Dana, James D.

Dana, James D. (Dwight)

(1813–95) geologist; born in Utica, N.Y. His observations as scientist on the U.S. expedition to the Pacific and Antarctic (1838–42) under Charles Wilkes formed the basis for much of his later writing on zoology and mineralogy. With his father-in-law, Benjamin Silliman, he edited the American Journal of Science (1846–95). His writings include manuals of geology and mineralogy, two treatises on corals, and a text on Hawaiian volcanoes.