Thomas Sergeant Hall
Encyclopedia
Thomas Sergeant Hall was an Australia
n geologist
and biologist
, recipient of The Murchison Fund
in 1901.
, England
and Elizabeth, née Walshe, from Dublin. Hall was educated at the Geelong Grammar School
where he came under the influence of James L. Cuthbertson
. He was a junior master at Wesley College
in 1879-80, then Hawthorn College and then went to the University of Melbourne
, where he took his B.A. degree in 1886 with honours in natural science. This included work in palaeontology under Sir Frederick McCoy
. Hall taught for a year at Girton College, Sandhurst (now Bendigo) in 1887, but returned to the university and did a three years' course in biology under Professor Sir Baldwin Spencer
.
school of mines from 1890 to 1893, and in the latter year became lecturer in biology at Melbourne university. Hall held this position until his death but found time for many other activities.
In 1899 Hall published a Catalogue of the Scientific and Technical Periodical Literature in the Libraries of Victoria. A second and enlarged edition, in which he was assisted by Mr E. R. Pitt of the public library, Melbourne
, appeared in 1911. He did much valuable work for the Field Naturalists Club of Victoria
(president 1901–1903), the Royal Society of Victoria
, and the Australian and New Zealand Association for the Advancement of Science
. His Victorian Hill and Dale (1909), describing the geology of the country around Melbourne, is a model book of popular science, written without a trace of scientific jargon; there is barely a technical term in its 150 pages. He did not write a large number of papers, but his work on the graptolite
rocks of Victoria
led to his being made the recipient of The Murchison Fund
of the Geological Society of London
in 1901. One of his major discoveries was the key to the unravelling of the complex Ordovician
sequence.
on 21 December 1915. He married Miss Eva Lucie Annie Hill on 21 December 1891, who survived him along with three sons and a daughter. He was given the honorary degree of D.Sc.
by Melbourne university in 1908.
Dr Hall was a good example of the hard-working man of science, giving much time to matters of routine, and yet contriving to do original and important work in one or more directions. Hall's work with Dr Pritchard on the tertiary fossiliferous strata of Victoria, and his own work on the graptolite rocks of Victoria gives him a permanent place in the history of Australian geology.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n geologist
Geology
Geology is the science comprising the study of solid Earth, the rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which it evolves. Geology gives insight into the history of the Earth, as it provides the primary evidence for plate tectonics, the evolutionary history of life, and past climates...
and biologist
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
, recipient of The Murchison Fund
The Murchison Fund
The Murchison Fund is an award given by the Geological Society of London to researchers under the age of 40 who have contributed substantially to the study of hard rock and tectonic geology. It is named in honour of Prof. Roderick Impey Murchison.-Recipients:...
in 1901.
Early life
Hall was born in Geelong, the son of Thomas March Hall, a business man in that town but originally from LincolnshireLincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and Elizabeth, née Walshe, from Dublin. Hall was educated at the Geelong Grammar School
Geelong Grammar School
Geelong Grammar School is an independent, Anglican, co-educational, boarding and day school. The school's main campus is located at Corio, on the northern outskirts of Geelong, Victoria, Australia, overlooking Corio Bay and Limeburners Bay....
where he came under the influence of James L. Cuthbertson
James Cuthbertson
James Lister Cuthbertson was a Scottish-Australian poet and schoolteacher.James Cuthbertson was born in Glasgow, Scotland, the eldest son of William Gilmour Cuthbertson and his wife, Jane Agnes Cuthbertson. James was educated at the secondary school, Trinity College, Glenalmond, Perthshire, where...
. He was a junior master at Wesley College
Wesley College, Melbourne
Wesley College, Melbourne is an independent, co-educational, Christian day school in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Established in 1866, the college is a school of the Uniting Church in Australia. Wesley is the largest school in Australia by enrolment, with 3,511 students and 564 full-time staff...
in 1879-80, then Hawthorn College and then went to the University of Melbourne
University of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne is a public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. Founded in 1853, it is the second oldest university in Australia and the oldest in Victoria...
, where he took his B.A. degree in 1886 with honours in natural science. This included work in palaeontology under Sir Frederick McCoy
Frederick McCoy
Sir Frederick McCoy, KCMG, FRS was an Irish palaeontologist and museum administrator, active in Australia.-Early life:McCoy was the son of Dr Simon McCoy, M.D. and was born in Dublin; some sources have his year of birth as 1823, but 1817 is the most likely...
. Hall taught for a year at Girton College, Sandhurst (now Bendigo) in 1887, but returned to the university and did a three years' course in biology under Professor Sir Baldwin Spencer
Walter Baldwin Spencer
Sir Walter Baldwin Spencer KCMG was a British-Australian biologist and anthropologist.Baldwin was born in Stretford, Lancashire. His father, Reuben Spencer, who had come from Derbyshire in his youth, obtained a position with Rylands and Sons, cotton manufacturers, and rose to be chairman of its...
.
Career
Hall took a leading part in the forming of the university science club, and through it met Dr G. B. Pritchard with whom he was later to do valuable work in geology. Hall was a successful director of the CastlemaineCastlemaine, Victoria
Castlemaine is a city in Victoria, Australia, in the Goldfields region of Victoria about 120 kilometres northwest by road from Melbourne, and about 40 kilometres from the major provincial centre of Bendigo. It is the administrative and economic centre of the Shire of Mount Alexander. The...
school of mines from 1890 to 1893, and in the latter year became lecturer in biology at Melbourne university. Hall held this position until his death but found time for many other activities.
In 1899 Hall published a Catalogue of the Scientific and Technical Periodical Literature in the Libraries of Victoria. A second and enlarged edition, in which he was assisted by Mr E. R. Pitt of the public library, Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, appeared in 1911. He did much valuable work for the Field Naturalists Club of Victoria
Field Naturalists Club of Victoria
The Field Naturalists Club of Victoria is an Australian natural history and conservation organisation.It was founded in May 1880 by a group of nature enthusiasts that included Thomas Pennington Lucas. Charles French and Dudley Best. It is the oldest conservation group in Victoria...
(president 1901–1903), the Royal Society of Victoria
Royal Society of Victoria
The Royal Society of Victoria is the oldest learned society in the state of Victoria in Australia.The Royal Society of Victoria was formed in 1859 from a merger between The Philosophical Society of Victoria and The Victorian Institute for the Advancement of Science , both founded...
, and the Australian and New Zealand Association for the Advancement of Science
Australian and New Zealand Association for the Advancement of Science
The Australian and New Zealand Association for the Advancement of Science is an organisation that was founded in 1888 by Archibald Liversidge as the Australasian Association for the Advancement of Science to promote science. It was modelled on the British Association for the Advancement of Science...
. His Victorian Hill and Dale (1909), describing the geology of the country around Melbourne, is a model book of popular science, written without a trace of scientific jargon; there is barely a technical term in its 150 pages. He did not write a large number of papers, but his work on the graptolite
Graptolite
Graptolithina is a class in the animal phylum Hemichordata, the members of which are known as Graptolites. Graptolites are fossil colonial animals known chiefly from the Upper Cambrian through the Lower Carboniferous...
rocks of Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
led to his being made the recipient of The Murchison Fund
The Murchison Fund
The Murchison Fund is an award given by the Geological Society of London to researchers under the age of 40 who have contributed substantially to the study of hard rock and tectonic geology. It is named in honour of Prof. Roderick Impey Murchison.-Recipients:...
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"...
in 1901. One of his major discoveries was the key to the unravelling of the complex Ordovician
Ordovician
The Ordovician is a geologic period and system, the second of six of the Paleozoic Era, and covers the time between 488.3±1.7 to 443.7±1.5 million years ago . It follows the Cambrian Period and is followed by the Silurian Period...
sequence.
Legacy
Hall became ill early in 1915, but courageously carried on his work until shortly before his death from chronic nephritisNephritis
Nephritis is inflammation of the nephrons in the kidneys. The word "nephritis" was imported from Latin, which took it from Greek: νεφρίτιδα. The word comes from the Greek νεφρός - nephro- meaning "of the kidney" and -itis meaning "inflammation"....
on 21 December 1915. He married Miss Eva Lucie Annie Hill on 21 December 1891, who survived him along with three sons and a daughter. He was given the honorary degree of D.Sc.
Doctor of Science
Doctor of Science , usually abbreviated Sc.D., D.Sc., S.D. or Dr.Sc., is an academic research degree awarded in a number of countries throughout the world. In some countries Doctor of Science is the name used for the standard doctorate in the sciences, elsewhere the Sc.D...
by Melbourne university in 1908.
Dr Hall was a good example of the hard-working man of science, giving much time to matters of routine, and yet contriving to do original and important work in one or more directions. Hall's work with Dr Pritchard on the tertiary fossiliferous strata of Victoria, and his own work on the graptolite rocks of Victoria gives him a permanent place in the history of Australian geology.