ANALYSES OF ROCKS, LABORATORY OF THE UNITED STATES 
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY, 1880-1903. 
By F. W. Clarke. 
INTRODUCTION. 
The present Geological Survey of the United States was organized 
in 1879. In 1880 a chemical laboratory was established at Denver, in 
connection with the Colorado work, in charge of Dr. W. F. Hillebrand, 
with whom were associated Mr. Antony Guyard and, later, Mr. L. G. 
Eakins. In 1882 Dr. W. H. Melville was placed in charge of a second 
laboratoiy at San Francisco, and in the autumn of 1883 the central 
laboratory was started in Washington, with myself as chief chemist. 
In November, 1885, Doctor Hillebrand was transferred to Washington; 
early in 1888 he was followed by Mr. Eakins, and the Denver labora- 
tory was discontinued. In the spring of 1890 Doctor Melville also was 
transferred to Washington, and since then the chemical work of the 
Survey has been concentrated at headquarters. 
Up to January 1, 1901, over 5,300 analyses have been made in the 
laboratory at Washington. These represent rocks, minerals, ores, 
waters, sediments, coals, metals, and so on through all the range of 
substances with which geology has to do. There were also some hun- 
dreds of analyses made in the laboratories at Denver and San Francisco. 
A fair amount of research work upon mineralogical and analytical 
problems has also been done. In all of this work the following chem- 
ists have been employed: E. T. Allen, Charles Catlett, T. M. Chatard, 
F. W. Clarke, L. G. Eakins, F. A. Gooch, Antony Guyard, W. F. 
Hillebrand, W. H. Melville, R. B. Riggs, W. T. Schaller, E. A. 
Schneider, George Steiger, H. N. Stokes, E. C. Sullivan, William 
Valentine, and J. E. Whitfield. As many as eight of these have been 
at work simultaneously; at present only six are connected with the 
Survey. Other officers of the Survey have been occupied more or 
less with chemical questions; but the men named in this list were con- 
nected directly with the laboratory. Some work for the chemical 
division has also been done by chemists not regularly on the rolls of 
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