Geology plays a rather important role in the life of mankind. This study can reveal the history of a particular area. So, a geologist is a very important profession. How did this scientific field develop hundreds of years ago? We can learn it from the life of a famous London geologist Lucas Barrett, who lived and worked in the 19th century. What was his role in the development of science and why did he go down in history as a young member of the Geological Society of London? Learn more at ilondon.
Scientist’s biography and constant change of residence
Lucas Barrett was born in London on November 14, 1837. His father, George Barrett, was an iron foundry and became famous for designing the ironwork for one of London’s most famous stations, Kings Cross Railway Station. Lucas studied at University College School. From his teenage years, he got used to constant changes of residence. For example, a young scientist went to Germany in 1853. There, he studied chemistry and botany for a year in the small village of Ebersdorf. At that time, he didn’t even imagine all those expeditions and business trips that were waiting for him ahead.
Interesting and eventful career of a geologist
Lucas Barrett is known primarily for being one of the youngest members of the Geological Society of London. It happened in May 1855, when the scientist was only 18 years old. In the same year, Lucas went on a trip to Norway and Finland, accompanied by the British merchant and ship-owner Robert MacAndrew. Later, the scientist went to Spain and Greenland. There, he was mainly involved in the research of the coastal area, thanks to which he managed to gain fundamental knowledge about the distribution of marine life. In 1858, Lucas Barrett found a massive deep-sea sponge on the coast of Norway. Later, the British naturalist James Bowerbank named this species after Barrett, Geodia barretti. There was also a sedentary period in his career when instead of traveling the world, he concentrated on his work at the Woodwardian Museum in Cambridge. He spent several years assisting one of the professors. However, even then he couldn’t stop his scientific research. In Cambridge Greensand, the scientist discovered unique bird bones and also prepared a geological map of Cambridge.
1859 was more interesting for young Lucas Barrett. In that year, he was appointed director of the Geological Survey of Jamaica. At that time, the scientist was only 22 years old, but he repeatedly made expeditions to the island. There, he managed to determine the Cretaceous age of some rocks containing Hippurites. He also collected a large number of fossils from the Miocene layers.
Unexplained death at a young age
Photo source: Wikipedia
Unfortunately, the driven, purposeful and ambitious Lucas Barrett died at a young age. He drowned at 25 while doing what he loved. It happened in 1862 when a scientist was exploring the seabed near Kingston, Jamaica. Before that tragic accident, Lucas Barrett brought a diving apparatus to improve the study of the sea bottom. One day, he decided to dive very deep without friends or colleagues. The safety rope wasn’t even attached to his body (he just held it in his hand). Thus, after about half an hour, Lucas got back to the surface, but he was no longer alive. Despite such a young age, he managed to live a fascinating life and played an important role in the development of geology in the whole of Great Britain.