSC), which was headquartered at the Victoria Memorial Museum in Ottawa. She was later requested to translate a portion of
Karl Alfred von Zittel
Karl Alfred Ritter von Zittel (25 September 1839 – 5 January 1904) was a German palaeontologist best known for his ''Handbuch der Palaeontologie'' (1876–1880).
Biography
Karl Alfred von Zittel was born in Bahlingen in the Grand Duchy o ...
s ''Text-Book of Paleontology'' from German to English by
Percy Raymond Percy Edward Raymond (30 May 1879 – 17 May 1952) was a Harvard professor and paleontologist who specialized in the evolution of trilobites and studied fossils from the Burgess shales within which a region is named as the Raymond Quarry. He was am ...
, whom also advocated Wilson to take a leave of absence from the GSC in order to finish her degree, of which she received in 1910.
In 1911, she went back and was given a permanent position at the GSC. It was not until 1970 that other women were granted the same.
Before the departure of colleague Percy Raymond, she wrote two articles, both of which recorded new species of animals. Respectively, a new branchiopod and then a bivalve.
Wilson faced significant difficulty being included in her colleagues' work after that.
In 1916, during the First World War, Wilson's place of work, the
Victoria Memorial Museum
The Canadian Museum of Nature (french: Musée canadien de la nature; CMN) is a national natural history museum based in Canada's National Capital Region. The museum's exhibitions and public programs are housed in the Victoria Memorial Museum Bu ...
, was shut down and reoccupied as a war-time parliament. During this time, Wilson funded her projects with her own money, studying comparative anatomy and marine biology in Long Island, New York. Later, Wilson took part in the war-time effort on the home front, joining the Canadian equivalent of the
Women's Land Army
The Women's Land Army (WLA) was a British civilian organisation created in 1917 by the Board of Agriculture during the First World War to bring women into work in agriculture, replacing men called up to the military. Women who worked for the W ...
. At war's end in 1920, Wilson went back to the Victoria Memorial Museum, now working as an Assistant Paleontologist.
She would further be promoted to associate geologist, in 1940.
While working at the GSC, they did not allow women to work together with men during fieldwork. So Wilson created her own niche and did fieldwork at local sites in the Ottawa area, going on to eventually map over of the Ottawa St Lawrence Lowlands entirely on her own. For fifty years she studied the area on foot, by bicycle and eventually by car.
The GSC published the results of her fieldwork in 1946 and her ''Geology of the St. Lawrence Lowland, Ontario and Quebec'' was the first major geological publication about the area. In addition to a comprehensive discussion of its geology, Wilson covered the area's economic resources, including building stone, sand, gravel and drinking water. Wilson's research into the
stratigraphy
Stratigraphy is a branch of geology concerned with the study of rock (geology), rock layers (Stratum, strata) and layering (stratification). It is primarily used in the study of sedimentary rock, sedimentary and layered volcanic rocks.
Stratigrap ...
and
invertebrate palaeontology
Invertebrate paleontology (also spelled invertebrate palaeontology) is sometimes described as invertebrate paleozoology or invertebrate paleobiology.
Whether it is considered to be a subfield of paleontology, paleozoology, or paleobiology, this d ...
of the
Palaeozoic strata of eastern Canada was significant, though her contributions to the field did not gain recognition until after her retirement.
In Ontario, her focus was on invertebrate fossils during the Ordovician period, specifically sediments and fossils in the Ottawa Valley. In the Rocky Mountains and the Arctic, Wilson studied Ordovician fauna.
During the
Great Depression
The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
, however, Wilson had to switch her focus from Ordovician to Devonian rocks, to meet the growing demand of petroleum in Western Canada. One of her tasks was to identify and categorize all Paleozoic invertebrates for examination. As a result, Wilson ordered the National Type Collection of fossilsan internationally recognized reference collection.
From 1948 until 1958 Wilson was a lecturer in Paleontology at Carleton College (later
Carleton University
Carleton University is an English-language public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1942 as Carleton College, the institution originally operated as a private, non-denominational evening college to serve returning World ...
). Carleton recognized Wilson both as a geologist and as an inspiring teacher with an honorary degree in 1960.
Wilson also worked to bring geology to a broader public. She wrote a children's book, ''The Earth Beneath our Feet,'' aimed at encouraging broader knowledge and interest in the science she was so passionate about.
Wilson's work on researching the geology and paleontology in the area of
Cornwall, Ontario
Cornwall is a city in Eastern Ontario, Canada, situated where the provinces of Central Canada, Ontario and Quebec and the state of New York (state), New York converge. It is the seat of the United Counties of Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry, Unit ...
and the
St. Lawrence lowlands
ST, St, or St. may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Stanza, in poetry
* Suicidal Tendencies, an American heavy metal/hardcore punk band
* Star Trek, a science-fiction media franchise
* Summa Theologica, a compendium of Catholic philosophy an ...
was important for the creation of the
St. Lawrence Seaway that was built in 1954.
Wilson became a respected member of the GSC and mentored many young geologists through her lectures, field trips, publications, and museum exhibits. However, she was not referred to as "Doctor" by her colleagues until 194516 years after she obtained her doctorate.
She retired two years later, at the age of 65, as was required by law, though five new hires were required to do the same amount of work as Wilson.
However, she kept her office at the GSC and continued her work regardless of not being paid until her death in 1964.
Awards and professional recognition
![Alice Wilson Plaque](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ab/Alice_Wilson_Plaque.jpg)
Wilson was the first woman geologist hired by the Geological Survey of Canada (1909); one of the first two women elected as Fellows of The
Royal Canadian Geographical Society
The Royal Canadian Geographical Society (RCGS; French: ''Société géographique royale du Canada'') is a Canadian nonprofit educational organization dedicated to imparting a broader knowledge and deeper appreciation of Canada—its people a ...
(1930); the first Canadian woman to be admitted to the Geological Society of America (1936); and the first female Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada (1938).
In 1935, when the government of
R. B. Bennett was looking to honour a woman in the federal civil service, Wilson was chosen to become a Member of the
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...
.
In 1991 the Royal Society of Canada established the Alice Wilson Awards for emerging women scholars.
Wilson was inducted into the
Canadian Science and Engineering Hall of Fame in 2005.
On 18 October 2018, the Government of Canada dedicated a plaque to Wilson, recognizing her as a "person of national historic significance at the Canadian Museum of Nature."
Selected publications
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*
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See also
*
Timeline of women in science
This is a timeline of women in science, spanning from ancient history up to the 21st century. While the timeline primarily focuses on women involved with natural sciences such as astronomy, biology, chemistry and physics, it also includes women f ...
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Alice
1881 births
1964 deaths
Canadian women geologists
Canadian paleontologists
Geological Survey of Canada personnel
Fellows of the Royal Society of Canada
Canadian Members of the Order of the British Empire
Women paleontologists
People from Cobourg
Canadian women biologists
20th-century Canadian women scientists
Paleontology in Ontario
Persons of National Historic Significance (Canada)
20th-century Canadian biologists