Richard Kirwan (1733-1812): Again

Much that was written about the formative years of geology until well past the middle of the twentieth century needs to be re-examined. Few authors wrote about the history of geology, and those in the U.S. and England relied heavily on English language sources. The major players were frequently spoken of as individuals, and were often considered apart from the international network in which many operated. Stereotypes abounded, with judgments of good or bad made on the basis of how closely the early geologist conformed to current thought.

Our view of the Irish Richard Kirwan has and is changed since that earlier literature. He was once generally vilified as a die-hard supporter of phlogiston and the Neptunian origin of igneous rocks. A closer look at his own papers shows that he had a well-supported basis for his positions that was not at odds with many in the international community of what we now term chemists and geologists with whom he was in constant communication. In order to get a more comprehensive understanding of Kirwan, and thus of his evolving ideas in geology, it is instructive to look at his complete body of literature.

To this point I have been concerned with the relation between Kirwan's direct use of what he had learned in the laboratory as applied to his thinking about rock origin. Now it is useful to consider the broader context in which he worked as shown by a more complete appraisal of his papers. This will include both a chronological sequence which will show the general progression of the kinds of problems he worked on, as well as a closer look at his interests during the time after he returned to Ireland a final time and turned his attention to geology.