What changes in the science of geology contributed to the development of evolutionary theory?

Question

What changes in the science of geology contributed to the development of evolutionary theory?

Answer 1

Plate tectonics theory suggested that large land masses have split up and remained separated for hundreds of millions of years.  This helped explain 1) why fossils of the same species are found on continents separated by oceans, and 2) how a species, once separated by an ocean, can evolve differently over time because of different environmental conditions.  As a classic example, New Zealand has plant life that is closer to what it had been like hundreds of millions ago, having changed very little since it was split off from the mainland.

Answer 2

In attempts to date sedimentary rock layers and fossils, it became increasingly apparent that the Earth had to be far older than the (then accepted) biblical 4000 Yr.s.

The older fossils had simpler forms, and there appeared to be an obvious progression.