John Edward Marr
Encyclopedia
John Edward Marr FGS
FRS (14 June 1857 – 1 October 1933) was a British
geologist. After studying at Lancaster Royal Grammar School
he matriculated to St John's College, Cambridge
, graduating with First Class Honours in 1878. Following undergraduate work in the Lake District he travelled to Bohemia to investigate the fossil collection of Joachim Barrande
, where his work won him the Sedgwick Prize in 1882. In 1886 Marr became University Lecturer at the University of Cambridge Department of Geology, a position he held for 32 years until he succeeded Thomas McKenny Hughes
as Woodwardian Professor of Geology
in 1917. Having retired as a professor in 1930, he died on 1 October 1933.
on 14 June 1857 to John Marr, a retired silk merchant, and his wife Mary. After the family stayed in Caernarfon
in 1863 Marr became interested in geology, having discovered a fossil which was named after him. From 1867 to 1875 he studied at the Lancaster Royal Grammar School
, where he met R. H. Tiddeman, who took Marr on a number of field trips and geological surveys. In 1875 he matriculated to St John's College, Cambridge
to study geology as an exhibitioner
, having won a Foundation Scholarship. There he studied under Thomas George Bonney
and Thomas McKenny Hughes
, graduating with First Class Honours in 1878. As an undergraduate he published several papers, including one on his discovery of Cambrian
fossils in Caernarfonshire
that could not be accurately dated, something that occupied a lot of his later work. In 1879 he became a Fellow of the Geological Society of London
, and in 1881 he was elected a Fellow of St John's College.
, who had found newer Upper Silesian fossils among older Lower Silesian ones and hypothesised that the two groups existed side by side. Marr instead proved that the younger fossils had "dropped" into the older rock as a result of faults in the stone. Barrande himself was not convinced, but Marr's work on recategorising the Silesian fossils won him the Sedgwick Prize in 1882.
Marr then returned to the Lake District
, where he worked with Henry Alleyne Nicholson
on the succession of the Stockdale Shales. He then worked with Alfred Harker
on a similar project in Shap
. In his Lake District work Marr came up with the idea of lag faulting to explain the topography of the District, subscribing much of the layout to glacial erosion. His theories were later published in a 1916 book The Geology of the Lake District.
, a position he held for 32 years until he succeeded Thomas McKenny Hughes
as Woodwardian Professor of Geology
in 1917. He spent 13 years as Professor before retiring due to ill-health in 1930, followed by his death on 1 October 1933.
Marr served as Secretary of the Geological Society of London
from 1888 to 1898, Vice-President and President from 1904 to 1906, serving on the council for 35 years and as Foreign Secretary for 3. The Society awarded him the Lyell Medal
in 1900 and the Wollaston Medal
in 1914. In 1891 he was made a Fellow of the Royal Society, serving on the Society council from 1904 to 1906, and was awarded their Royal Medal
in 1930.
Geological Society of London
The Geological Society of London is a learned society based in the United Kingdom with the aim of "investigating the mineral structure of the Earth"...
FRS (14 June 1857 – 1 October 1933) was a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
geologist. After studying at Lancaster Royal Grammar School
Lancaster Royal Grammar School
Lancaster Royal Grammar School is a voluntary aided, selective grammar school for boys in Lancaster, England. The school has been awarded specialist Technology College and Language College status. Old boys belong to The Old Lancastrians...
he matriculated to St John's College, Cambridge
St John's College, Cambridge
St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college's alumni include nine Nobel Prize winners, six Prime Ministers, three archbishops, at least two princes, and three Saints....
, graduating with First Class Honours in 1878. Following undergraduate work in the Lake District he travelled to Bohemia to investigate the fossil collection of Joachim Barrande
Joachim Barrande
Joachim Barrande was a French geologist and palaeontologist.Barrande was born at Saugues, Haute Loire, and educated in the École Polytechnique at Paris...
, where his work won him the Sedgwick Prize in 1882. In 1886 Marr became University Lecturer at the University of Cambridge Department of Geology, a position he held for 32 years until he succeeded Thomas McKenny Hughes
Thomas McKenny Hughes
Thomas McKenny Hughes was a Welsh geologist. He was Woodwardian Professor of Geology at Cambridge University.-Private life:...
as Woodwardian Professor of Geology
Woodwardian Professor of Geology
The Woodwardian Professor of Geology is a professorship held in the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of Cambridge. It was founded by John Woodward in 1728...
in 1917. Having retired as a professor in 1930, he died on 1 October 1933.
Early life and education
Marr was born in Poulton-le-SandsPoulton-le-Sands
Poulton-le-Sands was one of three small villages that combined to create Morecambe. Poulton was first mentioned in the Domesday Book as Poltune. It later became Poulton and remained this way for a number of centuries. It was towards the end of the eighteenth or the beginning of the nineteenth...
on 14 June 1857 to John Marr, a retired silk merchant, and his wife Mary. After the family stayed in Caernarfon
Caernarfon
Caernarfon is a Royal town, community and port in Gwynedd, Wales, with a population of 9,611. It lies along the A487 road, on the east banks of the Menai Straits, opposite the Isle of Anglesey. The city of Bangor is to the northeast, while Snowdonia fringes Caernarfon to the east and southeast...
in 1863 Marr became interested in geology, having discovered a fossil which was named after him. From 1867 to 1875 he studied at the Lancaster Royal Grammar School
Lancaster Royal Grammar School
Lancaster Royal Grammar School is a voluntary aided, selective grammar school for boys in Lancaster, England. The school has been awarded specialist Technology College and Language College status. Old boys belong to The Old Lancastrians...
, where he met R. H. Tiddeman, who took Marr on a number of field trips and geological surveys. In 1875 he matriculated to St John's College, Cambridge
St John's College, Cambridge
St John's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college's alumni include nine Nobel Prize winners, six Prime Ministers, three archbishops, at least two princes, and three Saints....
to study geology as an exhibitioner
Exhibition (scholarship)
-United Kingdom and Ireland:At the universities of Dublin, Oxford and Cambridge, and at Westminster School, Eton College and Winchester College, and various other UK educational establishments, an exhibition is a financial award or grant to an individual student, normally on grounds of merit. The...
, having won a Foundation Scholarship. There he studied under Thomas George Bonney
Thomas George Bonney
Thomas George Bonney FRS was an English geologist.-Career:Bonney was the eldest son of the Reverend Thomas Bonney, master of Rugeley Grammar School...
and Thomas McKenny Hughes
Thomas McKenny Hughes
Thomas McKenny Hughes was a Welsh geologist. He was Woodwardian Professor of Geology at Cambridge University.-Private life:...
, graduating with First Class Honours in 1878. As an undergraduate he published several papers, including one on his discovery of Cambrian
Cambrian
The Cambrian is the first geological period of the Paleozoic Era, lasting from Mya ; it is succeeded by the Ordovician. Its subdivisions, and indeed its base, are somewhat in flux. The period was established by Adam Sedgwick, who named it after Cambria, the Latin name for Wales, where Britain's...
fossils in Caernarfonshire
Caernarfonshire
Caernarfonshire , historically spelled as Caernarvonshire or Carnarvonshire in English during its existence, was one of the thirteen historic counties, a vice-county and a former administrative county of Wales....
that could not be accurately dated, something that occupied a lot of his later work. In 1879 he became a Fellow of the Geological Society of London
Geological Society of London
The Geological Society of London is a learned society based in the United Kingdom with the aim of "investigating the mineral structure of the Earth"...
, and in 1881 he was elected a Fellow of St John's College.
Research work
After graduating Marr used two research funds from the Worts Fund of Cambridge University to investigate the work done in Bohemia and Scandinavia to reorder the older palaeozoic rocks, his work in the Lake District having convinced him that it was possible to order the confusing succession of palaezoic rocks as it then stood. In 1879 he travelled to the collection of Joachim BarrandeJoachim Barrande
Joachim Barrande was a French geologist and palaeontologist.Barrande was born at Saugues, Haute Loire, and educated in the École Polytechnique at Paris...
, who had found newer Upper Silesian fossils among older Lower Silesian ones and hypothesised that the two groups existed side by side. Marr instead proved that the younger fossils had "dropped" into the older rock as a result of faults in the stone. Barrande himself was not convinced, but Marr's work on recategorising the Silesian fossils won him the Sedgwick Prize in 1882.
Marr then returned to the Lake District
Lake District
The Lake District, also commonly known as The Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous not only for its lakes and its mountains but also for its associations with the early 19th century poetry and writings of William Wordsworth...
, where he worked with Henry Alleyne Nicholson
Henry Alleyne Nicholson
Henry Alleyne Nicholson was a British palaeontologist and zoologist.The son of Dr. John Nicholson, a biblical scholar, was born at Penrith, Cumbria on 11 September 1844. He was educated at Appleby Grammar School and at the universities of Göttingen and Edinburgh...
on the succession of the Stockdale Shales. He then worked with Alfred Harker
Alfred Harker (petrologist)
Alfred Harker FRS was an English geologist who specialised in petrology and interpretive petrography. He worked for the Geological Survey of Scotland and conducted extensive surveying and geological studies of western Scotland and the Isle of Skye...
on a similar project in Shap
Shap
Shap is a linear village and civil parish located amongst fells and isolated dales in Eden district, Cumbria, England. The village lies along the A6 road and the West Coast Main Line, and is near to the M6 motorway...
. In his Lake District work Marr came up with the idea of lag faulting to explain the topography of the District, subscribing much of the layout to glacial erosion. His theories were later published in a 1916 book The Geology of the Lake District.
Other work and awards
In 1886 Marr became University Lecturer in Geology at the University of CambridgeUniversity of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
, a position he held for 32 years until he succeeded Thomas McKenny Hughes
Thomas McKenny Hughes
Thomas McKenny Hughes was a Welsh geologist. He was Woodwardian Professor of Geology at Cambridge University.-Private life:...
as Woodwardian Professor of Geology
Woodwardian Professor of Geology
The Woodwardian Professor of Geology is a professorship held in the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of Cambridge. It was founded by John Woodward in 1728...
in 1917. He spent 13 years as Professor before retiring due to ill-health in 1930, followed by his death on 1 October 1933.
Marr served as Secretary of the Geological Society of London
Geological Society of London
The Geological Society of London is a learned society based in the United Kingdom with the aim of "investigating the mineral structure of the Earth"...
from 1888 to 1898, Vice-President and President from 1904 to 1906, serving on the council for 35 years and as Foreign Secretary for 3. The Society awarded him the Lyell Medal
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, awarded on the basis of research to an Earth Scientist of exceptional quality...
in 1900 and the Wollaston Medal
Wollaston Medal
The Wollaston Medal is a scientific award for geology, the highest award granted by the Geological Society of London.The medal is named after William Hyde Wollaston, and was first awarded in 1831...
in 1914. In 1891 he was made a Fellow of the Royal Society, serving on the Society council from 1904 to 1906, and was awarded their Royal Medal
Royal Medal
The Royal Medal, also known as The Queen's Medal, is a silver-gilt medal awarded each year by the Royal Society, two for "the most important contributions to the advancement of natural knowledge" and one for "distinguished contributions in the applied sciences" made within the Commonwealth of...
in 1930.