Provincial geology and the Industrial Revolution

In the early nineteenth century, geology was a new but rapidly growing science, in the provinces and among the gentlemen scientists of London, Oxford and Cambridge. Industry, particularly mining, often motivated local practical geologists, and the construction of canals and railways exposed the strata for all to see. The most notable of the early practical men of geology was the mineral surveyor William Smith; his geological map of England and Wales, published in 1815, was the first of its kind. He was not alone. The contributions of professional men, and the provincial societies with which they were connected, are sometimes underestimated in the history of geology.