Charles Doolittle Walcott

Charles Doolittle Walcott
4th Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution
In office 1907–1927
Preceded by	Samuel Pierpont Langley
Succeeded by	Charles Greeley Abbot
3rd Director of the United States Geological Survey
In office 1894 (1894)–1907 (1907)
Preceded by	John Wesley Powell
Succeeded by	George Otis Smith
4th Director of the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics
In office 1920–1927
President	Calvin Coolidge
Preceded by	John R. Freeman
Succeeded by	Joseph Sweetman Ames
Personal details
Born	(1850-03-31)March 31, 1850 New York Mills, New York, U.S.
Died	February 9, 1927(1927-02-09) (aged 76) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Resting place	Rock Creek Cemetery Washington, D.C.
Spouses	Lura Ann Rust ​ ​ (m. 1872; died 1876)​ Helena Breese Stevens ​ ​ (m. 1888; died 1911)​ Mary Morris Vaux
Children	4
Awards	Bigsby Medal (1895) Wollaston Medal (1918) Mary Clark Thompson Medal (1921)
Scientific career
Fields	Paleontology
Institutions	Smithsonian Institution US Geological Survey
Author abbrev. (zoology)	Walcott

Charles Doolittle Walcott (March 31, 1850 – February 9, 1927) was an American paleontologist, administrator of the Smithsonian Institution from 1907 to 1927, and director of the United States Geological Survey.^[1][2] He is famous for his discovery in 1909 of well-preserved fossils, including some of the oldest soft-part imprints, in the Burgess Shale of British Columbia, Canada.