The founder of The Ohio State University's geological collection, now known as the Orton Geological Museum, was Edward Orton. Edward Orton (1829-1899) was President of Antioch College prior to arriving in Columbus in 1873 to become the first President and Professor of Geology of the Ohio Agricultural and Technical College (later renamed The Ohio State University). He served as President from 1873 to 1881, as Professor of Geology from 1873 to 1899, and as Chief Geologist of the Geological Survey of Ohio from 1882 to 1899. Dr. Orton was an influential geologist with important publications on the stratigraphy and general geology of Ohio, and played a key role in the understanding of the subsurface occurrence of petroleum during the early growth years of the petroleum industry.