[1] The first President of the society was Davies Gilbert,[2] the first Secretary John Ayrton Paris,[3] and other notable members include Humphry Davy (some of whose papers are held by the Society),[4] and William Gregor, who discovered titanium.

It was planned to have the Borough offices, county court and police station in the east wing, the two floors of the west wing housing the RGSC's museum and a public hall between the two run by a public company.

The building, known as St John's Hall, was opened in 1867 and still exists although, in July 2016, the west wing was occupied by the new Penzance library.

[6] In 2023 the RGSC moved its base to King Edward Mine, near Camborne,[7] although meetings and lectures are usually held at Camborne School of Mines and other facilities on the Penryn Campus, and via Zoom, and there is an active programme of field meetings and site visits.

[8] The society awards the Bolitho Medal for notable achievement in geology.