Édouard-Gaston Deville
1849–1924
Hydrographer, Inventor, Surveyor General of Canada (1885–1924),
Director General, Bureau of Surveys (1922–24)
Leading by innovation
For many years, Édouard-Gaston Deville skillfully directed Canadian
surveying activities by using innovative techniques to deal with the
challenges of surveying in Canada, including his own ingenious method
of mapping mountainous regions.
Surveying on water and land
Édouard-Gaston was born on February 21, 1849, in Charité-sur-Loire,
France. After attending naval school, he served in the French navy, conducting
hydrographic surveys in the South Pacific. He retired as a captain in
1874 and immigrated to Canada.
In 1875, Édouard-Gaston began working as a surveyor and astronomer
in Quebec and very quickly rose to the position of Inspector of Surveys,
the province's top surveyor. He passed exams in high-level survey
theory, earning the rare designation of Dominion Topographic Surveyor.
In 1880, he joined the Department of the Interior in Ottawa
to survey homesteads in the Prairies.
He was appointed inspector for Dominion Land Surveys in 1881, and four
years later became Surveyor General of Canada.
Father of photogrammetry
Surveying in the Rocky Mountains posed tremendous logistical and technical
obstacles. To meet these challenges, Édouard-Gaston experimented
with mapping methods developed by French army engineer Aimé Laussedat. Édouard-Gaston
used Laussedat's principle of elevated photography, and refined
a technique of creating large-scale maps from these photographs.
He designed a rugged, lightweight field camera that could be carried
long distances. In 1886, his camera was used for the first time in the
Rockies. Surveyors would place the camera on a mountain peak, train the
lens at the horizon and take panoramic shots of the surrounding peaks,
measuring each view in relation to the survey station. Surveyors could
take photos in the short summer season and use them to complete their
calculations and mapping in their offices during the winter. This allowed
larger areas to be surveyed more accurately, in less time, and at one-third
the cost of conventional surveying.
Édouard-Gaston introduced his innovative mapping technique at
the Chicago World Fair in 1893, later promoting it through pamphlets
and a comprehensive textbook. Édouard-Gaston's method of
making maps based on photographs became known as phototopography or photogrammetry.
Surveyor of distinction
Édouard-Gaston was honoured with numerous awards recognizing
his contribution to science. He received an honourary Doctor of Laws
from the University of Toronto in 1905, and became a Companion of the
Imperial Service Order in 1916.
In 1922, he represented Canada at a geophysics conference in Rome, and
his expertise on mountain surveys became sought after internationally.
A copy of his camera was even used to map the north slope of Mount Everest.
At home, his technology was adopted by agencies such as the Geological
Survey of Canada and the International Boundary Commission.
Aerial mapping
With the arrival of fixed-wing aircraft, surveyors could use Édouard-Gaston's
camera to create aerial photographs for surveying flat and remote parts
of the country, as well as regions with high elevations. The two systems
complemented each other for at least 30 years.
Édouard-Gaston died on September 21, 1924, in Ottawa. During
his lifetime, Canadian surveyors had used his phototopography to map
83,678 square kilometres, roughly the size of the United Kingdom.
Mount Deville in British Columbia is named in his honour.
Life achievements
- 1875 — Quebec surveyor
- 1881 — Inspector of Surveys for Quebec
- 1882 — Founding Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada
- 1885 — Surveyor General of Canada
- 1889 — Published Photographic Surveying
- 1905 — Honourary Doctor of Laws degree from the University of
Toronto - 1916 — Companion of the Imperial Service Order
- 1922 — Honourary member of Engineering Institute of Canada