Martin Alfred Peacock 
Biography of Martin Alfred Peacock
Martin Peacock graduated BSc (1922), PhD (1925) and DSc (1932) from the University of Glasgow.
Born on the 15th January 1898 in Leith, Edinburgh, son of Alfred Norman Peacock, an Engineer. Martin attended the Glasgow High School before enrolling at the University in 1915. His studies were interrupted by the outbreak of the First World War, (see 2nd Lieutenant Martin Alfred Peacock's entry on the University's World War 1 Roll of Honour).
Martin returned to the University in 1919, graduating his BSc course in 1922. After graduation he took up the study of Petrography at Glasgow under John Walter Gregory, Professor of Geology. Funded by a Carnegie Research Fellowship, Peacock carried out four years of study of the igneous rocks of Iceland, and was joined on his field work by George W Tyrrell. These rocks formed an addition to the collections held in the museum. He published his results in articles, one of which was the basis of his PhD thesis in 1925, Geology of Vioey and S.W. Iceland, and he also received his third degree, DSc, with The Petrology of Iceland, and additional papers in 1932.
In 1926, Peacock received a Commonwealth Fund Fellowship at Harvard University, which was twice renewed. He went on to study Petrography and Crystalolography at Cambridge under Professor Larsen, the latter became his life work.
In 1929, Peacock was Lecturer and Assistant Professor of Geology and Geography at the University of British Columbia at Vancouver. After a period at Yale and Harvard, Peacock accepted the Chair of Mineralogy at Toronto University in 1937. He was made Professor of Crystallography and Mineralogy in 1945.
Peacock established four new mineral species, and redefined the description of others. He was a Fellow of numerous societies, including the Royal Society of Canada and the Geological Society of America. Professor Martin Alfred Peacock died on the 30th October 1950 in Toronto, Canada.
Sources
Other Online Resources
Archival Materials
- R14/1 List of Research students and fellows, with index Feb 1897-Oct 1924
Summary
Martin Alfred Peacock
Born 15 January 1898.
Died 30 October 1950.
GU Degrees: BSc, 1922; PhD, 1925; DSc, 1932;
University Link: Graduate
Occupation categories: mineralogists
WWI: View WWI Roll of Honour Entry
English snippet: Thrice graduate of the University of Glasgow, mineralogist Record last updated: 22nd May 2015