EDWARD HITCHCOCK was one of 19th-century America's most eminent scientists. He was the first American scientist to publicly embrace the theory of continental glaciation, but he is better known for his landmark research on what he called the "fossil footmarks" of the Connecticut Valley. From the first moment he examined a track in sandstone in Greenfield, Mass., in 1835, he was convinced that they were the tracks of animals. Further study led him to the conclusion that they were the tracks of ancient birds, some with feet as long as 18 inches. Many of the world's leading scientists soon came to agree with Hitchcock's revolutionary ideas about those tracks, but he came in for much criticism, even ridicule, in the public media of his day. Today we know that Edward Hitchcock was right, many of those tracks were made by the ancient ancestors of modern birds - making Edward Hitchcock the first scientist to find evidence of dinosaurs in North America.
Despite Edward Hitchcock's achievements in geology and paleontology, Massachusetts author Bob McMaster was surprised some years ago to discover that no biography had ever been written of the man. In 2021 he published the first ever biography of Edward Hitchcock, All the Light here Comes from Above: The Life and Legacy of Edward Hitchcock.
In his Zoom presentation, McMaster will review the life and legacy of Edward Hitchcock, particularly his central role in developing our understanding of dinosaurs He will also discuss Hitchcock's work in Vermont where he completed the first geological survey of the Green Mountain State in 1861.
For more information on Edward Hitchcock please visit www.EdwardHitchcock.com.
This program will be offered virtually on Zoom and LIVE on YouTube.
YouTube Channel: https://www.hartlandlibraryvt.org/hartland-public-library-youtube-channel/
or Register in advance for this Zoom meeting: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZwoduCqpz0qE9FdUT6IZzVLZQyUlCDAGi3V
ROBERT T. MCMASTER's interest in Edward Hitchcock began when he visited the Pratt Museum of Natural History at Amherst College over half a century ago. He taught biology at Holyoke Community College from 1994 to 2014. He has authored five novels as well as many articles on botany, conservation biology, and the history of science.
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