The Archives of Frank Dawson Adams: A Guide
Collection Number: MS-2-1Fonds-level description created and electronic version prepared by Laurena Fredette, August 2006
Collection Level Description
Title: Frank Dawson Adams fonds
Dates: 1878-1903
Extent: 315 photographs. - 35 negatives (b&w). - 15 vol. of notebooks. - 1 folder of textual records.
Frank Dawson Adams was born on 17 September 1859 in Montreal, Quebec. He attended the Montreal High School; completed a B.Sc. at McGill University in 1878 where he graduated with First Rank Honours; earned a Masters degree from McGill in 1884; and later completed a PhD at Heidelberg University. In 1892 he married Mary Stuart Finlay.
Adams died in Montreal on 26 December 1942.
Adams was a well-known geologist, educator, and author from the era who had a long association with McGill University. He began lecturing at McGill in 1889 and held a number of prominent positions at the university, including Logan Professor of Geology, Dean of Applied Science, Director of the Redpath Museum, Acting Principal, Vice-Principal, and Dean of Graduate Studies. He was also employed as a chemist and petrographer for the Geological Survey of Canada from 1913-1914, was the Deputy Director of Khaki University in Britain, and actively participated in a number of national and international geological organizations, including the Geological Society of Canada. Adams retired from McGill in 1924 and traveled profusely while continuing geological research and study. Adams was a recognized leader in his field. Awarded the Flavelle Medal in 1937, he also held honourary degrees from the University of Toronto, Queen’s, Mount Allison, Bishop’s, and Tufts. His articles were printed in American and Canadian journals, and he authored the well regarded The Birth and Development of the Geological Sciences in 1938.
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Eakins, P.R.“Adams, Frank Dawson.”
The Canadian Encyclopedia. 2006. Historica Foundation of Canada. 29 June 2006 <http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1ARTA0000038>.
“Frank Dawson Adams.”
Quebec History. 2004. Claude Belanger. 29 June 2006 <http://www2.marianopolis.edu/quebechistory/encyclopedia/Adamsfrankdawson.htm>.
“Welcome to the Museum.”
McGill University. 2006. McGill University. 29 June 2006 <http://www.mcgill.ca/redpath/welcome/>.
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Materials accessioned by the Archives in 1970. Custodial history is unknown.
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This fonds consists of notebooks; correspondence; and photographs and negatives of landscapes (of regional, national, and international settings), geological samples, and group pictures taken in Europe and Canada.
A brief paper inventory is available onsite.
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[Identification of item], Frank Dawson Adams fonds, MS-2-1, Box [box number], Folder [folder number], Dalhousie University Archives and Special Collections, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
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