Ernest Richard Ward Neale, (July 3, 1923 – May 20, 2008) was a Canadian geologist. His scientific research contributed to the understanding of the large-scale structure of the northern Appalachian mountains of

Atlantic Canada Atlantic Canada, also called the Atlantic provinces (french: provinces de l'Atlantique), is the region of Eastern Canada comprising the provinces located on the Atlantic coast, excluding Quebec. The four provinces are New Brunswick, Newfoundlan ...

. Neale used his enthusiasm for geology to inform students and the general public about discoveries in his field through television, radio, pamphlets, booklets, news magazines, and the popular press. Neale worked with the Geological Survey of Canada and

Memorial University of Newfoundland Memorial University of Newfoundland, also known as Memorial University or MUN (), is a public university in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, based in St. John's, with satellite campuses in Corner Brook, elsewhere in Newfoundland and ...

. He, along with John Rodgers of Yale University, were the first to recognize the transported oceanic sedimentary rocks that overlie ancient shelf deposits in western Newfoundland.

Early life

Neale was born in

Beaconsfield Beaconsfield ( ) is a market town and civil parish within the unitary authority of Buckinghamshire, England, west-northwest of central London and south-southeast of Aylesbury. Three other towns are within : Gerrards Cross, Amersham and High W ...

Québec Quebec ( ; )According to the Government of Canada, Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is ...

in July 1923. He served in the Royal Canadian Navy during the Second World War between 1943 and 1945. After the war he went to study at McGill University, Montreal. He completed his BSc in 1949. In 1950, Ward married Roxie and they moved to New Haven, Connecticut so Ward could attend Yale University. There he obtained his MSc. (1951) and

PhD PHD or PhD may refer to: * Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), an academic qualification Entertainment * '' PhD: Phantasy Degree'', a Korean comic series * ''Piled Higher and Deeper'', a web comic * Ph.D. (band), a 1980s British group ** Ph.D. (Ph.D. albu ...

(1952).

Career

Neale worked briefly as an assistant professor at the University of Rochester,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, between 1952 and 1954. After that he went on to work for the Geological Survey of Canada. His first position was as to head the Appalachian Geology Section. Between 1963 and 1965, Neale served as the Commonwealth Geology Liaison Officer. When he returned he was given the responsibility to head the

Precambrian The Precambrian (or Pre-Cambrian, sometimes abbreviated pꞒ, or Cryptozoic) is the earliest part of Earth's history, set before the current Phanerozoic Eon. The Precambrian is so named because it preceded the Cambrian, the first period of the ...

Geology Section. In 1968, Neale left the Survey to become Professor and head of the Geology Department at

. In 1972, he organized a Montreal-based symposium for the International Geological Congress on Geoscience Aid to developing Countries. This symposium led to the creation of the Association of Geoscientists for International Development. In 1976, Neale moved to Calgary as Head of the Geological Information Subdivision of the Institute of Sedimentary and Petroleum Geology. He retained his ties to academia whilst in Calgary by holding an adjunct position at the University of Calgary and acting on the University Senate. In 1982, Neale returned to Newfoundland to accept the position of Vice-President Academic of Memorial University. He held that position until retiring in 1987. After retirement, Ward and his wife moved to

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...

, Alberta.

Other positions held

*1972-1973, President of the

Geological Association of Canada The Geological Association of Canada (GAC) is a learned society that promotes and develops the Geology, geological sciences in Canada. The organization holds conferences, meetings and exhibitions for the discussion of geological problems and the ...

*1973-1978, Director of the

Canadian Geological Foundation Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

*1974-1980, Editor of the Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences *1976, President of the

Canadian Geoscience Council Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

*Chaired the Royal Society of Canada's Committee on Public Awareness of Science *co-Founder of the Calgary Science Network *1989, Chair of the Calgary Science Network

Honours and awards

* was a Fellow of the Geological Society of America for over 50 years * was a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Canada The Royal Society of Canada (RSC; french: Société royale du Canada, SRC), also known as the Academies of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada (French: ''Académies des arts, des lettres et des sciences du Canada''), is the senior national, bil ...

* 1975, awarded the Bancroft Award by the

* 1977, awarded an honorary degree from the University of Calgary * 1977, awarded a

Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal (french: link=no, Médaille du jubilé d'argent de la reine Elizabeth II) is a commemorative medal created in 1977 to mark the 25th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession in 1952. The medal is p ...

* 1977, awarded the R. T. Bell Medal by the Canadian Mining Journal * 1981, awarded a Distinguished Service Award by the Geological Association of Canada * 1986, awarded the Ambrose Medal of the Geological Association of Canada * 1990, made an Officer of the Order of Canada * 1992, awarded the

125th Anniversary of the Confederation of Canada Medal The 125th Anniversary of the Confederation of Canada Medal (french: Médaille commémorative du 125e anniversaire de la Confédération du Canada) is a commemorative medal struck by the Royal Canadian Mint to commemorate the 125th anniversary of ...

by the Government of Canada * 1994, honored by the creation of the

E. R. Ward Neale Medal The E. R. Neale Medal, named after E. R. Ward Neale, past Geological Association of Canada president, is awarded by the Geological Association of Canada to an individual for sustained outstanding efforts in sharing geology, earth science with Canad ...

by the Geological Association of Canada * 2003, awarded an honorary award for a significant contribution to the field of education by the

International Geoscience Education Organization The International Geoscience Education Organisation (IGEO) is an international non-governmental organization aimed to promote the improvement of the quality of geoscience education worldwide. About The International Geoscience Education Organ ...

References

Neale's Obituary
Retrieved May 26, 2008.
Memorial University of Newfoundland Gazette August 25, 1995
Retrieved May 26, 2008.

Retrieved May 26, 2008.
Geological Society of America 50+ years
Retrieved May 26, 2008.

Retrieved May 26, 2008.

Retrieved May 26, 2008.

External links

The E.R. Ward Neale Medal
{{DEFAULTSORT:Neale, E.R. Ward 1923 births 2008 deaths 20th-century Canadian geologists Geological Survey of Canada personnel Fellows of the Royal Society of Canada McGill University alumni Academic staff of the Memorial University of Newfoundland Officers of the Order of Canada Yale University alumni Fellows of the Geological Society of America Canadian expatriates in the United States