Joseph Carne

Joseph Carne FRS, FGS (17 April 1782 – 12 October 1858) was a Cornish geologist, industrialist and banker.

Early life Carne was born at Penzance, Cornwall, United Kingdom, the eldest son of William Carne, a banker, and his wife Anna Carne née Cock of Helston. He was educated at home and at the Wesleyan school, Keynsham, near Bristol. One of his four younger brothers was the author and traveller John Carne. From an early age Carne showed an interest in mineralogy and geology. He was in the habit of walking round to the copper mines, and collecting specimens of the rarer ores, which the miners were glad to sell at low prices, thereby forming the nucleus of his mineralogical collection.

On 23 March 1808 he married Mary Thomas, the daughter of William Thomas of Kidwelly, MD, physician at Haverfordwest. After his marriage he lived for a short time at Penzance, and in 1808 he removed to Rivière House, Phillack on being appointed manager of the Cornish Copper Company's smelting works at Hayle. His good business habits and quickness at figures well fitted him for this situation. Seven of his eight children (two boys and five girls) were born at Rivière House, before he resigned his role as manager (remaining an investor like his father) and returned to Penzance, living in Chapel House from 1820. The Carne Collection forms part of the large geological collections exhibited in the Sedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences, Cambridge.

Carne's paper On the Pseudo-morphous Minerals of Cornwall was calculated to throw light on the mysterious changes which occur in minerals. In connection with this subject Carne also examined most of the varieties of tin ore which have been found in veins, and such as are peculiar to the deposits in stream works. In 1846 a paper was read by Carne On the Remains of a Submarine Forest in the North-eastern part of the Mount's Bay, and in 1851 Notice of a Raised Beach lately discovered in Zennor will be found in the pages of the Transactions of the Cornwall Geological Society, vol. vii.

Carne also wrote on the history of copper mining, and on the improvements made in its metallurgy—on the discovery of ancient coins—on the formation of the blown sands of the north coasts of the county, and contributed a paper to the Statistical Society of London entitled Statistics of the Tin Mines in Cornwall and of the Consumption of Tin in Great Britain.

Carne was an honorary member of the Cambridge Philosophical Society. In 1837 he was picked for Sheriff of Cornwall but did not accept the appointment. For many years he was the treasurer of the Royal Geological Society of Cornwall and due to his extensive knowledge of the laws of mines and minerals, and his intimate acquaintance with local usages, he was referred to in most cases of difficulty.

Later life The Wesleyan chapels of West Cornwall sought Carne's assistance and advice. He took charge of Sunday schools, and kept a large stock of books for the teachers. In 1820 Carne left Hayle, and went to Penzance to become a partner in his father's bank (Batten, Carne, & Carne).

He died at Penzance on 12 October 1858.

His daughter, Elizabeth Catherine Thomas Carne was also a noted geologist. Upon Joseph's death his large mineral collection became her responsibility and she continued to collect specimens and created a private museum. She also assumed his place as Managing Partner of the family bank, until her own demise in 1873.