Sir James Hector (16 March 1834 – 6 November 1907) was a Scottish-New Zealand geologist, naturalist, and surgeon who accompanied the Palliser Expedition as a surgeon and geologist. He went on to have a lengthy career as a government employed man of science in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, and during this period he dominated the Colony's scientific institutions in a way that no single man has since.

Early life

He was born at 11 Danube Street in

Stockbridge, Edinburgh Stockbridge is a suburb of Edinburgh, located north of the city centre, bounded by the New Town and by Comely Bank. The name is Scots ''stock brig'' from Anglic ''stocc brycg'', meaning a timber bridge. Originally a small outlying village, ...

the son of Alexander Hector WS and his wife, Margaret Macrostie. He attended the

Edinburgh Academy The Edinburgh Academy is an independent day school in Edinburgh, Scotland, which was opened in 1824. The original building, on Henderson Row in the city's New Town, is now part of the Senior School. The Junior School is located on Arboretum Ro ...

from 1844 to 1845. At 14, he began articles as an actuary at his father's office. He joined

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

as a medical student and received his

medical degree A medical degree is a professional degree admitted to those who have passed coursework in the fields of medicine and/or surgery from an accredited medical school. Obtaining a degree in medicine allows for the recipient to continue on into special ...

in 1856 at the age of 22.

Palliser expedition

Shortly after receiving his medical degree, upon the recommendation of Sir Roderick Murchison – director-general of the British Geological Survey – Hector was appointed geologist on the Palliser Expedition under the command of

John Palliser John Palliser (29 January 1817 – 18 August 1887) was an Irish-born geographer and explorer. Following his service in the Waterford Militia and hunting excursions to the North American prairies, he led the British North American Explor ...

. The goal of the Palliser expedition to

British North America British North America comprised the colonial territories of the British Empire in North America from 1783 onwards. English colonisation of North America began in the 16th century in Newfoundland, then further south at Roanoke and Jamestow ...

(now Canada) was to explore new railway routes for the Canadian Pacific Railway and to collect new species of plants. In 1858, when Palliser's expedition was exploring a mountain pass near the continental divide of the Canadian Rockies, one of Hector's packhorses fell into the river. As it was being pulled from the water, his own horse strayed and, when chasing after it, Hector records, he was kicked in the chest and knocked unconscious. He wrote in his diary of the expedition: "In attempting to recatch my own horse, which had strayed off while we were engaged with the one in the water, he kicked me in the chest". His companions, thinking him dead, dug a grave for him and prepared to put him in. His premature burial was cancelled when he regained consciousness. The pass and nearby river have been known since as

Kicking Horse Pass Kicking Horse Pass (el. ) is a high mountain pass across the Continental Divide of the Americas of the Canadian Rockies on the Alberta–British Columbia border, and lying within Yoho and Banff national parks. Divide Creek forks onto both s ...

and

Kicking Horse River The Kicking Horse River is in the Canadian Rockies of southeastern British Columbia, Canada. The river was named in 1858, when James Hector, a member of the Palliser Expedition, reported being kicked by his packhorse while exploring the river. He ...

.Shaughnessy Bishop-Stall, ''Canadian Geographic'', Jan/Feb 2008, p. 24 The legend of the Kicking Horse is now firmly established in popular Canadian history. However, as politely noted by the Palliser scholar Irene Spry, it "embodies Hector's not always accurate reminiscences about the Expedition". The only member of the Expedition who outlived Hector and who could verify what actually happened was the Métis Peter Erasmus, and his account does not support Hector's. According to Erasmus:

The doctor was knocked unconscious. We all leapt from our horses and rushed up to him, but all our attempts to help him recover his senses were of no avail. We then carried him to the shade of some big evergreens while we pitched camp. We were now in serious trouble, and unless Nimrod fetched in game our situation looked hopeless. One man stayed and watched the unconscious doctor. The rest of us took turns trying to catch trout that we could see in the clear mountain water of the river. Dr. Hector must have been unconscious for at least two hours when Sutherland yelled for us to come up; he was now conscious but in great pain. He asked for his kit and directed me to prepare some medicine that would ease the pain. I had him sign a document stating the facts of the accident in case his illness might prove serious. He readily agreed that it would be the proper thing to do.

In 1903 during a visit to Canada, Hector said of his mishap in Kicking Horse Pass, "When I regained consciousness, my grave was dug and they were preparing to put me in it. So that's how Kicking Horse got its name and how I came to have a grave in this part of the world."

New Zealand

Following his return to Britain after the Palliser expedition, Hector again secured a paid scientific position with Roderick Murchison's and

Joseph Hooker Joseph Hooker (November 13, 1814 – October 31, 1879) was an American Civil War general for the Union, chiefly remembered for his decisive defeat by Confederate General Robert E. Lee at the Battle of Chancellorsville in 1863. Hooker had serv ...

's help. In April 1862 he arrived in

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

in New Zealand to conduct a three-year geological survey of Otago, soon after the discovery of gold there. Hector travelled throughout the south of New Zealand's South Island to assess its potential for settlement and to record the location of useful minerals. He also assembled a staff of half a dozen men to assist with such tasks as fossil collecting, chemical analysis, and botanical and zoological taxonomy. Some of these men, such as William Skey (mineral analyst), Richard Gore (clerk), and John Buchanan (botanical artist and draftsman), stayed with him for many years. As part of the survey, a Geological Map of Otago was created, known as Hector's Map. In 1865 a "Sketch Map of the Geology of New Zealand" was produced, and in 1869 it was revised and published by the Government Printing Office in New Zealand; giving a synthesis of New Zealand geological research in the first geological map of the country.

Chief Government Scientist

In 1865 Hector was appointed to found the Geological Survey of New Zealand, and he moved to

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by metr ...

to supervise the construction of the Colonial Museum, which was to be the Survey's headquarters. As the chief Government-employed scientist, Hector gave politicians advice on questions as diverse as exporting wool to Japan and improving fibre production from New Zealand flax. He was the first manager of the Wellington Botanic Gardens on their opening in 1869. He went on to develop the Gardens with the New Zealand Institute (now known as the Royal Society of New Zealand) for 22 years. His political influence was underlined by his marriage in 1868 to Maria Georgiana Monro, daughter of the

speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** I ...

of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

David Monro Sir David Monro (27 March 1813 – 15 February 1877) was a New Zealand politician. He served as Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives from 1861 to 1870. Early life Monro was born in Edinburgh. His father was Alexander Monro, ...

. Hector managed the Colony's premier scientific society – the New Zealand Institute (now known as the

Royal Society of New Zealand Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a c ...

) – for thirty-five years. He was the first manager of the Wellington Botanic Gardens on their opening in 1869, developing the gardens with the New Zealand Institute for 22 years. From 1885 he was Chancellor of the

University of New Zealand The University of New Zealand was New Zealand's sole degree-granting university from 1874 to 1961. It was a collegiate university embracing several constituent institutions at various locations around New Zealand. After it was dissolved in 196 ...

. He controlled virtually every aspect of state-funded science. He had close and, at times, tense relationships with other men of science, in particular

Julius von Haast Sir Johann Franz Julius von Haast (1 May 1822 – 16 August 1887) was a German-born New Zealand explorer, geologist, and founder of the Canterbury Museum in Christchurch. Early life Johann Franz Julius Haast was born on 1 May 1822 in Bo ...

in Christchurch; eg (1871-74) over the"Sumner Cave" relics in Christchurch, the Moa and whether the early Moa-hunters were a separate race as Haast maintained. At the end of his career he was criticised for failing to acquire

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

artefacts for the Colonial Museum and in 1891 for not adequately defending his departments from the new Liberal Government's funding cuts. In 1891 the Liberals replaced the conservative Continuous Ministry with which he had been associated. In 1902, for example, the ethnographer

Elsdon Best Elsdon Best (30 June 1856 – 9 September 1931) was an ethnographer who made important contributions to the study of the Māori of New Zealand. Early years Elsdon Best was born 30 June 1856 at Tawa Flat, New Zealand, to William Best and the for ...

wrote to

Augustus Hamilton Augustus Hamilton (1 March 1853 – 12 October 1913) was a New Zealand ethnologist, biologist and museum director. He was born in Poole, Dorset, England on 1 March 1853. He wrote on the fishing and seafoods of the ancient Māori people. He al ...

, the future director of the Colonial Museum, to state that Hector should be forced from office and that they should ''put a live man in his place''.

Retirement

Hector retired in 1903, after four decades at the centre of organised science in New Zealand. He was President of the

between 1906 and 1907; preceded by Frederick Hutton and followed by George Malcolm Thomson. He died in Lower Hutt, New Zealand, in 1907, and was buried at Taita Cemetery.

Family

Hector married Maria Georgiana Monro at Nelson on 30 December 1868, three years after moving to Wellington. She was the daughter of politician

, who was at the time the Speaker of the House of Representatives. Her brother was Charles John Monro, who first introduced Rugby to New Zealand. James and Georgiana build a house ''Ratanui'' in 1882, on the Western Hutt hills overlooking

Petone Petone (Māori: ''Pito-one''), a large suburb of Lower Hutt, Wellington, stands at the southern end of the Hutt Valley, on the northern shore of Wellington Harbour. The Māori name means "end of the sand beach". Europeans first settled in P ...

. They had nine children, six boys and three girls: Barclay (1869-1964), Charles Monro (1871-1935), Constance Margart (1873-1949), David Carmichael (1874-1875), Douglas (1877-1903), Philip Landale (1878-1879), Lyell (1882-1908), Georgina (1884-1979) and Marjory (1886-1948). In 1875 the first four children were left in Nelson while their parents visited Britain; David, the youngest died of pneumonia. Charles (like his father) studied medicine at Edinburgh University and became a Lower Hutt GP. Douglas died in Canada of appendicitis while on holiday there with his father. In 1906 Constance married Lionel Saxby and Georgina married Richard Barton. Hector corresponded with the botanist

in London, and looked after two of Hooker’s sons (Willy and Brian) when they came to New Zealand. In 1937, several members of Hector's family donated 16 medals awarded to him during his career to the Dominion Museum, later to become Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa.

Honours

After the Canadian expedition, Hector was elected a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural knowledge, including mathemat ...

in June 1866. In 1877, he was awarded the

Lyell Medal The Lyell Medal is a prestigious annual scientific medal given by the Geological Society of London, equal in status to the Murchison Medal. This medal is awarded based on one Earth Scientist's exceptional contribution of research to the scientific ...

by the Geological Society of London, being the second recipient of this prestigious medal. In 1878 the Royal Society of New South Wales awarded him the

Clarke Medal The Clarke Medal is awarded by the Royal Society of New South Wales, the oldest learned society in Australia and the Southern Hemisphere, for distinguished work in the Natural sciences. The medal is named in honour of the Reverend William Branw ...

awarded to Global scientific achievement. In 1875, he was appointed a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George and in 1887 was appointed a

Knight Commander Commander ( it, Commendatore; french: Commandeur; german: Komtur; es, Comendador; pt, Comendador), or Knight Commander, is a title of honor prevalent in chivalric orders and fraternal orders. The title of Commander occurred in the medieval mili ...

of the same order. The Geoscience Society of New Zealand commemorates his birthday, March 16, as Hector Day.

Eponymy

A number of things have been named after Hector, including: * The

Hector Memorial Medal The Hector Medal, formerly known as the Hector Memorial Medal, is a science award given by the Royal Society Te Apārangi in memory of Sir James Hector to researchers working in New Zealand. It is awarded annually in rotation for different science ...

awarded annually by the Royal Society of New Zealand for outstanding work in chemical, physical or mathematical and information sciences to a researcher in New Zealand. * The library of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa was called the Hector Library until 2001; it is now called
Te Aka Matua Library & Information Centre.
' It consists of the merged collections of the

Dominion Museum The Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa is New Zealand's national museum and is located in Wellington. ''Te Papa Tongarewa'' translates literally to "container of treasures" or in full "container of treasured things and people that spring fr ...

, the National Art Gallery, the

, and the Wellington Branch of the Royal Society of New Zealand. A portrait of Hector hangs just inside the door. * The Hector Observatory, located in the

Wellington Botanic Garden The Wellington Botanic Garden in Wellington, New Zealand covers 25 hectares of land on the side of the hill between Thorndon and Kelburn, near central Wellington. The garden features 25 hectares of protected native forest, conifers, plant c ...

and later renamed the Dominion Observatory * The James Hector Pinetum and Memorial Lookout in the

* Mount Hector located in the southern

Tararua Range The Tararua Range, often referred to as the Tararua Ranges or Tararua, is one of several mountain ranges in the North Island of New Zealand. The Tararua Range runs northeast–southwest for from near Palmerston North to the upper reaches of ...

* Mount Hector located in Banff National Park *

Hector In Greek mythology, Hector (; grc, Ἕκτωρ, Hektōr, label=none, ) is a character in Homer's Iliad. He was a Trojan prince and the greatest warrior for Troy during the Trojan War. Hector led the Trojans and their allies in the defense o ...

, West Coast A number of species and subspecies have been named after Hector, including: * The buff weka, ''Gallirallus australis hectori'' *

Hector's beaked whale Hector's beaked whale (''Mesoplodon hectori''), is a small mesoplodont living in the Southern Hemisphere. This whale is named after Sir James Hector, a founder of the colonial museum in Wellington, New Zealand. The species has rarely been seen i ...

, ''Mesoplodon hectori'' *

Hector's dolphin Hector's dolphin (''Cephalorhynchus hectori'') is one of four dolphin species belonging to the genus '' Cephalorhynchus''. Hector's dolphin is the only cetacean endemic to New Zealand, and comprises two subspecies: ''C. h. hectori'', the more n ...

, ''Cephalorhynchus hectori'' * a New Zealand land snail, ''Huonodon hectori'' * a New Zealand lamp shell, ''Pachymagas hectori'' * a genus of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...

s belonging to the family

Montiaceae Montiaceae are a family of flowering plants, comprising about 14 genera with about 230 known species, ranging from small herbaceous plants to shrubs. The family has a cosmopolitan distribution. The family Montiaceae was newly adopted in the APG ...

, '' Hectorella''

References

External links

*
James Hector in Collections Online, Museum of New Zealand Te Papa TongarewaBiography in 1966 ''Encyclopaedia of New ZealandSir James Hector on Peakfinder
* ttp://collections.tepapa.govt.nz/exhibitions/JamesHector/default.aspx Sir James Hector website by the Museum of New Zealand, Te Papa Tongarewa {{DEFAULTSORT:Hector, James 1834 births 1907 deaths Scientists from Edinburgh Scottish geologists Scottish explorers of North America Explorers of British Columbia People educated at Edinburgh Academy Alumni of the University of Edinburgh 19th-century Scottish medical doctors 20th-century New Zealand scientists 19th-century New Zealand scientists Scottish emigrants to New Zealand Scottish naturalists New Zealand Fellows of the Royal Society Lyell Medal winners Scottish surgeons People associated with the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa New Zealand Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Geologic maps Presidents of the Royal Society of New Zealand People associated with Otago Museum