D'Urban, William, 1836-1934

• Urban, William d', 1836-1934

William Stewart Mitchell D'Urban was born on July 29, 1836, in Templemore, Tipperary County, Ireland.

He was a British naturalist, archaeologist, and collector. He became the first curator of the Royal Albert Memorial Museum & Art Gallery (RAMM), Exeter City, Devon, England. He influenced the museum’s early approach to collecting. He was brought up in South Africa and Canada. During these early years, D'Urban suffered from diphtheria. A botched local cure left him with severe hearing impairment for the rest of his life. This disability meant that rather than the military career planned for him, he studied and collected specimens of the natural history and archaeology of his surroundings. This made him an ideal choice for RAMM. When D’Urban arrived in Exeter, his priority was to organize the collection and make it ready for opening in 1868. Afterwards, he continued to work on the displays and catalogue the early accessions. His original numbering is still in use today. In 1884, he left the museum and moved to California due to his son’s poor health. He continued to amass natural history specimens, ethnography, and archaeological artifacts that were given to RAMM. Following the death of his son, he returned to Exeter and lived there for another 40 years.

In 1863, he married Gertrude Porter (1839–1919). He died on January 20, 1934, in Exeter, Devon, England.