William King Gregory
Encyclopedia
William King Gregory was an American
zoologist, renowned as a primatologist, paleontologist, and functional and comparative morphologist
. He was an expert on mammal
ian dentition
, and a leading contributor to theories of evolution
. In addition he was active in presenting his ideas to students and the general public through books and museum exhibits.
, New York
on May 19, 1876 to George Gregory and Jane King Gregory. He attended Trinity School and then moved onto Columbia University
in 1895, initially at the School of Mines but then transferring to Columbia College. He majored in zoology and vertebrate
paleontology under Henry Fairfield Osborn
. While still an undergraduate he became Osborn's research assistant and soon after married Laura Grace Foote. He received his undergraduate degree from Columbia in 1900, followed by a masters in 1905, and a doctorate in 1910.
in 1903. By 1911 he had expanded his interests to encompass amphibian
s with a paper on the limb structure of the Permian
Eryops
. Despite his heavy workload he served as editor of the American Museum Journal (which would later become Natural History). He was formally appointed to the scientific staff at the American Museum of Natural History
in 1911 and became part of the teaching faculty at Columbia in 1916, eventually rising to the post of Da Costa Professor in the Department of Zoology. His notable students included Alfred Romer
, James Chapin
, C.L Camp, and G.K. Noble
. He was similarly successful at the museum, becoming full curator of three departments and serving as Chairman of two.
Although his work was wide-ranging the overriding focus was on comparative anatomy. His studies often had particular significance in the field of evolution; he believed the anatomical structures of fossil
and extant species should exhibit relationships. His work charted the evolution from the early fishes through the various branches to birds and mammals, with numerous papers and two major works: Our Face from Fish to Man in 1929 and Evolution Emerging in 1951.
He developed the principle of habitus and heritage — theorizing that animals evolved with two sets of characteristics: the heritage features which derived from a long evolutionary history and the habitus characteristics which were adaptations to the environment in which the species existed. He later expanded this to his palimpsest
theory which proposed that the habitus features often overlaid and obscured the heritage features. A similar theory, mosaic evolution
has appeared since King Gregory's death.
He studied lemurs and the insectivorous primates, as always concerning himself with evolutionary origins. From the 1920s he became involved in the study of marsupial
s, in 1947 developing his palimpsest theory by showing a connection between the monotreme
s and early reptiles. Around the early 1920s he also became interested in recent human evolution particularly after the discovery of the early African hominids. His specialist knowledge of mammalian dentition led him to pursue the same path with regard to human evolution and he came to be regarded as the world's leading expert on the evolution of human dentition, a reputation secured by the 1922 publication of The Evolution of the Human Dentition. However, he did initially think the hoax, Piltdown Man
, likely to be genuine.
with his second wife Angela, whom he had married soon after Laura's death in 1937. In 1949 he was awarded the Viking Fund Medal in 1949 for his contributions to physical anthropology. He died in the Woodstock house on December 29, 1970. He had been elected to the National Academy of Sciences
in 1927 and on his death was one of the oldest members.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
zoologist, renowned as a primatologist, paleontologist, and functional and comparative morphologist
Morphology (biology)
In biology, morphology is a branch of bioscience dealing with the study of the form and structure of organisms and their specific structural features....
. He was an expert on mammal
Mammal
Mammals are members of a class of air-breathing vertebrate animals characterised by the possession of endothermy, hair, three middle ear bones, and mammary glands functional in mothers with young...
ian dentition
Dentition
Dentition pertains to the development of teeth and their arrangement in the mouth. In particular, the characteristic arrangement, kind, and number of teeth in a given species at a given age...
, and a leading contributor to theories of evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
. In addition he was active in presenting his ideas to students and the general public through books and museum exhibits.
Early life
He was born in Greenwich VillageGreenwich Village
Greenwich Village, , , , .in New York often simply called "the Village", is a largely residential neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City. A large majority of the district is home to upper middle class families...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
on May 19, 1876 to George Gregory and Jane King Gregory. He attended Trinity School and then moved onto Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
in 1895, initially at the School of Mines but then transferring to Columbia College. He majored in zoology and vertebrate
Vertebrate
Vertebrates are animals that are members of the subphylum Vertebrata . Vertebrates are the largest group of chordates, with currently about 58,000 species described. Vertebrates include the jawless fishes, bony fishes, sharks and rays, amphibians, reptiles, mammals, and birds...
paleontology under Henry Fairfield Osborn
Henry Fairfield Osborn
Henry Fairfield Osborn, Sr. ForMemRS was an American geologist, paleontologist, and eugenicist.-Early life and career:...
. While still an undergraduate he became Osborn's research assistant and soon after married Laura Grace Foote. He received his undergraduate degree from Columbia in 1900, followed by a masters in 1905, and a doctorate in 1910.
Academic career
He developed an early interest in both fishes and the land vertebrates, publishing papers on both groups, including two in ScienceScience
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
in 1903. By 1911 he had expanded his interests to encompass amphibian
Amphibian
Amphibians , are a class of vertebrate animals including animals such as toads, frogs, caecilians, and salamanders. They are characterized as non-amniote ectothermic tetrapods...
s with a paper on the limb structure of the Permian
Permian
The PermianThe term "Permian" was introduced into geology in 1841 by Sir Sir R. I. Murchison, president of the Geological Society of London, who identified typical strata in extensive Russian explorations undertaken with Edouard de Verneuil; Murchison asserted in 1841 that he named his "Permian...
Eryops
Eryops
Eryops meaning "drawn-out face" because most of its skull was in front of its eyes is a genus of extinct, semi-aquatic amphibian found primarily in the Lower Permian-aged Admiral Formation of Archer County, Texas, but fossils are also found in New Mexico and parts of the eastern United...
. Despite his heavy workload he served as editor of the American Museum Journal (which would later become Natural History). He was formally appointed to the scientific staff at the American Museum of Natural History
American Museum of Natural History
The American Museum of Natural History , located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City, United States, is one of the largest and most celebrated museums in the world...
in 1911 and became part of the teaching faculty at Columbia in 1916, eventually rising to the post of Da Costa Professor in the Department of Zoology. His notable students included Alfred Romer
Alfred Romer
Alfred Sherwood Romer was an American paleontologist and comparative anatomist and a specialist in vertebrate evolution.-Biography:...
, James Chapin
James Chapin
Dr James Paul Chapin was an American ornithologist.-Life and career:One of the top ornithologists of the twentieth century. At age 19 he left Staten Island to become second in command of the American Museum of Natural History's six year expedition to the Congo...
, C.L Camp, and G.K. Noble
Gladwyn Kingsley Noble
Gladwyn Kingsley Noble was an American zoologist.- Works :*"American Egret at Martha's Vineyard, Mass" The Auk Vol. 31 N. 1: 100...
. He was similarly successful at the museum, becoming full curator of three departments and serving as Chairman of two.
Although his work was wide-ranging the overriding focus was on comparative anatomy. His studies often had particular significance in the field of evolution; he believed the anatomical structures of fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
and extant species should exhibit relationships. His work charted the evolution from the early fishes through the various branches to birds and mammals, with numerous papers and two major works: Our Face from Fish to Man in 1929 and Evolution Emerging in 1951.
He developed the principle of habitus and heritage — theorizing that animals evolved with two sets of characteristics: the heritage features which derived from a long evolutionary history and the habitus characteristics which were adaptations to the environment in which the species existed. He later expanded this to his palimpsest
Palimpsest
A palimpsest is a manuscript page from a scroll or book from which the text has been scraped off and which can be used again. The word "palimpsest" comes through Latin palimpsēstus from Ancient Greek παλίμψηστος originally compounded from πάλιν and ψάω literally meaning “scraped...
theory which proposed that the habitus features often overlaid and obscured the heritage features. A similar theory, mosaic evolution
Mosaic evolution
Mosaic evolution is the concept that evolutionary change takes place in some body parts or systems without simultaneous changes in other parts...
has appeared since King Gregory's death.
He studied lemurs and the insectivorous primates, as always concerning himself with evolutionary origins. From the 1920s he became involved in the study of marsupial
Marsupial
Marsupials are an infraclass of mammals, characterized by giving birth to relatively undeveloped young. Close to 70% of the 334 extant species occur in Australia, New Guinea, and nearby islands, with the remaining 100 found in the Americas, primarily in South America, but with thirteen in Central...
s, in 1947 developing his palimpsest theory by showing a connection between the monotreme
Monotreme
Monotremes are mammals that lay eggs instead of giving birth to live young like marsupials and placental mammals...
s and early reptiles. Around the early 1920s he also became interested in recent human evolution particularly after the discovery of the early African hominids. His specialist knowledge of mammalian dentition led him to pursue the same path with regard to human evolution and he came to be regarded as the world's leading expert on the evolution of human dentition, a reputation secured by the 1922 publication of The Evolution of the Human Dentition. However, he did initially think the hoax, Piltdown Man
Piltdown Man
The Piltdown Man was a hoax in which bone fragments were presented as the fossilised remains of a previously unknown early human. These fragments consisted of parts of a skull and jawbone, said to have been collected in 1912 from a gravel pit at Piltdown, East Sussex, England...
, likely to be genuine.
Later life
He retired from the American Museum of Natural History in 1944 and from Columbia in 1945, and moved permanently to his house in Woodstock, New YorkWoodstock, New York
Woodstock is a town in Ulster County, New York, United States. The population was 5,884 at the 2010 census, down from 6,241 at the 2000 census.The Town of Woodstock is in the northern part of the county...
with his second wife Angela, whom he had married soon after Laura's death in 1937. In 1949 he was awarded the Viking Fund Medal in 1949 for his contributions to physical anthropology. He died in the Woodstock house on December 29, 1970. He had been elected to the National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
in 1927 and on his death was one of the oldest members.