| Description | The Geological Survey was founded in 1835 by Sir Henry de la Beche. The first institution of its kind in the world, its purpose was to add geological information to Ordnance Survey maps, colouring in areas according to their geological make-up. In the course of its work, the Survey began to build up a collection of rocks and minerals, illustrating the application of geology to industry, and in 1837 a building was purchased in Craig's Court, Whitehall, for offices and a Museum of Economic Geology. The contents of the museum, which opened to the public in 1841, were largely of a practical nature: building and ornamental stones, manufactured products such as cement and tiles, metallurgical products including gun barrels, and even artworks, in the form of statues, pottery and cameos.
Within a few years, however, the collections outgrew their building, and 28 Jermyn Street (221 Piccadilly) was chosen for the new Survey premises, which were completed in 1849. Prince Albert, a great supporter of science and industry, formally opened the new Museum of Practical Geology on 12 May 1851.
The new museum continued to promote geology's relationship to arts and industry, and also built up large fossil, rock and mineral collections. By the end of the nineteenth century, the display cases were so overcrowded that it became necessary to discard all material not closely connected to the work and purposes of the Survey. Gradually the collections were refined - the best of the porcelain and ceramic collection was sent to the V&A, for example - so that by the early 20th century the museum had become devoted to "British stratigraphical and economic geology".
By the 1920s however, the building was in a parlous state, and in 1927 it was announced that the Survey would move to South Kensington as soon as finances allowed. One of the architects of the new building was Sir Richard Allinson, responsible for the Science Museum (note the similarity in appearance). Begun in 1929, the new Survey building (with 'Geological Survey Museum' carved over the Exhibition Road entrance) was almost complete by early 1933 at a cost of £220,000, when it was taken over for the summer for the Government's International Economic and Monetary Conference. During 1934, Survey geologists were involved in preparing labels, maps, diagrams, dioramas and models for the new museum, which was opened by the Duke of York on 3 July 1935 in front of an audience of 1000.
Having had three locations in its first 100 years, the Geological Survey settled at South Kensington for the next four decades. In 1980, the Survey moved out of London to Keyworth, and five years later the Geological Museum, which had been left behind, was merged with the Natural History Museum. The Survey took the collections necessary for its research, and the remainder - including 30,000 minerals - was transferred to the NHM. The NHM received the Geological Museum building, some 33 staff, and collections of minerals, gemstones, building stones, meteorites and some ores and economic minerals. The rest, including the palaeo collections went to Keyworth, Nottinghamshire. The NHM did not receive any archival material (even for the collections acquired), this all went to the British Geological Survey Keyworth library.
Further files on the Geological Museum held by the Natural History Museum can be found in Director's Files, ref DF933/12 and Mineralogy files, ref DF7/34 |