T. Wayland Vaughan

Thomas Wayland Vaughan
Undated 1890s portrait of Thomas Wayland Vaughan
Born	(1870-09-20)September 20, 1870 Jonesville, Texas
Died	January 16, 1952(1952-01-16) (aged 81) Washington, D.C.
Resting place	Concord Cemetery, Jonesville, Texas
Citizenship	American
Nationality	American
Fields	Geology, oceanography
Institutions	United States Geological Survey, United States National Museum, Scripps Institution of Oceanography
Alma mater	Tulane University, Harvard University
Thesis	Eocene and oligocene corals of the United States
Notable awards	Alexander Agassiz Medal (1935) Decorated Order of Rising Sun Third Class, Japan (1940) Mary Clark Thompson Medal (1945) Penrose Medal (1946)
Spouse	Dorothy Quincy Upham, 1909–1949

Thomas Wayland Vaughan (September 20, 1870 – January 16, 1952) was an American geologist and oceanographer. He worked with the United States Geological Survey and United States National Museum, investigating the geology of the West Indies, Panama Canal Zone, and the eastern coast of North America. In 1924 Vaughan became director of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and held the post until his retirement in 1936. His research work concentrated on the study of corals and coral reefs, the investigation of larger foraminifera, and oceanography.

Vaughan was one of five children born to Dr. Samuel Floyd Vaughan and Annie R. Hope. He entered Tulane University in 1885 intending to enter the medical profession, but became interested in physical science and graduated with a Bachelor of Science.

From 1889–1892, Vaughan taught physics and chemistry at Mount Lebanon, Louisiana. During this time he published his first papers on the mollusks and trees of northwest Louisiana and began collecting fossils. This led him to study biology at Harvard University, receiving a Bachelor of Arts in 1893, a Master of Arts in 1894, and completing his Ph.D in 1903 with a thesis titled Eocene and Oligocene Corals of the United States. Before receiving his doctorate, he also worked as an assistant geologist for the United States Geological Survey from 1894 to 1903.

Vaughan participated in a number of geological surveys of the West Indies (1901 and 1914), Panama Canal Zone (1911), the Dominican and Haitian Republics (1919 to 1921), the Virgin Islands and eastern Puerto Rico (1919), and the Atlantic and Gulf Coast Plains (1907–1923).

Earlier in his career Vaughan published many papers and several monographs on corals and coral reefs. He investigated the corals of Florida and the Bahamas from 1908 to 1915 under the auspices of the Department of Marine Biology of the Carnegie Institution of Washington. Later he studied the Larger Foraminifera.

In 1924 Vaughan became the second director of the Scripps Institution for Biological Research, suggested by outgoing director William Emerson Ritter. During Vaughan's tenure, the institution was refocused to concentrate on oceanography and was renamed the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Vaughan created programs in physical, chemical, and geological oceanography, augmented the biology program, and expanded the Institution's facilities. He retired in 1936 and was replaced by Harald Sverdrup.