Trailblazer
Albert
Peter Low, 1861-1942
Geologist, Director of Geological Survey of Canada, 1906-1907
Canada's "Iron Man" Geologist
Albert Peter Low - geologist and map-maker - led a life that
legend is made of. As a geologist for the Geological Survey of Canada
(GSC), he explored
and mapped more than 12,000 kilometres of harsh terrain in the wilds of
Labrador and northern Quebec in the late 1800s. Albert was appointed Director
of the GSC in 1906 and then Deputy Minister of the Department of Mines
in 1907.
Explorer extraordinaire
As a young intern for the GSC, Albert was bitten by the field work bug
while on a summer expedition in the Gaspé Peninsula. In 1882 he
graduated from McGill University with a degree in geology and joined the
GSC, moving with them to new offices in Ottawa. But his real passion remained
field work.
In one year alone, between 1893 and 1894, Albert and his GSC crew covered
more than 8,000 kilometres of wilderness, including nearly 5,000 by canoe
and 1,500 on foot.
One story in particular demonstrates the Montreal-born geologist's iron
character. It occurred in 1884, in the dead of winter on the shores of
Lake Mistassini in northern Quebec. Albert and a provincial official were
in heated dispute over who was leading the survey expedition. Fed up,
Albert packed a sled, put on his snowshoes and walked almost 500 kilometres
of empty, frozen terrain to reach Québec, where he caught a train
to Ottawa. He returned the way he came - on snowshoes again -
five weeks later, with a letter granting him full authority for the expedition.
He was only 23 years old.
A natural in the field
Albert's most important scientific work is considered to be his expedition
to study the vast, unexplored Labrador Peninsula in 1894 and 1895. During
this expedition, Albert discovered huge deposits of iron ore, which later
led to the development of iron mines in the area. His groundbreaking explorations
and surveys of the Peninsula were also used to define the Quebec-Labrador
border.
One of his greatest feats was to map northern Quebec's Grande River,
which became part of the James Bay hydroelectric project in the 1970s.
In 1897, he participated in a government expedition to Hudson Bay, and
was in charge of exploring the Labrador side of Hudson Strait between
Baffin Island and the continent.
He resigned from the Geological Survey in 1901 to prospect for iron on
Hudson Bay, but returned to the GSC afterwards.
Raising the flag for Canada
With his vast field experience, Albert was the ideal candidate to command
a government expedition to Hudson Bay and the Eastern Arctic islands,
now part of Nunavut, in 1903-04. Though the expedition was scientific
in nature, it was also Canada's first clear exercise of authority over
its newly acquired northern lands.
The steamship Neptune, pride of Newfoundland's sealing fleet,
was home for 15 months to the expedition party, which included scientific
staff and North West Mounted Police. After surveying the west coast of
Hudson Bay, the expedition sailed to Ellesmere Island in the summer of
1904 and took formal possession of it for Canada. The flag was also raised
on Beechey and Somerset islands before the Neptune returned to
Halifax, having covered a distance of 3,200 kilometres.
The GSC crew performed extensive geological examinations at every anchorage
and studied the weather, ice conditions, tides and currents. They also
collected rocks, fossils, bird, fish and mammal specimens for the new
Victoria Memorial Museum, now the Canadian Museum of Nature in Ottawa.
Low's Legacy
Albert's numerous reports remain comprehensive accounts of the geology
of northeastern Canada. During the long and arduous canoe trips, he rarely
handled a paddle, but concentrated instead on sketching the shoreline,
recording measurements and making notes.
His field reports, sketches and maps are still considered today as models
of clarity, detail and accuracy. As well, hundreds of his expedition photographs
of the geography and people he encountered are part of the GSC photo archives
and an invaluable record of northern Canadian history.
He also published The Cruise of the Neptune, a treasure house
of information and photographs of the Arctic peoples and the new scientific
knowledge the crew had gathered about the area's geology, weather, plants
and animals.
Director of GSC
Unfortunately, Albert only served as director of the GSC for 18 months
before being struck with a severe illness that eventually led to his retirement
in 1913. He died in Ottawa in 1942.
In 1965, geologists John L. Jambor and Robert W. Boyle discovered a
transparent, pink-coloured cobalt mineral. They named the rock aplowite
to commemorate Albert P. Low's contribution to Canada.
Life Achievements
- 1882 Graduated from McGill with degree in geology
- 1885-1895 Explored northern Quebec and Labrador
- 1897 Participated in Wakeham's Dominion government expedition to
Hudson Bay - 1903-1904 Commander of Dominion Government expedition to Hudson Bay
and Eastern Arctic - 1906 Director of GSC
- 1907 Deputy Minister of the Department of Mines
- 1913 Retired due to illness