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means of their fossil remains. There had been other and earlier 
Collections of fossils, but to William Smith is due the credit of 
being the first to show that each bed of Chalk or Sandstone, 
Limestone or Clay, is marked by its own special organisms and 
that these can be relied upon as characteristic of such stratum, 
wherever it is met with, over very wide areas of country, not only 
in England but also abroad. 
“The fossils contained in this Cabinet were gathered together 
by William Smith in his journeys over all parts of England during 
thirty years, whilst occupied in his business as a Land Surveyor 
and Engineer, and were used to illustrate his works, ‘Strata 
Identified by Organized Fossils,’ with coloured plates quarto (1816 ; 
four parts only published) ; and his ‘Stratigraphical System of 
Organized Fossils’ (quarto, 1817). 
A coloured copy of his large Map, the first Geological Map of 
England and Wales, with a part of Scotland, commenced in 1812 
and published in 1815—size 8 feet 9 inches by 6 feet 2 inches, 
engraved by John Cary—is exhibited on the right hand side of 
this Gallery, near the entrance. It is well worthy of careful 
inspection.” 
The bust of William Smith above the case which contains his 
collection is a copy of that by Chantry surmounting the tablet to 
his memory within the fine old Norman church of St. Peter’s, at 
Northampton, where he lies buried a few feet from the west tower. 
The bust is placed within the church, against the west wall of the 
nave, south of the grand Norman arch over the entrance to the 
tower. It stands on a marble pedestal inscribed :—“‘ To honour 
the name of William Smith, LL.D. This monument is erected 
by Friends and Fellow-labourers in the field of British Geology. 
Born 23rd March, 1769, at Churchill in Oxfordshire, and trained 
to the Profession of a Civil Engineer and Mineral Surveyor. He 
began, in 1791, to survey collieries and plan canals in the vicinity 
of Bath, and having observed that several strata of that District 
were characterized by peculiar groups of organic remains he 
