Samuel Woodward — Geologist and Antigua ri/, 3 



Conybeare and Phillips, became bis text-books ; wbile the writings 

 of Richard Taylor gave an impetus to bis local researches. Taylor's 

 earliest paper was published in 1822,^ and in the following year 

 Samuel Woodward made his first geological tour of the coast, but 

 without obtaining any specimens of fossil bones. In 1824 Mr. 

 Robert Lacy sent him two molars of Elephant from Mundesley, 

 and soon after he made another excursion from Yarmouth to Cromer 

 along the beach, and obtained some good specimens ; and might, he 

 says, have obtained some very large and fine bones, but for the 

 difficulty of conveyance. 



From this year and up to the time of his death he maintained a 

 considerable correspondence with many of the leading naturalists 

 and geologists of the day. The letters he received, together with 

 many miscellaneous notes and memoranda, are preserved in eleven 

 quarto volumes, now in the possession of his youngest son. Dr. 

 Henry Woodward, F.R.S. During this period of fourteen years he 

 seems to have kept every scientific letter he received, and it must 

 be remembered that in those days letter-writing was, as a rule, far 

 more elaborate and careful than it is now. Many of these letters 

 are only of value as autographs, and merely relate to inquiries as 

 to coins, rings, seals, merchants-marks, ancient buildings, and other 

 antiquarian matters mostly of local interest. Others bear upon 

 geological topics : amongst them we find letters from William Bean 

 (of Scarboro'), C. W. Peach, R. C. Taylor, Hudson Gumey, Dawson 

 Turner, the Rev. James Layton (of Catfield) ; Thomas Amyot 

 (Treasurer of the Society of Antiquaries), J. W. Robberds, Miss 

 Etheldred Benett,^ Goddard Johnson, H. Denny (of Leeds), Daniel 

 Stock (of Bungay), Dr. Buckland, Prof. Sedgwick, Dr. Mantell, G. 

 B. Baker (of Bungay), Dr. Charles Konig (British Museum), Sir R. I. 

 Murchison, Prof. John Phillips, Dr. James Mitchell, Wm. Gilbertson 

 (of Preston), the Rev. Thomas Image (of Whepstead), the Rev. 

 George Munford, the Rev. W. Foulger. There are also short notes 

 from Fitton, De la Beche, Lyell, Agassiz, Sir Philip Egerton, Eliza- 

 beth Fry, Harriet Martineau, and Charles Waterton. 



Samuel Woodward's first letter to Mr. Caleb Rose, F.G.S., of 

 Swaffham, was written in May, 1826, and from that date there was 

 an uninterrupted correspondence, mostly on geological topics, until 

 the death of the former in 1838. The enthusiasm of the two friends 

 seems to have been very great ; every discovery of a new fossil was 

 at once communicated, while books and specimens were borrowed 

 and exchanged, in a way that speaks well for the prosecution of 

 science in those days. 



In 1824 he macle his first communication to one of the learned 

 Societies of London. It consisted of a series of maps and plans of 

 Ancient Norfolk, which he submitted to the Society of Antiquaries 

 through Mr. Hudson Gurney. One of these maps illustrated the 

 Roman period, showing the several stations and roads constructed 



1 "Fossil Bones on the Coast of East Norfolk," Thil. Mag. vol. Ix. p. 132, 1822. 



2 Well known to geologists as authoress of " A Catalogue of the Organic Remains 

 of the County of Wilts," 1831 ; (of Norton House Warminster, Wilts). 



