All, Kees appears to be correct, that crossite is named for Charles Whitman Cross:  Source Mindat.org

http://www.mindat.org/min-1160.html

 

Name:

Named in 1894 by Charles Palache for Charles Whitman Cross [September 1, 1854 Southampton nearAmherst, Massachusetts - April 20, 1949 Chevy Chase, Maryland]. Cross was a petrologist in the United States geological Survey and was widely regarded as the greatest field petrologist of his generation. He was important in classifying igneous rocks, etc

 

However (even if incorrectly ascribed in my previous note, as I had recalled from other sources), the optical orientation is indeed “crossed”, as per Dave Waters’ last note, and the optical properties defined the assignation of “crossite” v. “glaucophane”, not strictly compositional changes.

Dave Mogk

 

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From: Metamorphic Studies Group [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Linthout
Sent: Friday, February 12, 2010 11:41 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: IMA mineral nomenclature

 

At 18:01 12/02/2010, Mogk, David wrote:

thus the name crossite as the optic orientation has been crossed.

What's in a name? 
I always thought crossite was named was after CROSS, of the CIPW system.

Kees