Albert Ernest Kitson

Sir Albert Ernest Kitson KBE, (21 March 1868 – 8 March 1937) was a British/Australian geologist and naturalist, winner of the Lyell Medal in 1927.

Early life

Kitson was born in North Street, Audenshaw, Cheshire, England, the son of John Kitson from Manchester and Margaret, née Neil, from Edinburgh, Scotland. On his father's side the family had been stonemasons whilst his maternal grandfather was a Scottish Presbyterian minister. Albert's early childhood was spent in Nagpur in the Central Provinces of India where his family moved when he was a year old. Around 1876 they emigrated to Victoria (Australia). Here John and Margaret taught at a State School in the gold-mining settlement of Enoch's Point before John was appointed as head teacher of North Winton State School near Benalla.cite web|url=http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A090619b.htm |author=Lyndsay Farrall |title='Kitson, Sir Albert Ernest (1868 - 1937)'|work=Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 9 |publisher=Melbourne University Press, 1983 |pages=pp. 617-618.] John died of angina in 1879 and so until her death in 1898 Margaret took over the running of the school which was attended by both her surviving children - Albert and his younger brother (John) Sidney.

Career

Albert Kitson joined the Public Service in Victoria in 1886 as a clerk. Whilst still employed in this function he also carried out geological field work. This fired a passion and encouraged him to take up part-time studies in geology at the Working Men's College (Melbourne) and subsequently at the University of Melbourne. By 1903, he had risen to become second-in-command of the Geological Survey of Victoria of which he subsequently became senior geologist and for a time acting director. He contributed a number of studies on the mineral resources of Victoria and the Glacial beds of Tasmania. In 1907, Albert Kitson recommended that the Buchan Caves in Gippsland, Victoria be set aside as a reservation to protect them from vandalism. [A.E. Kitson, 'Proposed reservation of limestone caves in the Buchan District, Eastern Gippland', Rec. geol. Surv. Vict., II(I), 1907, pp.37-44. See also http://www.ackma.org/journal/67/A%20Caving%20Pioneer%20Frank%20Moon%20-%20Dr%20Robert%20Haldane.pdf as well as Brian Finlayson & Elery Hamilton-Smith, "Beneath the Surface: A Natural History of Australian Caves", University of New South Wales Press, 2003, p 166.]

After his initial work in Victoria, Kitson spent much of his subsequent professional life in Africa. Recognising his geological talents Professor J. W. Gregory recommended him for a post as Principal mineral surveyor in Southern Nigeria [John Frederick Norman Green, 'Obituary: Albert Ernest Kitson', "Geological Society, Quarterly Journal," no 94, 1938, p. CXXVI] where he went on to discover coal and lignite. [Obituary notices of Fellows of the Royal Society, Number 19, November 1950, Volume 7, p 74] In 1909 he discovered black bituminous coal along the Enugu-Udi escarpment in Nigeria and high hopes were placed in such a potenitally important coal deposit. The town of Port Harcourt was built in 1912 as an outlet for this Nigerian coal and was linked with Enugu via a railway line that extended northwards to Kaduna. The Enugu coal fields went into production in 1915 and caused an important immigration of population to Enugu earning the town the nickname of the 'Coal City'. [ [http://www.nigerians-abroad.com/news/states/southeast/feature-the-changing-face-of-enugu/. Nigerians-Abroad - South-East - Feature: The changing face of Enugu ] ] The Nigerian coal turned out to be of poor quality and was used mainly for domestic consumption within the colonies, providing an important power resource for the railways and electricity. [Maria Sophia Steyn, 'Oil politics in Ecuador and Nigeria: a perspective from environmental history on the struggles between ethnic minority groups, multinational oil companies and national governments', "Doctoral Thesis (History)," University of the Free State Bloemfontein, South Africa, 2003, pp. 147-148.]

Although Kitson's mission was to discover mineral deposits which might be exploited by the British Colonial authority he always combined this with a paternalistic concern to improve the material situation of the local populations. In 1912, after hearing a lecture by J.P. Unstead about the climatic conditions for wheat cultivation in North America, Kitson's response was to ask whether Unstead's findings might be applied to Nigeria. Kitson argued: "Could a wheat-growing industry be established it would be a great boon to the people of West Africa". In paternalistic tones he went on: "It might in Northern Nigeria replace to a large extent the less valuable millet now grown there, while in Southern Nigeria it could materially supplement the staple foods- cassava, yams and maize". [ A.E.Kitson in reponse to J.F.Unstead, 'The climatic limits of wheat cultivation, with special reference to North America', "The Geographical Journal", Vol XXXIX, No 5, May 1912, p 443.]

After Nigeria, Kitson continued his explorations in Africa working particularly in the Gold Coast (now Ghana) between 1913-30 where he was first Principal of the Mineral Survey and afterwards Director of the Geological Survey. Kitson travelled round the colony by train and bicycle and discovered sizeable mineral deposits including bauxite ["A Special Correspondent", 'The Volta River Project', "African Affairs", Vol. 55, No. 221 (Oct., 1956), pp. 287-293] and manganese. ["http://www.geolsoc.org.uk/template.cfm?name=FTA4] The first manganese ore which he discovered was in May 1914 when he found occurrences near the Sekondi-Kumassi Railway about 6 miles from Tarkwa. [ [http://afraf.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/reprint/XIX/LXXVI/278.pdf African Affairs - Sign In Page ] ] These deposits were important to Britain's war effort, as supplies of these minerals from other locations had become difficult. During the last year of the war 32 000 tons of manganese, used in munitions production, were shipped to Britain from the deposits Kitson had found in the Gold Coast. [John Frederick Norman Green, 'Obituary: Albert Ernest Kitson', "Geological Society, Quarterly Journal," no 94, 1938, p. CXXVI.] Then in February 1919, together with his colleague E.O.Teale (formerly Thiele), he discovered on the Birrim River the first deposits of diamonds to be found in the Gold Coast. [N. R. Junner & F. A. Bannister, "The Diamond Deposits of the Gold Coast with Notes on Other Diamond Deposits in West Africa", GCGS, Gold Coast, 1943.] The diamonds were of small size but high quality. [J.W.Gregory, 'Survey of India General Report, 1924-1925', "The Geographical Journal", Vol. 69, No. 2 (Feb., 1927), p. 148.] Kitson observed that they were good crystals showing octahedron and dodecahedron. [A. E. Kitson, "Report on the Discovery of Diamonds at Abomosa, Northwest of Kibbi, Eastern Province, Gold Coast", Govt. Press, Accra, Gold Coast, 1919.] This proved to be a particularly valuable source of diamonds and the exportation of diamonds grew spectacularly. In 1934 the 2,172,563 carats of diamonds exported from the Gold Coast accounted for 39% of the world's supply that year. [http://afraf.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/reprint/43/170/46.pdf.]

Kitson is also associated with the development of hydro-electric power in the Gold Coast/Ghana. [ William M Adams, "Green Development: Environment and Sustainability in the Third World", 2001, p 320; see also: http://www.beg.utexas.edu/energyecon/IDA/USAID/RC/Guide_to_Electric%20Power_in_Ghana.pdf.] In 1915 he was the first to recommend building a dam at Akosombo on the Volta River to generate hydro-electricity, [ [http://afraf.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/reprint/55/221/287.pdf African Affairs - Sign In Page ] ] hoping to use this to process the bauxite deposits which he had discovered in the Kwahu plateau the previous year. It was not until 1965 that the idea of the dam was put into effect when Ghana's first black president, Dr Kwame Nkrumah, decided to generate hydropower as a means of modernizing the economy. [http://www.vra.com/AboutUs/history.html.] The real value of this project has been the subject of some debate, opponents cite its cost and the disruption to the lifestyle of Akwamu farmers around the dammed site. [Yonathan Girmay, 'Assessing the environmental impacts of a hydro-power project: The case of the Akosombo/Kpong dams in Ghana', "Master of Science Thesis", Stockholm, Sweden, 2006.]

Late life

After his retirement from the Gold Coast in 1930 Kitson moved to Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, where he called his house 'Benalta' (a reference to the original name of Benalla)- as an indication of his enduring passion for Australia. Here he continued to be consulted on geological questions connected to Africa. In particular he reported on gold-fields in Kenya during the so-called Kakamega Gold Rush of the early 1930s where gold-mining once again showed its disrepect for the rights of local communities and the environment. [Priscilla M. Shilaro, 'A Failed Eldorado: British Trusteeship, Luyia Land Rights and the Kakamega Gold Rush, 1930-1952', "PHD (History)", University of West Virginia, 2000, pp 154-6 & 180-186; see also: H. W. Tilman and Jim Perrin, "H. W. Tilman: The Seven Mountain-Travel Books", 2004, p 71.] In his report for the Colonial Office Kitson suggested that possibly as much as half of the gold being prospected was wasted by amateur techniques. [John Frederick Norman Green, 'Obituary: Albert Ernest Kitson', "Geological Society, Quarterly Journal," no 94, 1938, p. CXXVII.] In an article for the magazine "The Spectator", Kitson compared the influx of amateur gold-prospectors to a similar situation in Klondike in Canada in 1897-8 : "The road to Kakamega now resembles a miniature 'trail of 98' without the snow. Old mining men, from ex-Klondyke Pioneers to Australian backwoodsmen, are hurrying to the spot". ["The Spectator", 12 December 1932.] But it seems that Kitson's initial report had helped create the rush in the first place by highlighting the rich pickings available. [Priscilla M. Shilaro, 'A Failed Eldorado: British Trusteeship, Luyia Land Rights and the Kakamega Gold Rush, 1930-1952', "PHD (History)", University of West Virginia, 2000, pp 180-182.] As "The Spectator" noted "Since the publication of Sir Albert Kitson's report, the population of the Kakamega goldfields had doubled". ["The Spectator", 12 December 1932.] Kitson's article in this magazine merely fueled the rush still further.

Numerous honours came Kitson's way in recognition of his work. He was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1918 and Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG) in 1922. In 1927 Kitson was knighted (KBE) for his services to geology. The Geological Society of London elected him as a fellow in 1897, awarded him the Wollaston fund in 1918 before honouring him with the very prestigious Lyell Medal in 1927, an annual award given to an outstanding Earth Scientist. In 1929 he was appointed as President of the Geology Section of the British Association for the Advancement of Science and, following his retirement, he became President of the Geologists' Association in 1934. Kitson was an official representative of the British Government at International Geological Congresses (4 times) and at World Power Conferences (4 times). [ http://www.anbg.gov.au/biography/kitson-albert-ernest.html.] One of the Buchan Caves in Victoria Australia is named after him, [http://www.slv.vic.gov.au/pictoria/a/0/6/doc/a06831.shtml.] as are a fossil mollusk, a fossil eucalypt and a living eucalypt. The Eucalyptus tree "Eucalyptus kitsoniana" bears his name. Kitson avenue in Takoradi in modern day Ghana is named in his honour.

From his earliest age, Kitson took an interest in the natural world around him. Throughout his career he collected fossils which he would send to museums in Victoria and London. He was fascinated by the Victorian Lyrebird, publishing an article on it for the Smithsonian Institute. [A. E. Kitson, 'Notes on the Victoria Lyre-Bird'. "Smithsonian Institution, Annual Report", 1906, 363-374.] In the Australian bush he learnt a facility to handle snakes and this would later earn him a reputation on the Gold Coast as a fetish priest. He was also a keen photographer. By the end of his first three years in the Gold Coast he had taken around 450 photos of the colony. [A.E. Kitson, 'The Gold Coast', "The Geographical Journal", vol XLVIII, no 5, November 1916.] Many of these are preserved in Ghana's national archive (where they are wrongly attributed to E.A.Kitson).

Nicknamed 'Kittie', Kitson was a very religious serious-minded man and a teetotaler. He was quite strict as J.N.F. Green makes clear: "Lifelong self-discipline gave Kitson exceptional powers of endurance and concentration in difficult and trying conditions. Somewhat of a driver in the field, he never spared himself, taking the heaviest burden". [John Frederick Norman Green, 'Obituary: Albert Ernest Kitson', "Geological Society, Quarterly Journal", no 94, 1938, p. CXXVII.] L.J.Spencer, formerly keeper of minerals at the British Museum, described Kitson as "a most energetic little man; his constant companion was a small prospecting pan". Spencer remembered "a journey with him in 1924 in the mining districts of northern Ontario; at every halt of the train he was out with his little pan in any ditch he could find". [L.J.Spencer, 'Biographical notes of mineralogists recently deceased' "The Mineralogical Magazine and Journal of the Mineralogical Society", no 165, June 1939, Vol XXV.] At the award of his Lyell medal, Ormsby-Gore spoke of "his tireless energy, but his attractive and stimulating personality". ["Proceedings of the Geological Society", Volume LXXXIII, p. XLVI.]

In 1910 he married Margaret Legge, née Walker, who died in 1920. Albert's second wife was Elinore Almond Ramage. Like his mother she was the daughter of a Scottish Presbyterian Minister, although she herself was born in Victoria, Australia. Despite their advancing years (he was in his sixties, she in her forties) the couple had two children in the 1930s: (Ernest) Neil and David. Albert Kitson died in Beaconsfield, England on 8 March 1937 of broncho-pneumonia and influenza.

Sir Albert Kitson is sometimes wrongly referred to as Sir Arthur Kitson.

References

Sources

"The Times", 9 March 1937; "Proceedings of the Geological Society", Vol LXXXIII, 1927, pp XLVI- XLVII; John Frederick Norman Green, 'Obituary: Albert Ernest Kitson', "Quarterly Journal, Geological Society" no 94, 1938, pp. CXXV--CXXVII; L.J.Spencer, 'Biographical notes of mineralogists recently deceased', "The Mineralogical Magazine and Journal of the Mineralogical Society", no 165, June 1939, Vol XXV; John M. Saul, Arthur J. Boucot, Robert M. Finks 'Fauna of the Accraian Series (Devonian of Ghana) including a Revision of the Gastropod Plectonotus', "Journal of Paleontology", Vol. 37, No. 5 (Sep., 1963), pp. 1042-1053; N. R. Junner & F. A. Bannister, "The Diamond Deposits of the Gold Coast with Notes on Other Diamond Deposits in West Africa", GCGS, Gold Coast, 1943; H. Service & J. A. Dunn, "The Geology of the Nsuta Manganese Ore Deposits", GCGS, Kensington printer, 1943; "A Special Correspondent", 'The Volta River Project', 'African Affairs", Vol. 55, No. 221 (Oct., 1956), pp. 287-293; Ann Brower Stahl, 'Innovation, diffusion, and culture contact: The holocene archaeology of Ghana', "Journal of World Prehistory", Volume 8, Number 1, March 1994, pp. 51-112.

Kitson's publications include:

A.E. Kitson, 'The Gold Coast', "The Geographical Journal", vol XLVIII, no 5, November 1916, pp.369-392;

A.E. Kitson, 'Proposed reservation of limestone caves in the Buchan District, Eastern Gippland', "Rec. geol. Surv. Vict"., 1907, II(I) :37-44;

Leonard Darwin, Tempest Anderson, A. E. Kitson, E. O. Thiele, 'Some New Zealand Volcanoes: Discussion', "The Geographical Journal", Vol. 40, No. 1 (Jul., 1912), pp. 23-25;

Major Darwin, Walter Egerton, Dr. Falconer & A. E. Kitson, 'Southern Nigeria: Some Considerations of Its Structure, People, and Natural History: Discussion', "The Geographical Journal", Vol. 41, No. 1 (Jan., 1913), pp. 34-38;

A. E. Kitson, 'The Economic Minerals and Rocks of Victoria.', "Department of Mines, Special Report", Melbourne; J. Kemp, Acting Government Printer; 1906. Pp. 517-536;

Percy Cox, K. S. Sandford, Vaughan Cornish, L. J. Spencer, Albert E. Kitson, R. A. Bagnold, 'The Movement of Desert Sand: Discussion', "The Geographical Journal", Vol. 85, No. 4 (Apr., 1935), pp. 365-369;

A.Kitson, 'First Report on Kakamega Goldfield, Kenya',Mining Journal, London, November 12 1932, p.757-8;

A. E. Kitson, 'Notes on the Victoria Lyre-Bird'. "Smithsonian Institution, Annual Report", 1906, 363-374;

Percy Cox, H. H. Austin, Albert E. Kitson, W. Campbell Smith, E. B. Worthington, 'Teleki's Volcano and the Lava Fields at the Southern End of Lake Rudolf: Discussion',"The Geographical Journal", Vol. 85, No. 4 (Apr., 1935), pp. 336-341

Prof. Myres, R. H. Curtis, W. P. Rutter, J. Wrigley, A. E. Kitson, J. F. Unstead, 'The Climatic Limits of Wheat Cultivation, with Special Reference to North America: Discussion', "The Geographical Journal", Vol. 39, No. 5 (May, 1912), pp. 441-446

A.E. Kitson, 'The possibility of Bui Gorge as the site of hydro-electric station'. Gold Coast. "Geological Survey Bulletin" No. 1. Accra, Gold Coast, 1925;

Albert Kitson, "Memorandum On the Operations of the Geological Survey Department of the Gold Coast, 1913-30". Gold Coast, No. XXII of 1930-31. Accra: Printed by the Government Printer at the Government Printing Office, 1930;

A.E.Kitson, 'Observations on the geology of Mount Mary and the lower Werribee Valley'. "Proceedings of the Royal Society of Victoria" 14, 1902 Pp. 153-165;

John Dennant, & A.E. Kitson, 'Catalogue of the described species of fossils (except Bryozoa and Foraminifera) in the Cainozoic fauna of Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania'. "Records of the Geological Survey of Victoria" 1, 1903, pp. 89-147;

A. E. Kitson, "Report on the Discovery of Diamonds at Abomosa, Northwest of Kibbi, Eastern Province, Gold Coast", Govt. Press, Accra, Gold Coast, 1919;

A.E. Kitson & E.O.Thiele, 'The Geography of the Upper Waitaki Basin, New Zealand', "Geographical Journal", vol. 36, 1910, p. 431.

External links

* http://www.beg.utexas.edu/energyecon/IDA/USAID/RC/Guide_to_Electric%20Power_in_Ghana.pdf
* http://www.lwr.kth.se/Publikationer/PDF_Files/LWR_EX_06_04.PDF
* [http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/history/akosombo_dam.php History of Akosombo dam ] at www.ghanaweb.com
* [http://www.vra.com/AboutUs/history.html The History - Volta River Authority ] at www.vra.com
* http://www.iwmi.cgiar.org/assessment/FILES/word/ProjectDocuments/Volta/volta%20basin%20water%20balance.pdf
* [http://pacodepgh.org/index_files/Page653.htm More about Kete Krachi ] at pacodepgh.org
* http://waterandfood.org/fileadmin/CPWF_Documents/Documents/First_call_projects/PN6.pdf
* [http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/features/artikel.php?ID=24666&comment=0 Ghana-VALCO Negotiations ] at www.ghanaweb.com
* [http://www.heritage.vic.gov.au/page_239.asp?ID=239&submit_action=detailed_result&search_type=DLVHR&query=registerAll/4B2EBFC29E34D19ACA25729D0014AEC0?OpenDocument Search the Heritage Register and Inventory ] at www.heritage.vic.gov.au
* http://www.nigerians-abroad.com/news/states/southeast/feature-the-changing-face-of-enugu/
* http://www.afriore.com/projects/kenya/
* [http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A090619b.htm Kitson, Sir Albert Ernest (1868 - 1937) Biographical Entry - Australian Dictionary of Biography Online ] at www.adb.online.anu.edu.au