The Roebling Medal is the highest award of the

Mineralogical Society of America The Mineralogical Society of America (MSA) is a scientific membership organization. MSA was founded in 1919 for the advancement of mineralogy, crystallography, geochemistry, and petrology, and promotion of their uses in other sciences, industry, ...

for scientific eminence as represented primarily by scientific publication of outstanding original research in

mineralogy Mineralogy is a subject of geology specializing in the scientific study of the chemistry, crystal structure, and physical (including optical) properties of minerals and mineralized artifacts. Specific studies within mineralogy include the proce ...

. The award is named for

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge ...

Washington A. Roebling Washington Augustus Roebling (May 26, 1837 – July 21, 1926) was an American civil engineer who supervised the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge, designed by his father John A. Roebling. He served in the Union Army during the American Civ ...

(1837–1926) who was an engineer, bridge builder,

mineral collector Mineral collecting is the hobby of systematically collecting, identifying and displaying mineral specimens. Mineral collecting can also be a part of the profession of mineralogy and allied geologic specialties. Individual collectors often ...

, and significant friend of the

. It is awarded for scientific eminence represented by scientific publication of outstanding original research in mineralogy. The recipient receives an engraved medal and is made a Life Fellow of the Mineralogical Society.

Roebling Medal Recipients

The recipients of the medal are: *1937 –

Charles Palache Charles Palache (July 18, 1869 – December 5, 1954) was an American mineralogist and crystallographer. In his time, he was one of the most important mineralogists in the United States. Background Charles Palache came from the Pallache family ...

*1938 –

Waldemar T. Schaller Waldemar, Valdemar or Woldemar is an Old High German given name. It consists of the elements ''wald-'' "power", "brightness" and ''-mar'' "fame". The name is considered the equivalent of the Slavic name Vladimir, Volodymyr, Uladzimir or Wł ...

*1940 –

Leonard James Spencer Leonard James Spencer CBE FRS (7 July 1870 – 14 April 1959) was a British geologist. He was an Honorary member of the Royal Geological Society of Cornwall, and also a recipient of its Bolitho Medal. He was president of the Mineralogical Soci ...

*1941 – Esper S. Larsen Jr. *1945 –

Edward Henry Kraus Edward Henry Kraus (1875–1973) was a Professor of Mineralogy at the University of Michigan and also served as Dean of the Summer Session, 1915–1933, Dean of the College of Pharmacy, 1923–1933, and Dean of the College of Literature, Science an ...

*1946 – Clarence S. Ross *1947 –

Paul Niggli Paul Niggli (26 June 1888 – 13 January 1953) was a Swiss crystallographer, mineralogist, and petrologist who was a leader in the field of X-ray crystallography. Education and career Niggli was born in Zofingen and studied at the Swiss Feder ...

*1948 –

William Lawrence Bragg Sir William Lawrence Bragg, (31 March 1890 – 1 July 1971) was an Australian-born British physicist and X-ray crystallographer, discoverer (1912) of Bragg's law of X-ray diffraction, which is basic for the determination of crystal structu ...

*1949 –

Herbert E. Merwin Herbert Eugene Merwin (20 February 20 1878, Newton, Kansas – 29 January 1963, Washington, D.C.) was an American mineralogist and petrologist. Merwin grew up in Hensonville, New York after moving there with his family when he was two years old. A ...

*1950 – Norman L. Bowen *1952 –

Frederick E. Wright Frederick Eugene Wright (October 16, 1877 – August 25, 1953) was an American optics, optical scientist and geophysicist. He was the second president of the Optical Society of America from 1918-1919. Biography He was born in Marquette, Michigan, ...

*1953 –

William F. Foshag William Frederick Foshag (March 17, 1894 – May 21, 1956) was an American geologist and mineralogist.

*1954 –

Cecil Edgar Tilley Cecil Edgar Tilley FRS HonFRSE PGS (14 May 1894 – 24 January 1973) was an Australian- British petrologist and geologist. Life He was born in Unley, Adelaide, the youngest child of John Thomas Edward Tilley, a civil engineer from London, an ...

*1955 –

Alexander N. Winchell Alexander Newton Winchell (2 March 1874 - 7 June 1958) was an American geologist who pioneered spectroscopic and X-ray crystallographic studies on minerals. He wrote an influential textbook, the ''Elements of optical mineralogy'' which went into ...

*1956 –

Arthur F. Buddington Arthur Francis "Bud" BuddingtonHarold L. JamesArthur Francis Buddington, 1890–1980 National Academy of Sciences, 1987. Accessed Feb. 11, 2014.B. F. LeonardMemorial of A. F. Buddington '' American Mineralogist'' Vol. 7, 1986, pp. 1268–73. Acce ...

*1957 –

Walter F. Hunt Walter may refer to: People * Walter (name), both a surname and a given name * Little Walter, American blues harmonica player Marion Walter Jacobs (1930–1968) * Gunther (wrestler), Austrian professional wrestler and trainer Walter Hahn (born ...

*1958 –

Martin J. Buerger Martin Julian Buerger (April 8, 1903 – February 26, 1986) was an American crystallographer. He was a Professor of Mineralogy at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He invented the X-ray precession camera for studies in crystallography ...

*1959 – Felix Machatschki *1960 –

Tom F. W. Barth Tom or TOM may refer to: * Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name) Characters * Tom Anderson, a character in ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' * Tom Beck, a character ...

*1961 – Paul Ramdohr *1962 – John W. Gruner *1963 – John Frank Schairer *1964 – Clifford Frondel *1965 – Adolf Pabst *1966 –

Max H. Hey Max or MAX may refer to: Animals * Max (dog) (1983–2013), at one time purported to be the world's oldest living dog * Max (English Springer Spaniel), the first pet dog to win the PDSA Order of Merit (animal equivalent of OBE) * Max (gorilla) ( ...

*1967 –

Linus Pauling Linus Carl Pauling (; February 28, 1901August 19, 1994) was an American chemist, biochemist, chemical engineer, peace activist, author, and educator. He published more than 1,200 papers and books, of which about 850 dealt with scientific top ...

*1968 – Tei-ichi Ito *1969 – Fritz Laves *1970 –

George W. Brindley George William Brindley (June 19, 1905 – October 23, 1983) was a British-American crystallographer and mineralogist. He was known for his study of clay minerals including the structure of kaolinites. Education and career Brindley studied at ...

*1971 – J. D. H. Donnay *1972 – Elburt F. Osborn *1973 –

George Tunell George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...

*1974 – Ralph E. Grim *1975 – Michael Fleischer *1975 – O. Frank Tuttle *1976 – Carl W. Correns *1977 –

Raimond Castaing Raimond Bernard René Castaing (December 28, 1921 – April 10, 1998), also spelt as Raymond Castaing, was a French solid state physicist and inventor of various materials characterization methods. He was the founder of the French school of microa ...

*1978 –

James B. Thompson Jr. James Burleigh Thompson Jr. (November 20, 1921 – November 15, 2011) was an American mineralogist and geologist. He was known for his research into the thermodynamics of minerals and the relationship to structure. He introduced the term '' polysom ...

*1979 – W. H. Taylor *1980 – *1981 –

Robert M. Garrels Robert Minard Garrels (August 24, 1916 – March 8, 1988) was an American geochemist. Garrels applied experimental physical chemistry data and techniques to geology and geochemistry problems. The book ''Solutions, Minerals, and Equilibria'' co-a ...

*1982 –

Joseph V. Smith Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the m ...

*1983 –

Hans P. Eugster Hans Peter Eugster (November 19, 1925, in Igis, Switzerland – December 17, 1987, in Baltimore, US) was a Swiss-American geochemist, mineralogist, and petrologist. Education Eugster studied at ETH Zurich with Diplom in 1948 and D.Sc. in 1951 ...

*1984 –

Paul B. Barton Jr. Paul may refer to: * Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) * Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chr ...

*1985 – Francis John Turner *1986 –

Edwin Roedder The name Edwin means "rich friend". It comes from the Old English elements "ead" (rich, blessed) and "ƿine" (friend). The original Anglo-Saxon form is Eadƿine, which is also found for Anglo-Saxon figures. People * Edwin of Northumbria (die ...

*1987 –

Gerald V. Gibbs Gerald is a male Germanic given name meaning "rule of the spear" from the prefix ''ger-'' ("spear") and suffix ''-wald'' ("rule"). Variants include the English given name Jerrold, the feminine nickname Jeri and the Welsh language Gerallt and ...

*1988 –

Julian R. Goldsmith Julian Royce Goldsmith (1918–1999) was a mineralogist and geochemist at the University of Chicago (Moore, 1971). Goldsmith, along with colleague Fritz Laves, first defined the crystallographic polymorphism of alkali feldspar (Newton, 1989). G ...

*1989 – Helen D. Megaw *1990 –

Sturges W. Bailey Sturges is a surname, and may refer to: * Alberta Sturges (1877–1951), American heiress and, by marriage, 9th Countess of Sandwich * Graeme Sturges (born 1955), Australian politician * Herbert Sturges (1882–1958), statistician * Jock Sturges ( ...

*1991 –

E-An Zen Dr. E-An Zen (任以安) was born in Peking, China, May 31, 1928, and came to the U.S. in 1946. He became a citizen in 1963. Since 1990 he was adjunct professor at the University of Maryland. He died on March 29, 2014, at the age of 85. He has co ...

*1992 – Hatten S. Yoder Jr. *1993 – Brian Harold Mason *1994 –

William A. Bassett William is a masculine given name of Norman French origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conqu ...

*1995 – William S. Fyfe *1996 –

Donald H. Lindsley Donald is a masculine given name derived from the Gaelic name ''Dòmhnall''.. This comes from the Proto-Celtic *''Dumno-ualos'' ("world-ruler" or "world-wielder"). The final -''d'' in ''Donald'' is partly derived from a misinterpretation of the ...

*1997 –

Ian S. E. Carmichael Ian Stuart Edward Carmichael (29 March 1930 –26 August 2011) was a British-born American igneous petrologist and volcanologist who established extensive quantitative methods for research in the thermodynamics of magma. Early life a ...

*1998 –

C. Wayne Burnham C. or c. may refer to: * Century, sometimes abbreviated as ''c.'' or ''C.'', a period of 100 years * Cent (currency), abbreviated ''c.'' or ''¢'', a monetary unit that equals of the basic unit of many currencies * Caius or Gaius, abbreviated as ...

*1999 – Ikuo Kushiro *2000 – Robert C. Reynolds Jr. *2001 –

Peter J. Wyllie Peter John Wyllie (born 8 February 1930, in London, England) is a British petrology, petrologist and academic. He was Professor of Geology at the California Institute of Technology from 1983 until his retirement in 1999. Prior to this, he held po ...

*2002 – Werner F. Schreyer *2003 –

Charles T. Prewitt Charles Thompson Prewitt (March 3, 1933 – April 28, 2022) was an American mineralogist and solid state chemist known for his work on structural chemistry of minerals and high-pressure chemistry. Education and career Prewitt studied geology a ...

*2004 –

Francis R. Boyd Francis may refer to: People * Pope Francis, the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State and Bishop of Rome *Francis (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Francis (surname) Places *Rural ...

*2005 –

Ho-kwang Mao Ho-Kwang (Dave) Mao (; born June 18, 1941) is a Chinese-American geologist. He is the director of the Center for High Pressure Science and Technology Advanced Research in Shanghai, China. He was a staff scientist at Geophysical Laboratory of the ...

*2006 –

W. Gary Ernst W. Gary Ernst (born December 14, 1931) is an American geologist specializing in petrology and geochemistry. He currently is the Benjamin M. Page Professor Emeritus in Stanford University's Department of Geological Sciences. Ernst was born in S ...

*2007 –

Gordon E. Brown Jr. Gordon may refer to: People * Gordon (given name), a masculine given name, including list of persons and fictional characters * Gordon (surname), the surname * Gordon (slave), escaped to a Union Army camp during the U.S. Civil War * Clan Gordo ...

*2008 –

Bernard W. Evans Bernard ('' Bernhard'') is a French and West Germanic masculine given name. It is also a surname. The name is attested from at least the 9th century. West Germanic ''Bernhard'' is composed from the two elements ''bern'' "bear" and ''hard'' "bra ...

*2009 –

Alexandra Navrotsky Alexandra Navrotsky (born 20 June 1943 in New York City) is a physical chemist in the field of nanogeoscience. She is an elected member of the United States National Academy of Sciences (NAS) and the American Philosophical Society (APS). She ...

*2010 – Robert C. Newton *2011 – Juhn G. Liou *2012 –

Harry W. Green, II Harry may refer to: TV shows *Harry (American TV series), ''Harry'' (American TV series), a 1987 American comedy series starring Alan Arkin *Harry (British TV series), ''Harry'' (British TV series), a 1993 BBC drama that ran for two seasons *Harry ...

*2013 –

Frank C. Hawthorne Frank Christopher Hawthorne (born 8 January 1946 in Bristol, England) is a Canadian mineralogist, crystallographer and spectroscopist. He works at the University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, and is currently Distinguished ...

*2014 – Bernard J. Wood *2015 –

Rodney C. Ewing Rodney Charles Ewing (born September 20, 1946) is an American mineralogist and materials scientist whose research is focused on the properties of nuclear materials. He is the Frank Stanton Professor in Nuclear Security at the Center for Intern ...

*2016 –

Robert M. Hazen Robert Miller Hazen (born November 1, 1948) is an American mineralogist and astrobiologist. He is a research scientist at the Carnegie Institution of Washington's Geophysical Laboratory and Clarence Robinson Professor of Earth Science at George ...

*2017 -

Edward M. Stolper Edward Manin Stolper (born December 16, 1952) is an American geologist, petrologist, and planetologist. He is known for his research on igneous rocks (terrestrial and extraterrestrial) and volatiles in igneous processes, especially his researc ...

*2018 – E. Bruce Watson *2019 – Peter R. Buseck *2020 –

Andrew Putnis Andrew is the English form of a given name common in many countries. In the 1990s, it was among the top ten most popular names given to boys in English-speaking countries. "Andrew" is frequently shortened to "Andy" or "Drew". The word is derive ...

*2021 –

George R. Rossman George R. Rossman is an American mineralogist and the Professor of Mineralogy at the California Institute of Technology. Early life Rossman was born in LaCrosse, Wisconsin, but soon moved to Eau Claire. His father owned a dental laboratory ...

References

{{Reflist Mineralogy Geology awards American science and technology awards Awards established in 1937 Earth sciences awards

Roebling Medal Recipients

See also

References