Thomas McKenny Hughes
Encyclopedia
Thomas McKenny Hughes was a Welsh
geologist. He was Woodwardian Professor of Geology
at Cambridge University.
, one of the seven children (five sisters, one brother) of the Welsh bishop Joshua Hughes
(1807-1889) and his wife Margaret Hughes (née McKenny). His younger brother Joshua Pritchard Hughes
(1847-1938) was bishop of Llandaff. The Mckenny connection was through his maternal grandfather, Sir Thomas McKenny, first baronet and Lord Mayor of Dublin.
Thomas Hughes married Mary Caroline Weston in 1882. They had three sons, Tom, George and Alfred. Tom was killed in 1918 whilst carrying out aerial reconnaissance behind enemy lines in France
. George was a clerk to the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths
, and Alfred was an entomologist.
, and matriculated at Trinity College, Cambridge
in 1853, from which he graduated graduated in 1857, and as M.A. in 1867.. Hughes had attended Adam Sedgwick
’s lectures in Geology.
From 1860 to 1861, Hughes held the post of secretary to the British consul in Rome, Charles Newton
and later as acting Consul. It was at this time his interest in archaeology was sparked. Whilst in Rome, Hughes made collections of fossils from the local area.
In 1861, the then Director-General of the Geological Survey, Sir Roderick Murchison
offered Hughes a position. He began his Survey work as an Assistant Geologist. Hughes continued working for the Survey until 1873.
During his Survey career, Hughes worked in the following areas. Between 1865 and 1866 he was based in Hertford and St. Albans where he described the Drift Gravels. Then in 1866, Hughes was transferred to the Lake District and superintended by W. T. Aveline. Here he collected fossils from the ‘Silurians’. He sided with Sedgwick in relation to the lower boundary of the Silurian, to the disagreement of Murchison. He also believed the ‘Old Red Conglomerate to form a sort of passage between the Mountain Limestone and the Millstone Grit’. Hughes worked in Westmoreland
, Cumberland
and the Yorkshire Dales
. In 1873 he lived in Sedbergh
.
In the 1870s McKenny Hughes entered into correspondence with Charles Lyell
. He started a debate regarding Mountain Limestone country. Lyell and Hughes went on many geological expeditions together. In 1872 they visited the limestone
caves in the Dordogne and Aurignac.
Hughes returned to Cambridge University to succeed Adam Sedgwick
as Woodwardian Professor of Geology
in 1873. Nine candidates had offered their services for the Woodwardian Professorship; Hughes got it with a small majority over Professor Thomas George Bonney
.
Both Thomas and Mary attended the International Geological Congress in Zurich
1894 as well as the International Geological Congress in Russia
in 1897. Mrs Hughes kept diaries and scrapbooks of their trips together.
Whilst Woodwardian Professor, McKenny Hughes endeavoured to establish a lasting memorial to Adam Sedgwick
, in the form of a Museum and school of geology. This memorial museum would replace the cramped and inadequate Woodwardian Museum in the Cockerell Building near Senate House. An appeal committee was established and by 1878 they held £12,000. It would take another 26 years for the memorial to be built. Sir Thomas Graham Jackson
was the chosen architect. The Museum opened on 1st March 1904 by King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra.
and Palaeozoic formations in Wales
, as well as of the Lake District
. He also worked on glacial deposits.
Hughes was vice-president of the Geological Society in 1862, F.R.S. in 1889, and Lyell Medal
recipient 1891.
. The collection contains correspondence with contemporaries including Sir Charles Lyell and his wife; reports and papers concerning both his diplomatic and geological work 1860-1880s; records of the international geological congresses in Bologna, London, Zurich and Russia 1880s-1890s; tour and field-note books including sketches and annotated drawings; maps; records relating to the Woodwardian Museum; drafts of papers and speeches; and some photographic albums. A collection-level description is available on the Archives Hub
. The Museum also has some of the records of Mary Caroline Hughes.
17 volumes and 6 boxes of Hughes family records can also be found at Cambridge University Library
: Department of Manuscripts and University Archives. .
There are also papers at Cambridgeshire Archives . These derive from Hughes membership of the Council of the Cambs & Isle of Ely Chamber of Agriculture, of which he was Vice-Chairman in 1902 and Chairman in 1903-4.
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
geologist. He was Woodwardian Professor of Geology
Woodwardian Professor of Geology
The Woodwardian Professor of Geology is a professorship held in the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of Cambridge. It was founded by John Woodward in 1728...
at Cambridge University.
Private life
Thomas M. Hughes was born in AberystwythAberystwyth
Aberystwyth is a historic market town, administrative centre and holiday resort within Ceredigion, Wales. Often colloquially known as Aber, it is located at the confluence of the rivers Ystwyth and Rheidol....
, one of the seven children (five sisters, one brother) of the Welsh bishop Joshua Hughes
Joshua Hughes
Joshua Hughes was Bishop of St Asaph, an Anglican diocese in Wales, United Kingdom.Hughes was educated at Cardigan and Ystradmeurig grammar schools and at St David's College, Lampeter , where he was placed in the first class in the examinations every year and gained prizes for Latin and Welsh essays...
(1807-1889) and his wife Margaret Hughes (née McKenny). His younger brother Joshua Pritchard Hughes
Joshua Pritchard Hughes
Joshua Pritchard Hughes was Bishop of Llandaff from 1905 to 1931.Born into an ecclesiastical family he was educated at Shrewsbury and Balliol College, Oxford and ordained in 1871. He was a curate in Neath from 1872 to 1877, Vicar of Newcastle, Bridgend and then Llantrisant before his ordination...
(1847-1938) was bishop of Llandaff. The Mckenny connection was through his maternal grandfather, Sir Thomas McKenny, first baronet and Lord Mayor of Dublin.
Thomas Hughes married Mary Caroline Weston in 1882. They had three sons, Tom, George and Alfred. Tom was killed in 1918 whilst carrying out aerial reconnaissance behind enemy lines in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. George was a clerk to the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths
Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths
The Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths is one of the Livery Companies of the City of London. The Company, which has origins in the twelfth century, received a Royal Charter in 1327. It ranks fifth in the order of precedence of Livery Companies. Its motto is Justitia Virtutum Regina, Latin for Justice...
, and Alfred was an entomologist.
Education and career
Hughes received the first part of his education at Leamington and LlandoveryLlandovery
Llandovery is a market town in Carmarthenshire, Wales, lying on the River Tywi and the A40 road.The town is served by Llandovery railway station, where there is a park and ride to Llanelli and Shrewsbury via the Heart of Wales Line...
, and matriculated at Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Trinity has more members than any other college in Cambridge or Oxford, with around 700 undergraduates, 430 graduates, and over 170 Fellows...
in 1853, from which he graduated graduated in 1857, and as M.A. in 1867.. Hughes had attended Adam Sedgwick
Adam Sedgwick
Adam Sedgwick was one of the founders of modern geology. He proposed the Devonian period of the geological timescale...
’s lectures in Geology.
From 1860 to 1861, Hughes held the post of secretary to the British consul in Rome, Charles Newton
Charles Newton
Charles Newton was an American actor of the silent era. He appeared in 72 films between 1915 and 1926.He was born in Rochester, New York.-Selected filmography:* Mountain Mary * The Exile of Bar-K Ranch...
and later as acting Consul. It was at this time his interest in archaeology was sparked. Whilst in Rome, Hughes made collections of fossils from the local area.
In 1861, the then Director-General of the Geological Survey, Sir Roderick Murchison
Roderick Murchison
Sir Roderick Impey Murchison, 1st Baronet KCB DCL FRS FRSE FLS PRGS PBA MRIA was a Scottish geologist who first described and investigated the Silurian system.-Early life and work:...
offered Hughes a position. He began his Survey work as an Assistant Geologist. Hughes continued working for the Survey until 1873.
During his Survey career, Hughes worked in the following areas. Between 1865 and 1866 he was based in Hertford and St. Albans where he described the Drift Gravels. Then in 1866, Hughes was transferred to the Lake District and superintended by W. T. Aveline. Here he collected fossils from the ‘Silurians’. He sided with Sedgwick in relation to the lower boundary of the Silurian, to the disagreement of Murchison. He also believed the ‘Old Red Conglomerate to form a sort of passage between the Mountain Limestone and the Millstone Grit’. Hughes worked in Westmoreland
Westmoreland
Westmoreland is a historic county in England. It may also refer to:-Places:Australia*Westmoreland County, New South WalesCanada*Westmorland County, New BrunswickJamaica*Westmoreland, Jamaica, a parishNew Zealand...
, Cumberland
Cumberland
Cumberland is a historic county of North West England, on the border with Scotland, from the 12th century until 1974. It formed an administrative county from 1889 to 1974 and now forms part of Cumbria....
and the Yorkshire Dales
Yorkshire Dales
The Yorkshire Dales is the name given to an upland area in Northern England.The area lies within the historic county boundaries of Yorkshire, though it spans the ceremonial counties of North Yorkshire, West Yorkshire and Cumbria...
. In 1873 he lived in Sedbergh
Sedbergh
Sedbergh is a small town in Cumbria, England. It lies about east of Kendal and about north of Kirkby Lonsdale. The town sits just within the Yorkshire Dales National Park...
.
In the 1870s McKenny Hughes entered into correspondence with Charles Lyell
Charles Lyell
Sir Charles Lyell, 1st Baronet, Kt FRS was a British lawyer and the foremost geologist of his day. He is best known as the author of Principles of Geology, which popularised James Hutton's concepts of uniformitarianism – the idea that the earth was shaped by slow-moving forces still in operation...
. He started a debate regarding Mountain Limestone country. Lyell and Hughes went on many geological expeditions together. In 1872 they visited the limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
caves in the Dordogne and Aurignac.
Hughes returned to Cambridge University to succeed Adam Sedgwick
Adam Sedgwick
Adam Sedgwick was one of the founders of modern geology. He proposed the Devonian period of the geological timescale...
as Woodwardian Professor of Geology
Woodwardian Professor of Geology
The Woodwardian Professor of Geology is a professorship held in the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of Cambridge. It was founded by John Woodward in 1728...
in 1873. Nine candidates had offered their services for the Woodwardian Professorship; Hughes got it with a small majority over Professor Thomas George Bonney
Thomas George Bonney
Thomas George Bonney FRS was an English geologist.-Career:Bonney was the eldest son of the Reverend Thomas Bonney, master of Rugeley Grammar School...
.
Both Thomas and Mary attended the International Geological Congress in Zurich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
1894 as well as the International Geological Congress in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
in 1897. Mrs Hughes kept diaries and scrapbooks of their trips together.
Whilst Woodwardian Professor, McKenny Hughes endeavoured to establish a lasting memorial to Adam Sedgwick
Adam Sedgwick
Adam Sedgwick was one of the founders of modern geology. He proposed the Devonian period of the geological timescale...
, in the form of a Museum and school of geology. This memorial museum would replace the cramped and inadequate Woodwardian Museum in the Cockerell Building near Senate House. An appeal committee was established and by 1878 they held £12,000. It would take another 26 years for the memorial to be built. Sir Thomas Graham Jackson
Thomas Graham Jackson
Sir Thomas Graham Jackson, 1st Baronet RA was one of the most distinguished English architects of his generation...
was the chosen architect. The Museum opened on 1st March 1904 by King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra.
Later life
Hughes died at his home ‘Ravensworth’, Brooklands Avenue in Cambridge, 9th June 1917. His wife died a year later. His grandson, Graham Hughes, was later the art director of Goldsmiths' Company, who were behind the renaissance in modern silver design.Awards and work
His over 50 research publications, mainly on work performed during his time at the Survey, are mainly about PrecambrianPrecambrian
The Precambrian is the name which describes the large span of time in Earth's history before the current Phanerozoic Eon, and is a Supereon divided into several eons of the geologic time scale...
and Palaeozoic formations in Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, as well as of the Lake District
Lake District
The Lake District, also commonly known as The Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous not only for its lakes and its mountains but also for its associations with the early 19th century poetry and writings of William Wordsworth...
. He also worked on glacial deposits.
Hughes was vice-president of the Geological Society in 1862, F.R.S. in 1889, and Lyell Medal
Lyell Medal
The Lyell Medal is a prestigious annual scientific medal given by the Geological Society of London, equal in status to the Murchison Medal, awarded on the basis of research to an Earth Scientist of exceptional quality...
recipient 1891.
Archives
17 boxes of the records of Thomas McKenny Hughes are at the Sedgwick Museum of Earth SciencesSedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences
The Sedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences, opened in 1904, is the geology museum of the University of Cambridge in England. It is part of the Department of Earth Sciences and is located on the University's Downing Site in Downing Street, central Cambridge, England.The Sedgwick has a collection of more...
. The collection contains correspondence with contemporaries including Sir Charles Lyell and his wife; reports and papers concerning both his diplomatic and geological work 1860-1880s; records of the international geological congresses in Bologna, London, Zurich and Russia 1880s-1890s; tour and field-note books including sketches and annotated drawings; maps; records relating to the Woodwardian Museum; drafts of papers and speeches; and some photographic albums. A collection-level description is available on the Archives Hub
Archives Hub
The Archives Hub is a gateway to descriptions of archives for education and research. It represents archives held in UK universities, colleges and other institutions. It holds over 20,000 collection level descriptions of archives on all manner of subjects, and also has thousands of descriptions of...
. The Museum also has some of the records of Mary Caroline Hughes.
17 volumes and 6 boxes of Hughes family records can also be found at Cambridge University Library
Cambridge University Library
The Cambridge University Library is the centrally-administered library of Cambridge University in England. It comprises five separate libraries:* the University Library main building * the Medical Library...
: Department of Manuscripts and University Archives. .
There are also papers at Cambridgeshire Archives . These derive from Hughes membership of the Council of the Cambs & Isle of Ely Chamber of Agriculture, of which he was Vice-Chairman in 1902 and Chairman in 1903-4.
External links
- Biography in the Welsh Biography Online
- Photo, from the Royal Society Archives (taken 1874)
