Robert Brown (explorer)

Robert Brown, (1842 - 26 October 1895), was a Scottish scientist, explorer, and author.

He was born in Campster, Caithness, and studied in the universities of Edinburgh, Leyden, Copenhagen, and Rostock. He took the habit of referring to his home town, Campster ("Campsterianus") to distinguish himself from his famous contemporary homonym: Robert Brown of Montrose. He visited Spitsbergen, Greenland, and the western shore of Baffin's Bay (1861), and subsequently carried on scientific investigations among the islands of the Pacific and on the Venezuelan, Alaskan, and Bering shores, making charts of all the unknown interior of Vancouver Island and writing much on the fauna and flora of those countries.

With E. Whymper, he attempted to penetrate the inland ice of Greenland in 1867, and made many discoveries concerning its nature which have since been confirmed by Peary. He afterward traveled in the Barbary States of North Africa, was a lecturer on geology, botany, and zoology in Edinburgh and Glasgow, and was a member of many learned societies in England, America, and on the Continent. He removed to London in 1876 and thereafter devoted himself entirely to literary work.

In addition to many scientific memoirs, and articles and reviews in various languages, his publications include:
* "Manual of Botany" (1874)
* "Science for All" (five volumes, 1877-82)
* "Peoples of the World" (five volumes, 1882-85)
* "The Story of Africa and Its Explorers" (four volumes, 1892-95; new edition, 1911)

References

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*cite journal|author=anonymous|title=Obituary: Dr. Robert Brown|journal=The Geographical Journal| volume=6| issue=6 |month=December| year=1895| pages=577–578|url= http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0016-7398%28189512%296%3A6%3C577%3AODRB%3E2.0.CO%3B2-G| accessdate=2007-03-20

* [http://www.biographi.ca/009004-119.01-e.php?&id_nbr=5994 Biography at the "Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online"]