William Whitaker was born on 4th May 1836 in London, and was educated at St Albans School and University College, London, where he gained a degree in chemistry in 1855. He became a geologist, specializing initially in water surveying and mapping. His thorough research, wide knowledge, and his numerous publications, especially his The Geology of London and of Part of the Thames Valley (1889) has led some to call him “the father of English hydrogeology”. He retired in 1896 but continued to work as a water engineer. He was elected fellow of the Geological Society in 1859, and FRS in 1883. He was president of numerous societies, including both the Geologists’ Association and the Geological Society, and was a recipient of the latter’s Wollaston Medal in 1923. He died in Croydon, Surrey on 15th January 1925.
References
- Entry in Who's Who
- W. H. George: entry in Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
