Charles Stewart Middlemiss, 1859-1945

Abstract

With the death of Charles Stewart Middlemiss on 11 June 1945, Indian geology has lost its doyen, a man of great versatility who lived an active life up to within some two months of his death in hospital in Tunbridge Wells. Middlemiss was the son of Robert Middlemiss of Hull and Elizabeth Findleyson Gale and was born in Hull on 22 November 1859. He was educated at Caistor and St. John’s College, Cambridge, the college from which so many good geologists have come. He took his B.A. degree in 1881 and joined the Geological Survey of India as Assistant Superintendent on 21 September 1883, when H. B. Medlicott was still head (then known as Superintendent) of the Department. As Medlicott joined the Department in 1854, but three years after its foundation by Dr Thomas Oldham in 1851, any one who knew Middlemiss could in conversation go back in anecdote almost to the Department’s foundation. With the death of Middlemiss the doyen of Indian geology is now Mr Philip Lake who served for a short period from 1887 to 1891, followed closely by Sir Thomas Holland, who joined the Geological Survey of India in 1890. During his service Middlemiss did field work in the Himalaya, the Salt Range and Hazara; in Coimbatore, Salem and the Vizagapatam Hill 'Bracts in the Madras Presidency; in the Shan States and Karenni in Burma; in Bombay, Central India and Rajputana, and finally in Kashmir. During spells at Headquarters he was Curator of the Geological Museum in 1898-1899, and in charge of the Headquarters Office during 1907-1908. He was promoted Deputy Superintendent in 1889, and Superintendent in 1895. He officiated as Director of the Department for two periods, in 1914-1915 and in 1916. He paid a visit on deputation to Ceylon in 1903.