1858-1942

American paleontologist who described the changes that have occurred over time in the positions of the oceans and continents. Originally a self-educated fossil illustrator, he became a curator at the U.S. National Museum and finally a professor at Yale. Schuchert collected enormous amounts of data on the worldwide distribution of fossils of different types and ages, enabling him to reconstruct past geography. His textbook on North American historical geology was very influential.