Hartley T. Ferrar
Encyclopedia
Hartley Travers Ferrar was a geologist who accompanied Captain Scott
's first Antarctic expedition
.
, near Dublin in 1879, and moved to Durban
, South Africa
at an early age with his parents. He was sent back to Oundle School
in England for his secondary education, and then went to Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge
, where he studied geology. He excelled at sports, and many of his team photographs are archived at his old school and college respectively. On going down from Cambridge, when rowing at Henley, he was offered the post of Geologist on Captain Scott's first Antarctic expedition, and became the youngest member of the scientific staff.
He sailed on the RRS Discovery
, and met his future wife (Gladys Anderson) when the ship was in New Zealand
. The Discovery then sailed South and found suitable anchorage in McMurdo Sound
in the Ross Sea
- the expedition was to spend two winters there, as the ship was frozen in and could not get free of the ice in the first summer. Ferrar took an active part in exploring and in carrying out scientific studies (e.g. sea water salinity measurements) as well as his primary responsibility of geological surveying. He accompanied Ernest Shackleton
and Dr Wilson
amongst others on sledging trips, and it was in the Antarctic summer of 1903 that he went on his major sledging trip of discovery into the Western Mountains of Victoria Land
. He travelled to the Upper Taylor Glacier, and found coal deposits at an altitude of 8,000 ft. He also characterised a broad layer of sandstone found in the region, and this became known as the Ferrar or Beacon sandstone
layer. The Ferrar Glacier
was named after him, and he unwittingly discovered the first fossils found on what was then known to be the Antarctic mainland. One of the many rock samples which was returned to the National History Museum
in London
was split open by Dr W. N. Edwards in 1928, and found to contain two fossilised leaves of Glossopteris Indica. Ferrar returned on the Discovery in 1904, and spent the next year writing up the Geological report of the expedition. He was then appointed to the Geological Survey in Egypt
, and worked there until the First World War broke out, when he took his family back to New Zealand. He returned to serve with the 1st (Canterbury) Regiment in Palestine
, working principally on aerial surveys and intelligence.
After the war he took up a position with the New Zealand Geological Survey, and carried out extensive field work in both the North
and the South
islands.He obtained his PhD whilst working for the service, but died after an operation in 1932. As a mark of respect he had Ferrar peak in the Cloudy Range of the South Island
named after him. Apart from the aforementioned photographs of his school and college days, various of his Polar relics are held by the Scott Polar Research Museum
(Cambridge, UK),the Canterbury Museum in New Zealand
and the Discovery itself at Dundee
in Scotland
.
Robert Falcon Scott
Captain Robert Falcon Scott, CVO was a Royal Navy officer and explorer who led two expeditions to the Antarctic regions: the Discovery Expedition, 1901–04, and the ill-fated Terra Nova Expedition, 1910–13...
's first Antarctic expedition
Discovery Expedition
The British National Antarctic Expedition, 1901–04, generally known as the Discovery Expedition, was the first official British exploration of the Antarctic regions since James Clark Ross's voyage sixty years earlier...
.
Biography
Ferrar born in DalkeyDalkey
Dalkey is suburb of Dublin and seaside resort in Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County, Ireland. It was founded as a Viking settlement and became an important port during the Middle Ages. According to John Clyn, it was one of the ports through which the plague entered Ireland in the mid-14th century...
, near Dublin in 1879, and moved to Durban
Durban
Durban is the largest city in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal and the third largest city in South Africa. It forms part of the eThekwini metropolitan municipality. Durban is famous for being the busiest port in South Africa. It is also seen as one of the major centres of tourism...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
at an early age with his parents. He was sent back to Oundle School
Oundle School
Oundle School is a co-educational British public school located in the ancient market town of Oundle in Northamptonshire. The school has been maintained by the Worshipful Company of Grocers of the City of London since its foundation in 1556. Oundle has eight boys' houses, five girls' houses, a day...
in England for his secondary education, and then went to Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge
Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge
Sidney Sussex College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England.The college was founded in 1596 and named after its foundress, Frances Sidney, Countess of Sussex. It was from its inception an avowedly Puritan foundation: some good and godlie moniment for the mainteynance...
, where he studied geology. He excelled at sports, and many of his team photographs are archived at his old school and college respectively. On going down from Cambridge, when rowing at Henley, he was offered the post of Geologist on Captain Scott's first Antarctic expedition, and became the youngest member of the scientific staff.
He sailed on the RRS Discovery
RRS Discovery
The RRS Discovery was the last traditional wooden three-masted ship to be built in Britain. Designed for Antarctic research, she was launched in 1901. Her first mission was the British National Antarctic Expedition, carrying Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton on their first, successful...
, and met his future wife (Gladys Anderson) when the ship was in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. The Discovery then sailed South and found suitable anchorage in McMurdo Sound
McMurdo Sound
The ice-clogged waters of Antarctica's McMurdo Sound extend about 55 km long and wide. The sound opens into the Ross Sea to the north. The Royal Society Range rises from sea level to 13,205 feet on the western shoreline. The nearby McMurdo Ice Shelf scribes McMurdo Sound's southern boundary...
in the Ross Sea
Ross Sea
The Ross Sea is a deep bay of the Southern Ocean in Antarctica between Victoria Land and Marie Byrd Land.-Description:The Ross Sea was discovered by James Ross in 1841. In the west of the Ross Sea is Ross Island with the Mt. Erebus volcano, in the east Roosevelt Island. The southern part is covered...
- the expedition was to spend two winters there, as the ship was frozen in and could not get free of the ice in the first summer. Ferrar took an active part in exploring and in carrying out scientific studies (e.g. sea water salinity measurements) as well as his primary responsibility of geological surveying. He accompanied Ernest Shackleton
Ernest Shackleton
Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton, CVO, OBE was a notable explorer from County Kildare, Ireland, who was one of the principal figures of the period known as the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration...
and Dr Wilson
Edward Adrian Wilson
Edward Adrian Wilson was a notable English polar explorer, physician, naturalist, painter and ornithologist.-Early life:...
amongst others on sledging trips, and it was in the Antarctic summer of 1903 that he went on his major sledging trip of discovery into the Western Mountains of Victoria Land
Victoria Land
Victoria Land is a region of Antarctica bounded on the east by the Ross Ice Shelf and the Ross Sea and on the west by Oates Land and Wilkes Land. It was discovered by Captain James Clark Ross in January 1841 and named after the UK's Queen Victoria...
. He travelled to the Upper Taylor Glacier, and found coal deposits at an altitude of 8,000 ft. He also characterised a broad layer of sandstone found in the region, and this became known as the Ferrar or Beacon sandstone
Beacon sandstone
The Beacon sandstone is a geological formation exposed in Antarctica and deposited from the Devonian to the Triassic . The sandstone was originally described as a formation, and upgraded to group and supergroup as time passed. It contains a sandy member known as the Beacon heights...
layer. The Ferrar Glacier
Ferrar Glacier
The Ferrar Glacier is an Antarctic glacier about long, flowing from the plateau of Victoria Land west of the Royal Society Range to New Harbour in McMurdo Sound. The glacier makes a right turn northeast of Knobhead, where it is apposed, i.e., joined in Siamese-twin fashion, to Taylor Glacier...
was named after him, and he unwittingly discovered the first fossils found on what was then known to be the Antarctic mainland. One of the many rock samples which was returned to the National History Museum
National History Museum
The National History Museum or Muzium Sejarah Nasional was the second national museum in Malaysia after the National Museum. It was located opposite Dataran Merdeka in Kuala Lumpur. As of November 2007 it is closed and the collection has been moved to the National Museum.-History:This building was...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
was split open by Dr W. N. Edwards in 1928, and found to contain two fossilised leaves of Glossopteris Indica. Ferrar returned on the Discovery in 1904, and spent the next year writing up the Geological report of the expedition. He was then appointed to the Geological Survey in Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
, and worked there until the First World War broke out, when he took his family back to New Zealand. He returned to serve with the 1st (Canterbury) Regiment in Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
, working principally on aerial surveys and intelligence.
After the war he took up a position with the New Zealand Geological Survey, and carried out extensive field work in both the North
North Island
The North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the much less populous South Island by Cook Strait. The island is in area, making it the world's 14th-largest island...
and the South
South Island
The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman Sea, to the south and east by the Pacific Ocean...
islands.He obtained his PhD whilst working for the service, but died after an operation in 1932. As a mark of respect he had Ferrar peak in the Cloudy Range of the South Island
South Island
The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman Sea, to the south and east by the Pacific Ocean...
named after him. Apart from the aforementioned photographs of his school and college days, various of his Polar relics are held by the Scott Polar Research Museum
Scott Polar Research Institute
The Scott Polar Research Institute is a centre for research into the polar regions and glaciology worldwide. It is a sub-department of the Department of Geography in the University of Cambridge, located on Lensfield Road in the south of Cambridge ....
(Cambridge, UK),the Canterbury Museum in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
and the Discovery itself at Dundee
Dundee
Dundee is the fourth-largest city in Scotland and the 39th most populous settlement in the United Kingdom. It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firth of Tay, which feeds into the North Sea...
in Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
.