Florence Bascom facts for kids

Florence Bascom (born July 14, 1862 – died June 18, 1945) was an amazing geologist and teacher. She was a true pioneer for women in science during the 1800s. Florence was special because she earned two bachelor's degrees from the University of Wisconsin. She got a Bachelor of Arts in 1882 and a Bachelor of Science in 1884.

Later, in 1887, she earned her master's degree in geology from the same university. Florence Bascom made history again in 1893. She was the second woman in the United States to earn a PhD in geology. She got her PhD from Johns Hopkins University, becoming the first woman to earn any degree from that school!

After her PhD, Florence became the first woman to work for the United States Geological Survey in 1896. She was known for her new discoveries in geology. She also helped many other women become geologists. People often call her the "first woman geologist in America."

Early Life and Family

Florence Bascom was born in Williamstown, Massachusetts, on July 14, 1862. She was the youngest of five children. Her family was different from most back then. They really encouraged women to get an education and be part of society.

Her father, John Bascom, was a professor at Williams College. He later became the president of the University of Wisconsin. He was a big reason Florence became interested in geology. Her mother, Emma Curtiss Bascom, was a women's rights activist. She was involved in the suffrage movement, which fought for women's right to vote. Both her parents strongly supported women's rights. They wanted women to go to college.

In 1874, her father became president of the University of Wisconsin. A year later, in 1875, the university started accepting women students. A hill on the Madison campus, Bascom Hill, was named after her family.

Florence had a very close bond with her father. He often took his children exploring in the mountains. They also had many scientific tools at home. These things helped Florence become interested in science. She graduated from Madison High School with excellent grades when she was 16.

Education and Discoveries

Florence Bascom earned two bachelor's degrees from the University of Wisconsin. She got her arts degree in 1882 and her science degree in 1884. She then earned her master's degree in geology in 1887 at the same university. This is where she found her passion for geology. She was especially interested in petrography, which was a very new field at the time. Petrography is the study of rocks using a microscope.

After her master's, Florence went to Johns Hopkins University. This university had just started letting women attend graduate school. She continued her studies in petrography there. Her main research was about the geology of South Mountain in Pennsylvania. In 1893, Florence earned her PhD from Johns Hopkins. This made her the first woman to get a PhD from that university. She was also the second woman in the U.S. to earn a PhD in geology.

While at the University of Wisconsin, Florence was part of the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority. This was one of the first all-women's groups at a university.

A Career in Geology

After getting her PhD, Florence Bascom taught geology for two years at Ohio State University. Then, in 1895, she moved to Bryn Mawr College. She started the geology department there, and it quickly became one of the best in the country.

In 1896, Florence was hired by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). She was the first woman to work for them. She was given the job of mapping a part of the Piedmont region. This area covers parts of Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey. She spent many summers mapping the rocks there. She also studied thin slices of rocks under a microscope. Her careful work helped scientists understand this complex area much better.

By 1906, Florence became a full professor at Bryn Mawr College. She worked there for 33 years. Even after she retired from teaching in 1928, she continued to work for the USGS until 1936.

Florence Bascom was also a leader in the Geological Society of America. In 1924, she became a councilor. In 1930, she was made vice-president. She was the only woman to hold these important positions. She also wrote many scientific papers, including some about geomorphology, which is the study of how Earth's surface changes.

Important Work and Discoveries

Florence Bascom made important discoveries about volcanic rocks. She found a new way to identify acidic volcanic rocks. She noticed that some rocks on South Mountain had changed over time. They looked like one type of rock, rhyolite, but had become holocrystalline (fully crystalized). This didn't fit the old ways of naming rocks. So, she created new prefixes like "meta-", "epi-", and "apo-" to describe these changes. For example, she called altered volcanic rocks "aporhyolites."

She also made a big discovery about how land changes over time in Pennsylvania. Scientists used to think the Piedmont province had gone through two or three cycles of erosion. But Florence found there were at least nine! She figured this out by studying layers of rock and soil. Her findings gave scientists new ideas about how erosion happens and how to define these cycles.

At Bryn Mawr College, Florence built up an amazing collection of minerals, fossils, and rocks. She trained a whole generation of young women in geology. Her graduate program was known for being very tough. It focused on both lab work and fieldwork. Many of her students became successful geologists themselves. Some even did secret work for the U.S. Geological Survey during World War II. Florence had high standards for herself and her students. Even though she was strict, her students were very thankful for the excellent education she gave them.

Mentors and Influences

Florence Bascom had many important people who helped her. Her father, John Bascom, was a huge influence. When she was 12, her father moved the family to Wisconsin to become president of the university. It was during a drive with him that he pointed out a landscape she didn't understand. This made her curious about Earth's processes. Her mother, Emma Curtiss Bascom, also inspired her with her work in the women's rights movement.

Florence also learned from geology experts like Roland Duer Irving and Charles R. Van Hise at the University of Wisconsin. They helped her get interested in petrography and structural geology. Later, at Johns Hopkins, George Huntington Williams supported her. He helped her get her PhD, even though some people thought women shouldn't get degrees. She also studied crystallography in Germany with Victor Mordechai Goldschmidt.

Legacy and Impact

Florence Bascom left a lasting mark on science. Not only did she make important scientific discoveries, but she also trained many women geologists. She created the geology department at Bryn Mawr College. She encouraged other women to join the field of geology.

Many of Florence's students became very successful scientists. Some of them were even featured in a famous book called American Men of Science. These included Ida Ogilvie, Eleanor Bliss (Knopf), Anna Jonas (Stose), Isabel Smith, and Julia Gardner.

Death

Florence Bascom passed away on June 18, 1945, at the age of 82. She is buried in a cemetery at Williams College in Williamstown, near her family.

Named in Honor of Florence Bascom

• Bascom Crater on the planet Venus
• 6084 Bascom, an asteroid discovered in 1985
• Glacial Lake Bascom, a prehistoric lake in Massachusetts
• The U.S. Geological Survey's Florence Bascom Geoscience Center in Reston, Virginia

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See also

In Spanish: Florence Bascom para niños