FIRST -- Map of English Geology, City of Westminster, London, UK
N 51° 30.494 W 000° 07.380
30U E 699645 N 5710269
The man who made the first map of English and Welsh geology lived here from 1804-1829
Waymark Code: WMRYMR
Location: London, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 08/23/2016
Views: 2
This green plaque for William Smith, the "father of English Geology" is mounted to the building at the dead end of Buckingham Street at the Victoria Embankment Gardens old York Gate.
The plaque reads as follows:
"WILLIAM SMITH
1769-1839
“Father of English Geology”
Made the first geological map of an entire country
*England and Wales*
in 1815
Lived on this site 1804-1829
City of Westminster
The Geological Society of London 2015"
More information on William Smith can be found on the Geological Society website: (
visit link)
"William Smith (23 March 1769 - 28 August 1839)
In 1815 William Smith published the first edition of his Geological Map of England and Wales.
Smith’s map made a seminal contribution to the understanding of the ground beneath our feet and by showing the location of coal, iron ore, clays and other raw materials quite literally fuelled the industrial revolution. By using fossils Smith was able to establish a relative chronology which allowed him to identify strata of the same age and to show where they occur at the surface.
In his centenary history of the Geological Society, Horace B Woodward, (1908) describes the map as “a work of genius planned and executed single handed” and it would be remiss if the bicentenary of its publication passed unnoticed.
A number of organisations are joining together to plan a year-long programme of events celebrating this milestone."
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