Antoine Lacroix

Alfred Lacroix completed a D. s Sc. in Paris in 1889, as student of Ferdinand André Fouqué. Fouqué only agreed to the graduation if Lacroix would marry his daughter.

In 1893, Alfred Lacroix was appointed professor of mineralogy at the Jardin des Plantes, Paris, and in 1896 director of the mineralogical laboratory in the École des Hautes Études.

He paid especial attention to minerals connected with volcanic phenomena and igneous rocks, to the effects of metamorphism, and to mineral veins, in various parts of the world, notably in the Pyrenees. In his numerous contributions to scientific journals he dealt with the mineralogy and petrology of Madagascar, and published an elaborate and exhaustive volume on the eruptions in Martinique, La Montagne Pelée et ses éruptions (Paris 1904).

He also issued an important work entitled Minéralogie de la France et de ses Colonies (1893–1898), and other works in conjunction with Auguste Michel-Lévy. He was president of the volcanology section (1922–1927) of the International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics (IUGG). He was elected member of the Académie des sciences in 1904. He was awarded the Penrose Medal in 1930.

His will includes a final wish that testifies to his great modesty: “I recall that I want to be buried without ceremony of any kind, in the presence of my family only. This does not mean that I am indifferent to my colleagues, pupils and friends, but I attach little value to external events. I only ask them to devote a small place to me in their memories, which can be done without leaving one's work and normal life.” Alfred Lacroix was buried on 18 March 1948 in the family vault, which has no nominal inscription, at the cimetière du Montparnasse (3rd division, concession 871 P 1827).

Lacroix's wife died in December 1944.

Lacroix was known for his conscientiousness, open-mindedness, fairness, and kindness. He had a sharp intellect and occasionally displayed a slightly ironic sense of humor. His students and colleagues held deep respect and admiration for him, and he left an enduring legacy in the world of French science.