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Suggested Citation:"Missouri." National Research Council. 1932. Summary Information on the State Geological Surveys & the United States Geological Survey: Bulletin of the National Research Council. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/9570.
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Page 63
Suggested Citation:"Missouri." National Research Council. 1932. Summary Information on the State Geological Surveys & the United States Geological Survey: Bulletin of the National Research Council. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/9570.
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Page 64

Below is the uncorrected machine-read text of this chapter, intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text of each book. Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.

F THE UNITED STATES GEOLOGICAL SURVEY 63 PREVIOUS SURVEY ORGANIZATIONS The first Geological Survey of Mississippi was organized in 1850. In 1854 it issued a report on the Agriculture and Geology of Mississippi, by B. L. C. Wailes. This report is chiefly valuable as a historic docu- ment, its treatment of the geology of the State being very meager. In 1856 the Survey was reorganized under Lewis Harper. In 1857 it issued the second report on the geology of the State under the title of " Pre- liminary Report on the Geology and Agriculture of the State of Mis- sissippi," by Lewis Harper. Within a year after the publication of his report Professor Harper resigned, and was succeeded by his able as- sistant, Dr. Eugene W. Hilgard, who had joined the Survey in 1855. Hilgard prosecuted the work vigorously, and by December, 1859, his classic work, Report on the Geology and Agriculture of Mississippi, was in manuscript. This was published in 1860, but had to be sent to St. Louis to be bound. There it remained during the Civil War and was not distributed until after the close of the War. The Survey did no work during the period of the Civil mar, but Dr. Hilgard's connection with the State University and with the State Geo- logical Survey was maintained, and in 1866 Dr. George Little, a recent graduate of a German University, was appointed his assistant. In October of the same year Dr. Hilgard resigned his position on the Geological Survey for the chair of Chemistry at the University, and Dr. Little became State Geologist, with Dr. Eugene A. Smith as assistant. In 1872 the Geological Survey was discontinued, owing to lack of support, and from that date until the organization of a new Survey, under a new law, in 1906, the State was without an official Geological Survey. MISSOURI ~ The Missouri Bureau of Geology and Mines, organized in 1889, is located at Rolla, Missouri. SCOPE OF ACTIVITIES The Survey activities include: geological survey, topographic mapping, and water-power and flood control. ORGANIZATION The Bureau is governed by a Board of Managers including the Gov- ernor, who is ex officio chairman, and four members appointed by the . * Information furnished by H. A. Buehler' Director and State Geologist, March, 1932.

64 THE STATE GEOLOGICAL SURVEYS AND Governor for a term of four years. Members of the governing board receive only traveling expenses. The executive officer's title is Director and State Geologist. The pres- ent incumbent is lI. A. Buehler, appointed by the Board of Managers, the term of once being indefinite. Dr. Buehler was appointed in 1908. Compensation is by annual salary, maximum fixed by law. The State Geologist is also a member of the State Highway and the State Museum Commissions. The clerical force comprises two clerks, with extra student help. The geologic force includes four full-time geologists, one chemist, and one topographic engineer. From two to four summer field-parties, manned by college professors, are employed on special problems. All employees are appointed by the State Geologist without Civil Service, the term of service depending upon the executive head. Clerical salaries are $100; the salaries of geologists range from $150 to $333 per month. The Department is not connected with any other institution. APPROPRIATIONS Financial support is from biennial appropriations made by the Legis- lature. Topographic and water resources appropriations are made con- tingent upon cooperation with the United States Geological Survey. During the past four years, the average appropriation has been $40,000 for geology, $15,000 for topography, and $10,000 for water-power and flood control, yearly. Estimated division of expenditures includes forty per cent of the geological fund used for office and supervising administration and sixty per cent for geologic work and printing; the proportion varies according to the number of reports completed. All of the topographic fund is used for topographic mapping and all of the water-power fund is used for stream gaging in cooperation with United States Geological Survey. PUBLICATIONS The first series of reports was known as Series I, Missouri Geological Survey, and includes thirteen volumes. The present series, known as the Second Series, Bureau of Geology and Mines, includes 24 volumes. The reports include water-power data, but otherwise are devoted ex- clusively to geology and topography. Publications are printed frown funds for the geologic branch, and when funds are low publication is hampered. Sufficient funds should be available to double the present amount de- voted to publications.

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