John Duer Irving (August 18, 1874 – July 20, 1918) was an American

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althou ...

. He was born in

Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the county seat of Dane County and the capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census the population was 269,840, making it the second-largest city in Wisconsin by population, after Milwaukee, and the 80th-lar ...

. He graduated from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

in 1896 and 1899. He was a member of the 11th Engineers,

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and died in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

on July 20 or 26, 1918, of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

. In 1899, he joined the

United States Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, ...

and was assigned to a party in the

Black Hills The Black Hills ( lkt, Ȟe Sápa; chy, Moʼȯhta-voʼhonáaeva; hid, awaxaawi shiibisha) is an isolated mountain range rising from the Great Plains of North America in western South Dakota and extending into Wyoming, United States. Black Elk P ...

. He worked closely with

Samuel Franklin Emmons Samuel Franklin Emmons (March 29, 1841 – March 28, 1911) was an American geologist. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts. He graduated from Harvard University in 1861 and studied at the ''Ecole des Mines'' in Paris, France, from 1862 to 1 ...

on several important publications. He left direct employment with the USGS for one year in 1903 to teach at the

University of Wyoming The University of Wyoming (UW) is a public land-grant research university in Laramie, Wyoming. It was founded in March 1886, four years before the territory was admitted as the 44th state, and opened in September 1887. The University of Wyoming ...

at Laramie. In 1907, he took the chair of

economic geology Economic geology is concerned with earth materials that can be used for economic and/or industrial purposes. These materials include precious and base metals, nonmetallic minerals and construction-grade stone. Economic geology is a subdisciplin ...

at the

Sheffield Scientific School Sheffield Scientific School was founded in 1847 as a school of Yale College in New Haven, Connecticut, for instruction in science and engineering. Originally named the Yale Scientific School, it was renamed in 1861 in honor of Joseph E. Sheffield, ...

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

. At the time of this death, he was on leave from his position at

. He was considered one of the foremost representatives of applied geology in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. He was also the managing editor of the journal ''Economic Geology'' from 1905 until his death.Kemp, James F. "John Duer Irving" Science, Volume 48, Issue 1237, September 13, 1918. pp. 255-256 His father,

Roland Duer Irving Roland Duer Irving (April 27, 1847 – May 30, 1888) was an American geologist. He was born in New York city and graduated from Columbia School of Engineering and Applied Science, Columbia College School of Mines in 1869 as a mining engineer. In ...

, was also a noted

Publications

*"The Downtown district of Leadville, Colorado." with S.F. Emmons. US Geological Survey Bulletin No. 320 (1907) *"Geology and ore deposits near Lake City, Colorado" with Howland Bancroft. US Geological Survey Bulletin No. 478 (1911) *"Replacement Ore Bodies and the Criteria for their Recognition" Canadian Mining Institute (1911) *"Economic resources of the northern Black Hills" with

. US Geological Survey Professional Paper No. 26 (1904)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Irving, John Duer American geologists 1874 births 1918 deaths Scientists from Madison, Wisconsin United States Geological Survey personnel Deaths from pneumonia in France United States Army personnel of World War I Columbia University alumni Yale University faculty American military personnel killed in World War I