Article

Henri-Marc Ami

Published Online June 24, 2008

Last Edited January 20, 2014

Henri-Marc Ami, palaeontologist, prehistorian (b at Belle-Rivière, Qué 23 Nov 1858; d at Menton, France 4 Jan 1931). The son of a Swiss pastor, Ami studied science at McGill, notably under John William DAWSON. He worked for the GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF CANADA 1882-1911.
Henri-Marc Ami, palaeontologist, prehistorian (b at Belle-Rivière, Qué 23 Nov 1858; d at Menton, France 4 Jan 1931). The son of a Swiss pastor, Ami studied science at McGill, notably under John William DAWSON. He worked for the GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF CANADA 1882-1911. Ami is best known for his work on geological formations in Québec and the Maritimes. His bibliography contains over 200 titles.

He was editor of the Ottawa Naturalist 1895-1900. In 1900 he was elected to the Royal Society of Canada, and the Geological Society of London honoured him with the Bigsby Medal 1905. His comfortable financial situation and marriage to Clarissa Burland, from a prominent Montréal family, allowed Ami to resign from the Geological Survey in 1911 to concentrate on prehistorical studies. After moving to France, he founded the École canadienne de préhistoire, an institution jointly funded by the French government and the RSC.