The Scottish Oceanographical Laboratory was founded in Nicolson Street,

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

in 1906, by

William Speirs Bruce William Speirs Bruce (1 August 1867 – 28 October 1921) was a British Natural history, naturalist, polar region, polar scientist and Oceanography, oceanographer who organised and led the Scottish National Antarctic Expedition (SNAE, 1902–0 ...

, who had travelled widely in the

Antarctic The Antarctic (, ; commonly ) is the polar regions of Earth, polar region of Earth that surrounds the South Pole, lying within the Antarctic Circle. It is antipodes, diametrically opposite of the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antar ...

and

Arctic The Arctic (; . ) is the polar regions of Earth, polar region of Earth that surrounds the North Pole, lying within the Arctic Circle. The Arctic region, from the IERS Reference Meridian travelling east, consists of parts of northern Norway ( ...

regions and had led the

Scottish National Antarctic Expedition The Scottish National Antarctic Expedition (SNAE), 1902–1904, was organised and led by William Speirs Bruce, a natural scientist and former medical student from the University of Edinburgh. Although overshadowed in terms of prestige by Robe ...

(SNAE) 1902–04. Bruce had originally studied medicine at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

, but had transferred his studies to the

natural sciences Natural science or empirical science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer ...

and, through his varied experiences, had established a reputation as a polar scientist. He had also collected a large number of

botanical Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

biological Biology is the scientific study of life and living organisms. It is a broad natural science that encompasses a wide range of fields and unifying principles that explain the structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, and distribution of ...

zoological Zoology ( , ) is the scientific study of animals. Its studies include the anatomy, structure, embryology, Biological classification, classification, Ethology, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinction, extinct, and ...

and

geological Geology (). is a branch of natural science concerned with the Earth and other astronomical objects, the rocks of which they are composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Earth s ...

specimens, together with vast amounts of

meteorological Meteorology is the scientific study of the Earth's atmosphere and short-term atmospheric phenomena (i.e. weather), with a focus on weather forecasting. It has applications in the military, aviation, energy production, transport, agriculture ...

and

magnetic Magnetism is the class of physical attributes that occur through a magnetic field, which allows objects to attract or repel each other. Because both electric currents and magnetic moments of elementary particles give rise to a magnetic field, m ...

data. The laboratory, established in

at premises in Nicolson Street, provided a place to examine, store or display these materials, an office from which Bruce could work on the SNAE scientific reports, and a base from which further expeditions could be planned.Speak, pp. 97–101 It was Bruce's ambition that the laboratory should develop into a Scottish National Oceanographical Institute. A meeting to discuss this possibility was held in May 1914, and the proposal gained significant support from leading Scottish scientists. An organising committee was established, but the matter was shelved on the outbreak of war in August 1914 and was not revived. In 1919 lack of funding, combined with his failing health, forced Bruce to close the laboratory, donating the various specimens, books and other materials to the University of Edinburgh, the

Royal Scottish Geographical Society The Royal Scottish Geographical Society (RSGS) is an educational charity based in Perth, Scotland, founded in 1884. The purpose of the society is to advance the subject of geography worldwide, inspire people to learn more about the world around ...

and the

Royal Scottish Museum The National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh, Scotland, is a museum of Scottish history and culture. It was formed in 2006 with the merger of the new Museum of Scotland, with collections relating to Scottish antiquities, culture and history, ...

. His illness ended with his death in 1921.

References

Sources

* Speak, Peter: ''William Speirs Bruce, Polar Explorer and Scottish Nationalist'' National Museums of Scotland, Edinburgh 2003 1906 establishments in Scotland 1919 disestablishments in Scotland Collection of National Museums Scotland Defunct organisations based in Scotland Research institutes established in 1906 Oceanographic organizations Organisations based in Edinburgh History of science and technology in Scotland Laboratories in the United Kingdom {{Scotland-hist-stub