James Croll and 1876 – an exceptional year for a ‘singularly modest man’

I am very appreciative for the provision of information, and permission to publish, from a number of individuals and institutions: Rachel Hart, Keeper of Manuscripts and Muniments and Deputy Head of Special Collections, University of St Andrews; Vicky Hammond, formerly Journals and Archives Officer, Royal Society of Edinburgh; Virginia Mills, Archivist and Katherine Marshall, Picture Curator, Royal Society of London; Douglas Braaten, Chief Scientific Officer and Ellis Rubinstein, President Emeritus, New York Academy of Sciences; Sally Boardman, Intellectual Property Rights, British Geological Survey; Fabienne Michaud, Head of Library and Information Services, the Geological Society of London. Laura Brassington, Department of History and Philosophy of Science, University of Cambridge, and two anonymous referees are thanked for their constructive comments on the manuscript. Open Access via Cambridge Press agreementPeer reviewedPublisher PD