Thomas Condon (1822–1907) was an Irish

Congregational Congregationalism (also Congregational Churches or Congregationalist Churches) is a Reformed Christianity, Reformed Christian (Calvinist) tradition of Protestant Christianity in which churches practice Congregationalist polity, congregational ...

minister,

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the structure, composition, and History of Earth, history of Earth. Geologists incorporate techniques from physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and geography to perform research in the Field research, ...

, and

paleontologist Paleontology, also spelled as palaeontology or palæontology, is the scientific study of the life of the past, mainly but not exclusively through the study of fossils. Paleontologists use fossils as a means to classify organisms, measure geolo ...

who gained recognition for his work in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

Life and career

Condon arrived in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

from Ireland in 1833 and graduated from theological

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological college, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called seminarians) in scripture and theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as cle ...

in 1852, after which he traveled to Oregon by ship. As a minister at

The Dalles The Dalles ( ;) formally the City of the Dalles and also called Dalles City, is an inland port, the county seat of and the largest city in Wasco County, Oregon, United States. The population was 16,010 at the 2020 census, and it is the large ...

, he became interested in the fossils he found in the area. He found fossil seashells on the Crooked River and fossil camels and other animals along the

John Day River The John Day River is a tributary of the Columbia River, approximately long, in northeastern Oregon in the United States. It is known as the Mah-Hah River by the Cayuse people. Undammed along its entire length, the river is the fourth longest ...

. Many of his discoveries were in the present-day

John Day Fossil Beds National Monument John Day Fossil Beds National Monument is a U.S. national monument in Wheeler and Grant counties in east-central Oregon. Located within the John Day River basin and managed by the National Park Service, the park is known for its well-preserve ...

. He corresponded with noted scientists, including Spencer Baird of the Smithsonian, Edward Cope of the

Academy of Natural Sciences The Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University, formerly the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, is the oldest natural science research institution and museum in the Americas. It was founded in 1812, by many of the leading natur ...

Joseph Leidy Joseph Mellick Leidy (September 9, 1823 – April 30, 1891) was an American paleontologist, parasitologist and anatomist. Leidy was professor of anatomy at the University of Pennsylvania, later becoming a professor of natural history at Swarth ...

, O.C. Marsh, and

John C. Merriam John Campbell Merriam (October 20, 1869 – October 30, 1945) was an American paleontologist, educator, and conservationist. The first vertebrate paleontologist on the West Coast of the United States, he is best known for his taxonomy of ver ...

, and provided specimens to major museums. Condon was appointed the first State Geologist for Oregon in 1872. He resigned that post to become first professor of geology at the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a Public university, public research university in Eugene, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1876, the university is organized into nine colleges and schools and offers 420 undergraduate and gra ...

. Previously he was a teacher at

Pacific University Pacific University is a private university in Forest Grove, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1849 as the Tualatin Academy, the original Forest Grove campus is west of Portland. Affiliated with the United Church of Christ, the school mainta ...

in Forest Grove. In ''The Two Islands and What Came of Them'', a geology book published in 1902, Condon wrote about two widely separated regions of Oregon that contain its oldest rocks, the

Klamath Mountains The Klamath Mountains are a rugged and lightly populated mountain range in northwestern California and southwestern Oregon in the western United States. As a mountain system within both the greater Pacific Coast Ranges and the California Coast R ...

in the southwestern part of the state and the Blue Mountains in the northeast. The book attempted to summarize what was then known about the state's geology and to draw conclusions about its geologic past. Condon was an advocate of

theistic evolution Theistic evolution (also known as theistic evolutionism or God-guided evolution), alternatively called evolutionary creationism, is a view that God acts and creates through laws of nature. Here, God is taken as the primary cause while natural cau ...

. He has been described as a "Christian Darwinist".

Legacy

Condon Hall at the University of Oregon, which originally housed the geology department, was named for Condon, as were the Thomas Condon Paleontology Center at the Sheep Rock unit of the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument, near

Kimberly, Oregon Kimberly is an unincorporated community in Grant County, Oregon, United States. It is located at the intersection of Oregon Route 19 and Oregon Route 402 and the confluence of the John Day and the North Fork John Day rivers. Kimberly was n ...

, temporary Lake Condon, formed periodically by the Missoula Floods, and the Condon Fossil Collection of the

University of Oregon Museum of Natural and Cultural History The University of Oregon Museum of Natural and Cultural History is a natural history museum on the University of Oregon campus, in Eugene, Oregon, United States. The museum is in a building inspired by the design of Pacific Northwest Native long ...

, which was founded by Condon in 1876. Condon Elementary School (1950-1983) in Eugene still stands as the University of Oregon's Agate Hall. He is the namesake of

Condon Butte Condon Butte is a summit in Lane County, Oregon, in the United States. The butte was named for Thomas Condon a Congregationalist minister and professor of geology at the University of Oregon. The butte is in the Three Sisters Wilderness Area wh ...

in Lane County.

Condon, Oregon Condon is a city in and the county seat of Gilliam County, in the U.S. state of Oregon. The population was 682 at the 2010 census. The city, with an historic main street along Oregon Route 19, is a farming and ranching community. The John Day ...

, was named for Harvey C. Condon, a nephew of Thomas Condon. ''Anser condoni'' is a synonym for the fossil swan '' Cygnus paloregonus''.

References

Works cited

*Clark, Robert D. ''The Odyssey of Thomas Condon'' (1989). Portland, Oregon: The Oregon Historical Society Press. .

External links

Dr. Thomas Condon
from the

Oregon Historical Society The Oregon Historical Society (OHS) is an organization that encourages and promotes the study and understanding of the history of the State of Oregon, within the broader context of U.S. history. Incorporated in 1898, the Society collects, pres ...

Thomas Condon profile
from the

Oregon Cultural Heritage Commission The Oregon Cultural Heritage Commission (OCHC) is a non-profit organization based in the U.S. state of Oregon. The commission was formed in 1988 in order to discover and commemorate important literary and cultural contributions to Oregon's histor ...

Thomas Condon biography
from the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, within the US Department of the Interior. The service manages all List ...

''Thomas Condon: Of Faith and Fossils''
Documentary produced by

Oregon Public Broadcasting Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB) is the primary public broadcasting, public media organization for the U.S. state of Oregon as well as southern Washington (state), Washington. It provides news, information, and programming via television stati ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Condon, Thomas Irish emigrants to the United States Oregon pioneers 19th-century American geologists 1822 births 1907 deaths Pacific University faculty People from The Dalles, Oregon University of Oregon faculty Deaths from influenza in the United States Infectious disease deaths in Oregon People from Fermoy Theistic evolutionists Christian clergy from County Cork Scientists from County Cork

Life and career

Legacy

See also

References

Works cited

External links