6 days ago
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Posted On: October 30th 2026, 01:01 pm
#FromTheArchives
'The Six Days of Geology', from 'Conversations with Little Geologists on the Six Days of Creation' (1878) by John William Grover. Scroll to see the full image! 👉
In the early 19th century a significant number of geologists, such as the Reverend William Buckland (1784-1856), incorporated their religious beliefs into their interpretation of the science. For most, the discoveries on the ‘Antiquity of Man’ and the publication of Darwin’s ‘On the Origin of the Species’ (1859) broke this connection, but conversely it also generated a flurry of publications seeking to retain the traditional view of the Earth’s creation.
John William Grover (1836-1892) was a civil engineer who worked in Britain and Venezuela, where he constructed railways, harbours and other water works. He was notably involved in construction of the wrought iron roof of the Royal Albert Hall, the Clevedon Pier and the conservatory of the Royal Horticultural Society.
His book 'Conversations with Little Geologists on the Six Days of Creation’ (1878) was aimed at children. The text takes a form of a dialogue between a father and his two children who are asking him questions about the creation of the Earth and its long extinct creatures. The accompanying section shown here is clearly based on Buckland’s ‘Ideal section of a portion of the Earth’s Crust…’ (1836) [See our post from 19 October! 👇], and cleverly correlates the six days of Biblical Creation with the geological timescale.
🔗Discover the Geological Society's Archives and Special Collections by following the link in bio
#Geology #Archives #History #Creation #Timescale
'The Six Days of Geology', from 'Conversations with Little Geologists on the Six Days of Creation' (1878) by John William Grover. Scroll to see the full image! 👉
In the early 19th century a significant number of geologists, such as the Reverend William Buckland (1784-1856), incorporated their religious beliefs into their interpretation of the science. For most, the discoveries on the ‘Antiquity of Man’ and the publication of Darwin’s ‘On the Origin of the Species’ (1859) broke this connection, but conversely it also generated a flurry of publications seeking to retain the traditional view of the Earth’s creation.
John William Grover (1836-1892) was a civil engineer who worked in Britain and Venezuela, where he constructed railways, harbours and other water works. He was notably involved in construction of the wrought iron roof of the Royal Albert Hall, the Clevedon Pier and the conservatory of the Royal Horticultural Society.
His book 'Conversations with Little Geologists on the Six Days of Creation’ (1878) was aimed at children. The text takes a form of a dialogue between a father and his two children who are asking him questions about the creation of the Earth and its long extinct creatures. The accompanying section shown here is clearly based on Buckland’s ‘Ideal section of a portion of the Earth’s Crust…’ (1836) [See our post from 19 October! 👇], and cleverly correlates the six days of Biblical Creation with the geological timescale.
🔗Discover the Geological Society's Archives and Special Collections by following the link in bio
#Geology #Archives #History #Creation #Timescale
Comments (3)
6 days agojankingshott
The scary thing is that a significant number of Americans actually believe this.
6 days agochrisfearauthor
Fascinating. See my book on one clergyman's struggle with all of this. Fossils and Faith. The Victorian Struggle for Science. Available from Amazon.
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