Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos
William Smith
Introduction References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics
Images
Smith, William
At a Glance
default image
William Smith summary
Quizzes
Michael Faraday (L) English physicist and chemist (electromagnetism) and John Frederic Daniell (R) British chemist and meteorologist who invented the Daniell cell.
Faces of Science
Cross section of Earth showing the core, mantle, and crust
Everything Earth
Related Questions
Feedback
Corrections? Updates? Omissions? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login).
Thank you for your feedback

Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.

External Websites
Smith, William
Smith, William William Smith, engraving, 1875.

William Smith

British geologist
Written by
Richard W. Macomber
Professor of Physics, Brooklyn Campus, Long Island University, New York.
Richard W. Macomber
Fact-checked by
Britannica Editors
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....
Britannica Editors
History

William Smith (born March 23, 1769, Churchill, Oxfordshire, Eng.—died Aug. 28, 1839, Northampton, Northamptonshire) was an English engineer and geologist who is best known for his development of the science of stratigraphy. Smith’s great geologic map of England and Wales (1815) set the style for modern geologic maps, and many of the colourful names he applied to the strata are still in use today. Smith was the son of an Oxfordshire blacksmith of farming stock....

Discover the world with Britannica

Subscribe to Continue Reading

Free Trial | No Ads | Exclusive Content
Explore Subscriptions
DNA
Right
Mobile