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    The Map That Changed the World: William Smith and the Birth of Modern Geology
    The Map That Changed the World: William Smith and the Birth of Modern Geology
    The Map That Changed the World: William Smith and the Birth of Modern Geology
    Audiobook10 hours

    The Map That Changed the World: William Smith and the Birth of Modern Geology

    Written by Simon Winchester

    Narrated by Simon Winchester

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    About this audiobook

    From the author of the bestselling The Professor and the Madman comes the fascinating story of William Smith, the orphaned son of an English country blacksmith, who became obsessed with creating the world's first geological map and ultimately became the father of modern geology.

    In 1793 William Smith, a canal digger, made a startling discovery that was to turn the fledgling science of the history of the earth -- and a central plank of established Christian religion -- on its head. He noticed that the rocks he was excavating were arranged in layers; more important, he could see quite clearly that the fossils found in one layer were very different from those found in another. And out of that realization came an epiphany: that by following the fossils, one could trace layers of rocks as they dipped and rose and fell -- clear across England and, indeed, clear across the world. Determined to publish his profoundly important discovery by creating a map that would display the hidden underside of England, he spent twenty years traveling the length and breadth of the kingdom by stagecoach and on foot, studying rock outcrops and fossils, piecing together the image of this unseen universe.

    In 1815 he published his epochal and remarkably beautiful hand-painted map, more than eight feet tall and six feet wide. But four years after its triumphant publication, and with his young wife going steadily mad to the point of nymphomania, Smith ended up in debtors' prison, a victim of plagiarism, swindled out of his recognition and his profits. He left London for the north of England and remained homeless for ten long years as he searched for work. It wasn't until 1831, when his employer, a sympathetic nobleman, brought him into contact with the Geological Society of London -- which had earlier denied him a fellowship -- that at last this quiet genius was showered with the honors long overdue him. He was summoned south to receive the society's highest award, and King William IV offered him a lifetime pension.

    The Map That Changed the World is, at its foundation, a very human tale of endurance and achievement, of one man's dedication in the face of ruin and homelessness. The world's coal and oil industry, its gold mining, its highway systems, and its railroad routes were all derived entirely from the creation of Smith's first map.; and with a keen eye and thoughtful detail, Simon Winchester unfolds the poignant sacrifice behind this world-changing discovery.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperAudio
    Release dateJan 13, 2004
    ISBN9780060746070
    Author

    Simon Winchester

    Simon Winchester is the acclaimed author of many books, including The Professor and the Madman, The Men Who United the States, The Map That Changed the World, The Man Who Loved China, A Crack in the Edge of the World, and Krakatoa, all of which were New York Times bestsellers and appeared on numerous best and notable lists. In 2006, Winchester was made an officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) by Her Majesty the Queen. He resides in western Massachusetts.

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    Reviews for The Map That Changed the World

    4/5

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    • 3/5
      I am a big fan of Simon Winchester's books in general, but this one I found less enjoyable than his others. I seemed to detect occasional inaccuracies ("bird progenitor pterodactyl"? What?) or oversimplifications (sedimentation can't occur without an ocean?) which bothered me, as well as a certain habit of repetition. I am not sure these flaws were more pronounced here so much as his usual sterling qualities had less range for expression.This is, after all, a fairly straightforward story. Though William Smith's accomplishments shaped the history of geology, his life and career are fashioned on the scale of the personal, the regional. Where Winchester has excelled, in A Crack in the Edge of the World and Krakatoa, in tracking down scores of accounts and sources and using them to fashion a multi-faceted portrait of vast cataclysm, here he has a smaller canvas to paint. He has fewer sources -- Smith's papers and abortive autobiography, his nephew's biography of him -- as well. There is less here for Winchester to thoroughly investigate and vividly imagine for us, and less surprise. Smith's ill fortune and lack of recognition is hardly startling, since it fits into a pattern in the history of the sciences in Britain, as Winchester notes.I'm glad Winchester wrote this book. It's unfair that Smith's posterity should be confined to those who took Sedimentology and Stratigraphy courses in college, and I was glad to learn more about him than the single day's lecture I remember from that class. It was edifying, well-written and interesting. However, I feel it could have been pruned quite a bit.Notes on the audiobook: The author narrated his own book, and did it admirably. His accents for quotes -- notably Smith's own Oxfordshire -- were lovely.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 3/5
      I really enjoyed this little book about the ups and downs of the life of British geoloogist William Smith. He invented stratigraphy, and his genius was not rewarded until later in life. At times Mr. Winchester's portrayal of William Smith became a little boring, but at other times the writing was fluid and robust. If you like history and biographies this is a terrific book to read. I liked it, so will you.
    • 4/5
      A readable and illustrated accounft of the life of William Smith, who established Geology as a science. Straddling the eighteenth and nineteenth century, this relatively unlettered man worked all his life to set the boundaries of what we now regard as scientific geology. Beginning with the stratigraphy of a local coal mine, he finally mapped all the major features of British geology dating back to the Carboniferous. In spite of the resistance of the more aristocratic dilettantes of the day, his plan for the science had triumphed by the 1820's. Simon winchester has created a very lively and informative biography in the man's historical context.
    • 3/5
      A great non-fiction read about the man who did the first topographical map of England, yet was not appreciated at the time, primarily because of his humble origins. Readable and informative.
    • 3/5
      I am glad I read this because I knew nothing of Geology before. It wasn't an easy read, but I learned alot.
    • 4/5
      This is a nice pacy factual book that kept me occupied during 2 flights (no easy thing - not a happy flyer). It's one of those classic 18th century tales where there's science, religion, class, prejudice money and, out of the mess and shambles comes something that is really mind blowing. William Smith produced the first geological survey of the UK. All by himself. And a small version is reproduced on the inside front cover and it's a real thing of beauty - the colour, shading and texture is fabulous, as well as being remarkably similar to the British Geological Survey's edition of the 1990s that graces the rear cover. It's set during that great upheaval in science, when Britain finally moved from being a medieval belief led society to one that valued science, facts, precision, deduction and started wanting to ask questions of the natural world. this is one example. It was driven by his being involved in the coal mining industry, then in the routing and digging of a canal through Somerset. What he'd seen by the vertical descent into the ground of the mines was reinforced by what he'd seen in the cut made across miles of Somerset - the rocks beneath our feet are different, but predictably different in different places. It's got it's fair share of trials and tribulations, and the class system comes in for a fair old (and entirely justified) bashing, but Smith doesn't always seem to be the most astute of individuals. Even so, it's nice to see that he did finally get the recognition he deserved in his lifetime - even if he seems to have been largely forgotten since. Simon Winchester does write a good story, as well as managing to get some facts to stick in your brain at the same time. I thought this was a good read.
    • 4/5
      I was drawn to this book after hearing an interview with Simon Winchester on the radio. He prompted memories of a map on the wall in my middle school geography class in England during the 1970's....For someone with very limited interest in geology (how dry can this subject be?) this book kept me interested and entertained. Many readers may not appreciate how hugely powerful the upper class were during this time, controlling the sciences, art, industry, politics etc. This makes Smith's story all the more amazing.
    • 5/5
      Fascinating exploration of geological history.
    • 5/5
      "The Map That Changed the World: William Smith and the Birth of Modern Geology" follows the life of a visionary, William Smith, who dreamed of being the first in history to draw a geologic map of the entire nation of England. This map he would draw would revolutionize mineralogy (as geology was known during that time) and foster the Industrial Revolution. However, his en devour met with opposition from jealous aristocrats. William Smith was the son of a blacksmith who took up surveying as a profession after his father died. He apprenticed under another well know surveyor and soon became renowned for his accuracy. Many of his early jobs involved surveying coal mines and canal routes. He noticed on his surveys that rock layers repeated from location to location, as did the fossils found in each layer of rock. The rock layers, or stata, fascinated him, and he began drawing conclusions about their order and regularity. He believed that this would prove as fact if only he were able to travel the country to test his hypothesis. Eventually, he was hired to survey a canal that would be used to transport coal to the market in London. He used this job as an opportunity to pursue his true life's work: as he surveyed and supervised the digging of the canal, he studied the soil and rock layers. The rocks and fossils he collected he would later use to draw his map. Financial troubles plagued Smith all his life, including financing his map's publication. He worked for almost a decade to get the necessary financial support. Finally, in 1816 he was able to publish the map. The first geologic map ever made.Soon after the map's publication many people, including the Geological Society of London would plagiarize his work. Smith himself would receive very little credit for having compile the map until 1831. The map made finding coal seams consistent, thus stoking the coal fires of the Industrial Revolution. William Smith's map marks a paradigm shift in human thought...it helped prove that the world was older many Christian fundamentalist believed--they believed it was only 6,000 years old. He was one of the first to recognize fossils in overlying strata were more advanced than the fossils in underlying strata--something that Charles Darwin would recognize too in his book "On The Origin of Species".
    • 5/5
      Eye-opening for me. All in a work of a single individual - W. Smith
    • 3/5
      not as good as Professor & the Madman. But still pretty awesome. Winchester makes things that ought to be boring fascinating.
    • 4/5
      The Map that Changed the World: William Smith and the Birth of Modern Geology is a wonderful biography of William Smith’s life. Simon Winchester takes the reader on an extraordinary journey through William Smith’s life. Despite my own interest and background in geology, my first impression on hearing about Simon Winchester’s book was one of, “why bother”. Geologic maps are second nature to me, and I never really gave them a second thought. I find them beautiful to behold and very practical and I’ve even participated in creating geologic maps not only on Earth, but on Mars as well, but I never gave thought to the history of this invaluable geologic tool. Simon Winchester changed my mind. In recounting William Smith’s struggle to create his first geologic map he brings to life a man who was before his time and who was cruelly ignored and plagiarized by his supposed peers. Winchester’s style is fluid and dynamic, interspersing narrative on William Smith’s life with excerpts from Smith’s diary entries and notes, making the book a delightful read. Not only did I learn about William Smith the man and the scientist, but I also learned a lot about the late 18th and early 19th century when William Smith lived. My only complaint is the jumps Winchester takes the reader on through the life of Smith. While most of the book is fairly linear, following Smith's life from boyhood in Oxfordshire to his adulthood and work in Bath, London, and finally his self-imposed exile to northern England, there are places where Winchester seems to be getting ahead of himself. At several places Winchester jumps ahead then backtracks, seemingly heading off on a tangent then remembering to get back to Smith and his life. William Smith was not a perfect man, and Winchester does a wonderful job of bringing to light Smith’s difficulties and problems, many of which directly or indirectly hindered his ambitious project to map the geology of England, Wales, and part of Scotland. (At one point Smith was placed in prison for failing to pay off his debts.) Smith often struggled to create his map while working as a freelance surveyor and drainage engineer, traveling across England often at his own expense to collect the fossils and map the strata. But despite these difficulties Smith endured and completed his ambitious project single-handedly. Smith’s map was a phenomenal accomplishment, measuring over eight feet by six feet in size. Winchester’s account of Smith’s struggle, the highs and lows of his life, to create this masterpiece is a wonderful testament to Smith’s contribution to the science of geology. Along with the story of Smith’s life, Winchester also provides a copy of the map (albeit in a smaller form) as part of the dust cover of the book (in hardback editions). The book is also illustrated with maps, fossils, and various locations that were prominent in Smith’s life. There is a simple glossary and an extensive bibliography to assist the reader unfamiliar with certain terms or who is interested in reading further into Smith’s story. I recommend this book to anyone interested in learning more about the science of geology and about the life and times of the man who has been named “The Father of English Geology”. It is a delight to read and I found it informative and entertaining
    • 4/5
      Enjoyable account of the cruelly neglected, even insulted, pioneer of geology. Winchester also enjoys his own exploration of the geological features he explores. i never knew oolite could be so delightful. The sense of a hidden world (the strata beneath) and the oppressive society of early 19th C England are well portrayed. And the poor lonely man with his mad, possibly nymphomaniac wife - and despite the book, he's still an unknown. and yet people like faraday and Davy (who he brushes elbows with) were also sons of soil and toil who won recognition and are even now household names. Is Winchester overstating his case? My contextual knowledge of the history of geoscience is not up to judging that
    • 4/5
      Skipping over the repetitious foreshadowing of William Smith's decline, [The Map That Changed the World] reads like a lively historical novel.Further enhancing its appeal are the beautifully rendered drawings of Smith's beloved Jurassic ammonites. Ah, for a fold-out map!Simon Winchester covers the basics of British late 18th century life, with the strange omission of the horrors of colonization and slavery.
    • 5/5
      First off, what a gorgeous map. Second, this is a great account of an interesting life with several ups and downs. Told masterfully, though perhaps a bit repetitively, Winchester has once again solidly interested me in a subject about which I care not one whit.
    • 3/5
      A biography of William Smith who was the first to map the geolocical features of England. His work paved the way to understanding the changes the world has undergone.
    • 4/5
      This book reminds me that I missed a few classes in Ms. Liles middle school science class, so my knowledge of geological epochs is limited.Besides that it's a bit boring. Not as good as 'The Professor and the Madman' (also by Simon Winchester).
    • 4/5
      It was a very enjoyable and easy read. There are parts scattered throughout the book where the author tends to ramble and wander onto tangents. The book would have been stronger and tighter if the author had stayed on topic. The line drawings peppered through the book add a nice bit of visual detail but I would have liked to have seen even more of them used.
    • 5/5
      First off, what a gorgeous map. Second, this is a great account of an interesting life with several ups and downs. Told masterfully, though perhaps a bit repetitively, Winchester has once again solidly interested me in a subject about which I care not one whit.
    • 4/5
      Very interesting book about a topic I know little about, but now much more. The usual excellent Simon Winchester exploration of a person's background and what he/she did to impact the world, even though most of us know nothing about the person, before the book. The audiobook was read by Winchester & he did a pretty good job using distinctive voices for the people's words. Not a favorite of his books, but certainly worth reading and learning about the topic of geology.
    • 4/5
      The author does a creditable job of creating an entertaining read, given the dearth of historical records and William Smith's largely unexceptional life. Alas (at least for narrative purposes), Smith wasn't one of those fascinating dilitantes of the 18th/19th century who managed to dabble in science, arts, literature, politics, and philosophy, all while managing an extravagent estate. Smith was obsessed with just one thing - geology/paleontology - but what he did, he did exceptionally well. His geologic map of the U.K. - the first geological map ever endeavored, remarkable accurate for its time - may not have changed the world on its own, but his theories on stratographic deposition - especially when combined with Darwin's insights into natural selection - definitely contributed to a continental shift (pun intended) in how future generations came to regard natural science. Up until Smith's work at the beginning of the 19th century, it appears no one had bothered to question why the Earth beneath our feet seemed to be layed down in layers, why some of those layers contained coal while others didn't, nor why some of those layers seemed to contain fossils of sea life even though they were located far inland. Primarily this is because, at that time, people were busier trying (with uneven success) to fit observed facts into the Biblical account of Earth's genesis rather than visa versa.Smith's work as a coal miner and drainage engineer placed him in the ideal position - geographically and historically - to start piecing together the puzzle that laid the foundation for a more scientific approach to geological time and Earth's origins. All was not science and glory for Mr. Smith, however - partly due to the jealousy of rivals, partly due to bad luck, partly due - even the author admits - to Smith's own deficits. The man was an poor communicator, vain, spendthrift, and a terrible procrastinator, who also appears to have married unwisely and to have made a series of inexplicably reckless decisions that eventually led to disgrace and bankrupcy. Never fear - the story has a happy ending! Towards the end of his life Smith's reputation was salvaged and today the "Father of English Geology" occupies his rightful place in the pantheon of geology gods. I agree that the story is a thin one, made even thinner by the fact that Smith appears to have been an inconsistent, unreliable journalist and there's a dearth of 3rd person accounts to corroborate or enrich Smith's sparse narrative. For instance, I'm still not sure whether his fascination with geology was merely the result of intellectual curiosity or more of an obsession/compulsion; I'm not clear whether he was socially adept or a social disaster(different anecdotes seem to come down on different sides); it's not clear to what extent Smith reconciled (or failed to reconcile) his findings with extant beliefs re. Earth's history; and Winchester's such a Smith fanboy that I can't shake the feeling he may have omitted information/analysis that would have shed a less favorable light on our reticent protagonist.Having said that, I give Winchester props for making this story of geological exploration broad, engaging and accessible. If the author's portrait of Smith isn't quite complete, at least I gained interesting insights into British history, the geology of the U.K., the state of scientific discovery in the late 1700s/early 1800s, and debtor's prisons. His descriptions of geological phenomenon are simple and lucid (though a few more charts/graphs might have been useful). And if Winchester's heavy use of foreshadowing does sometimes confuse the chronology, at least it keeps you turning pages right up until the end. Perhaps not a great book, but I definitely don't regret the time I spent in Mr. Smith's company, and hope one day to be able to visit his great map at the headquarters of the Geological Society in London on the strength of this amiable tale.
    • 4/5
      This biography of William Smith tells the compelling story of the geologist who worked for 20 years to produce the first geological map of Britain, a world first. He was not rich or well-connected, and struggled for recognition. His wife went mad, his work was stolen by jealous colleagues and he was imprisoned for debt. His work marked the beginnings of geology as a modern science. The book is very readable, an excellent popular history, and well illustrated.
    • 2/5
      The subject was quite interesting, and a topic I was not at all familiar with.However, the author was rambling, recursive, redundant, repetitive, and kept trying to "build suspense" with a muddled chronology.
    • 3/5
      Not terrible, but not wonderful either. The first few chapters have a great deal of Winchester saying "Oh look, here's the guy who's going to/did change the world! Isn't he wonderful!", then going back to trying to set the scene - not just Smith's early life, but the way of thinking and understanding the world that formed the background of his life. The Great Flood wasn't just a religious concept, it was simple fact - the way things happened, the thing that made the world - for instance. I found that scene-setting impaired, not helped, by Winchester explaining things that Smith saw and was the first to understand in terms of what we know now, long after that first inspiration. The real problem is that there is very little documentation of Smith - his own diary is most of what Winchester had to work with, for all but the last few years of his life. And the diary is written to remind Smith what was going on, not as a record for posterity. Winchester had to do a _lot_ of padding to get a book out of this skimpy data, and unfortunately it shows. There's also the fact that while Smith suffered greatly from prejudice and disdain, he also brought a great deal of his troubles on himself, by overspending and overpromising. When people have subscribed to receive a book, they expect to get a book, not promises and silence... All that aside, it's an interesting presentation of a major shift in understanding (ok, 'paradigm shift'), triggered by one man who seemed to excel at actually looking at what was in front of him and integrating it into a complete structure. Others either found facts to support pet theories, or merely looked at the pretty things and didn't theorize at all, and therefore came to no conclusions about the relations of one type of rock to another. I'd love to go see that map, sometime. But the book is too annoying to be interesting - between Winchester's padding and Smith's sad-sackness, I'm glad I read it and I'm glad I don't ever have to read it again.
    • 5/5
      If the name "Simon Winchester" sounds familiar, it is probably because of his recent bestseller, "The Professor and the Madman", the history of how the Oxford English Dictionary was originally compiled. It is supposed to be very good, but I haven't had a chance to read it myself yet. However, my experience with "The Map..." strongly inclines me toward reading that other one as well. Mr. Winchester does an excellent job of bringing to life not only the obsession of William Smith to publish a lifetime of work in the first geological map of England, but also the milieu in which he worked. Perhaps Winchester slightly exaggerates the singularity of his main character, and gives him a bit more credit than he deserves, for putting together ideas that had been going through the minds of others of the time. But there is no minimizing his painstaking effort to gather the data that would constitute his opus. This is a book that makes the relatively slow-moving science of geology come to life.
    • 5/5
      I was completely enthralled by the personal histories that were inextricably linked to this story. These people, obviously and most notably William Smith, leaped out of this narrative in such a wonderful way.
    • 3/5
      I read this five years ago, so this is based on limited memory.This is an interesting, readable, but light biography of William Smith, the creator of the first geologic map. Those looking for an introduction to or insight into geology probably should look elsewhere.OK, that was all overstated. But, it's more-or-less true. Simon Winchester is a good writer and publishes a lot of books, many with a geologic tilt. But, there is a cost to publishing so fast - he needs to accomplish a great deal of research at a remarkable speed, and probably on a set time schedule. He does cover a lot of ground. But, I have to imagine, every time he turns and follows further down some research path of interest, something else has to get left out. Also, he is writing for a popular audience. Anyway, we only get part of the story.What is presented is a very interesting and detailed account of the life of William Smith, a man whose name says a lot. He was hardworking, and had hard luck; dedicated, but not brilliant. He did have brilliant idea and he ran himself ragged running back and forth across England to make it work. And he did it, going broke somewhere in the process and even spending time in a debtors prison. Tragically, his success only came over years of fascinating resistance. Here the book provides wonderful details. One "scientist," and critic of Smith, lays out a plan to cover English geology by traveling around the country and simply interviewing various peasants and locals about their local rocks. So much for the need for field work!But what is missing is the geology. William Smith was a product both of his time AND of his geology - that of England. Had he lived anywhere else, even within the same kind culture, his map would have never come about. England is unique. It's a rare place where most of the Phanerozoic ages are present in nice layer cake sedimentary layers. They are all conveniently exposed over a somewhat limited area, and not terribly deformed. It is a place that one person could map. It almost had to be the birth place of the geological map! Telling the life of William Smith without a long discussion about the geology of England and why it is the way it is ... well, it kind of misses the point.OK, my memories aren't that precise. I don't remember exactly how deeply Winchester actually goes into the geology. But, I do remember he doesn't go too far. When I finished I felt like Winchester wrote this book through heavy research, but without unpacking his rock hammer and without trying to answer that question of why England is blessed with its geology.
    • 5/5
      Themes: science vs. religion, triumph of the underdog, the self educated working scientist vs. the elite theoristI've been a fan of Winchester's since I read The Professor and the Madman several years ago. Sure, he can go on a bit, like in Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded, where he spent lots and lots of time on Continental Drift and not enough time on exploding volcanoes. But when he's on, he's really on. So I was happy to get a copy of this book at the used bookstore.I'd have to rank it up there with my favorites. Winchester's geology background really shows in this book, but that's not a bad thing. First of all, who but a geologist, or a scientist anyway, would choose to write a biography of someone like William Smith, who never did anything sexy or cool, but simply wandered all over the British isles, improving drainage, of all things, digging canals and mines, and making a map?But what a map. A map that really did, in its own way, change the world. He's called The Father of English Geology, which doesn't sound like an especially cool epithet to me, but to each his own. But his map made possible the huge advances in the dating of the earth of understanding Continental Drift, as mentioned above, and finally allowed us to understand what fossils actually were, not Figured Stones, but relics of previous living things. That was huge.I loved the cover. It's a copy of his map that unfolds. I loved that there is another copy of the finished map inside, in full color, and a modern map with it for comparison. I wish they had added a color portrait of the subject as well. Color I guess doesn't really matter, but the full page size would have been nice. There's a glossy of geologic terms at the back, but the few words I looked for weren't there. Oh, and I *really, really loved* that this was a story of a brilliant man of humble origins who made a huge discovery, was ridiculed and victimized because of it, and then was vindicated. How cool is that?If you are interested in reading about science, I would recommend this one. If you like stories that feature real life triumphs of the underdog, I would definitely recommend this. It's not your usual take on the subject, but it's all true, and it makes a great story. 4.25 stars
    • 1/5
      It's very rare that this happens, because I'm a stubborn reader, but I had to abandon this book halfway through. The writing style is irritatingly journalistic. The author lacks the imagination to fill in the blanks in the historical record with any sympathy or sense of William Smith's personality. His use of footnotes is also an irritant. I was looking forward to finding out about the "Father of Geology" but by halfway through the book I knew little about him, I wasn't engaged with the story, and I was put off persevering by the author's prejudices and presumptions. A really disappointing book.
    • 3/5
      I find this book to be quite a classic in many ways. The story of William Smith is inspiring, enduring and sad. This is the story of a man who, for all practical purposes, ruined his own life for the sake of geology, yet gave the world a new science. It is also the story of how powerful and influential people can play such a strong role in moulding science, the way it is viewed, and in the way that the truth is perceived.It is a sad story in that the man who gave us the science of geology is practically forgotten, and is great map is not generally on display.England surely should do more for the memory of William Smith.Simon Winchester does a really great job of telling the tale of William Smith, and the book is lively and well researched. I read it through, and these days I do have the time to read books through! If I give it three stars, it is only because I wish that it contained a little more information on the scientific methods that William Smith used, and a little more detail about how he created the map. This, to my mind, has been glossed over. Yet, it is a very good book indeed. It is a book that should be read by the scientific community of my own country. We could learn a little from the passion and dedication shown by William Smith, to create enduring legacies of our own.