William John McCallien was born in 1902 in Tarbert, Argyll & Bute, Scotland. He was educated at Tarbert High School, and matriculated into the science faculty at the University of Glasgow in 1920 . In his first year he studied Mathematics, Chemistry, and Chemical Lab. His second year studies consisted of Natural Philosophy, Geology, and Mathematics. In his final year he studied advanced Geology, and Natural Philosophy. He graduated BSc with a special distinction in Geology in 1923, and was awarded the Cowie Prize and Medal. In 1924 he was appointed to a lectureship in Geology at the University of Glasgow, and gained a degree of DSc in 1930 . In 1931 he became a Fellow of Royal Society of Edinburgh, and in 1936 was awarded the Neill Medal of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. In 1944 he became a Fellow of the Geological Society of London. It was also in 1944 that he left the country to set up departments of Geology in Ankara, Turkey, and later in 1950 in Ghana. He retired in 1965, and died in 1981 .
From the guide to the Papers of William John McCallien, 1902-1981, science student, University of Glasgow, Scotland, 1912-1961, (Glasgow University Archive Services)
