Abraham Pineo Gesner

Abraham Pineo Gesner ( born 2 May 1797 in Cornwallis Township, Nova Scotia, Canada, † April 29, 1864 in Halifax, Nova Scotia ) was a Canadian physician, physicist and geologist. Gesner's work is one of the main foundations of the petroleum industry.

Life and work

Gesner came from a German family. From 1825 he studied medicine in London, where he was also interested in natural history subjects.

Upon his return to Canada, he settled as a physician. Alongside he operational geological studies and published in 1836 a study on the soil and rock formations in Nova Scotia, which contained a detailed geological map. With this map the first time it was possible to find there great deposits of iron ore and coal.

In 1838 he was commissioned to carry out the same tests for New Brunswick and to make a corresponding map.

In 1842 he opened named after him Gesner Museum, Saint John (New Brunswick ), the first public museum in Canada. It later emerged the famous New Brunswick Museum.

Due to its mineralogical investigations Gesner discovered in 1846 a process by which you can win petroleum from coal. He called his new product kerosene, but it was often referred to as shale oil, it burned cleaner and was cheaper than the then used oils of whales or plants.

1850 Gesner founded the " Kerosene Gas Light Company ' that built street lights in Halifax and soon also in many other places in Canada. 1854, the company expanded to the United States, where he had in Long Iceland (New York ) under the name "North American Kerosene Gas Light Company " its first branch. On 27 June 1854 he received on his invention of the kerosene, U.S. Patent 11,203, 11,204 and 11,205.

Due to the growing demand for kerosene, it looked briefly as though if the company could not meet the demand. Only with the discovery of oil, also from the kerosene can be made, the demand could continue to be covered.

1861 Gesner brought out a publication called " A Practical Treatise on Coal, Petroleum and Other Distilled Oils ", this was the reference for the mineral extraction and processing. Finally Gesner company from still existing Group Standard Oil was bought and Gesner went back to Halifax, where he was professor of natural history at Dalhousie University.

Honors

• Memorial at the Camp Hill Cemetery in Halifax, in 1933 built by the " Imperial Oil Ltd. ", A subsidiary of Standard Oil
• Canadian commemorative stamp with his portrait (2000)