Deacon, George, Sir, 1906-1984

Deacon, who was born in Leicester on March 21, 1906, attended City Boys' School, Leicester, then King's College London to study chemistry. He graduated in 1926. In December 1927 he joined the discovery committee as sea-going chemist. Expeditions to Antarctic over the next 12 years. Wartime service with Admiralty researching submarine detection techniques and ocean waves and swell. In 1949 he was appointed first director of National Institute of Oceanogreaphy. Deacon served on numerous national and international committees as well as service with National Institute of Oceanography. He retired in 1971 and resumed work on his Antarctic data. He died in 1984. Fellow in the Royal Society, 1944; Knighted, 1971.

From the description of Scientific and personal papers, 1921-1985. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 83510524

George Edward Raven Deacon was born on 21 March 1906 at Leicester. He was educated at King's College, London, graduating with a degree in chemistry in 1926 and a diploma in education in 1927. After a brief spell of teaching chemistry and mathematics at Rochdale Technical School, he was appointed Hydrographer to the Discovery Investigations to examine the chemistry of sea water. He served both at the South Georgia marine laboratory and in the ships William Scoresby (1927-1929) and Discovery II (1929-1931, 1931-1933, 1935-1937), identifying water masses of the Southern Ocean from their temperature and chemical composition, and tracking their movements and dynamics. In 1937, he was awarded a doctorate by London University for his Discovery report.

During the Second World War, Deacon was involved in research on submarine detection and wave patterns. In 1947, he took up a post at the Royal Naval Scientific Service and two years later became the first director of the National Institute of Oceanography, where he remained until his retirement in 1971. He received many honours, including a Royal Medal of the Royal Society in 1969 and a Founder's Medal of the Royal Geographical Society in 1971, the year in which he was knighted. He died on 16 November 1984 at Guildford, shortly after the publication of his book reviewing the oceanography of the Southern Ocean.

Published work The Antarctic circumpolar ocean by George Edward Raven Deacon, Cambridge University Press Cambridge (1984) SPRI Library Shelf (80)[1984]

From the guide to the George Deacon collection, 1937-1941, (Scott Polar Research Institute, University of Cambridge)