Frederick Augustus Genth
Encyclopedia
Frederick Augustus Ludwig Karl Wilhelm Genth (born in Wächtersbach
, Hesse-Cassel, 17 May 1820; died in Philadelphia 2 February 1893) was a United States
chemist
.
gymnasium
and at the University of Heidelberg, under Justus von Liebig
at Giessen
, and finally under Christian Gerling (physics) and Robert Bunsen
(chemistry) at Marburg, where he received the degree of Ph.D.
in 1846. For three years (1845-1848) he acted as assistant to Bunsen.
In 1848 he came to Philadelphia and organized an analytical laboratory. In 1872 he was appointed professor of chemistry and mineralogy
in the University of Pennsylvania
. He resigned his professorship in 1888, and re-established his laboratory. He also held the office of chemist to the Geological Survey of Pennsylvania and also to the board of agriculture of that state.
Genth was a member of many scientific societies in the United States: he was elected in 1872 to membership in the National Academy of Sciences
; he was a member of the American Philosophical Society
(1854-93), one of the founders of the American Chemical Society
, and its president in 1880, and a fellow of the Boston Academy of Arts and Sciences. Benjamin Silliman, Jr., alluded to Genth as having “no superior in this country as an analytical chemist.”
, he contributed to the “Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge” a monograph on “Researches on the Ammonia-Cobalt Bases” (Washington, 1856).
Genth is the author of 102 separate papers on subjects in chemistry and mineralogy. Of these, about 30 were not related to mineralogy. Among the non-mineralogical papers were papers on fertilizers, which were related to his work for the Pennsylvania Board of Agriculture.
He also published “Tabellarische Übersicht der wichtigsten Reactionen welche Basen in Salzen zeigen” (Marburg, 1845), also the same in relation to “Acids” (1845); “Corundum” (in American Philosophical Society Proceedings, 1873); “Minerals of North Carolina,” being appendix “C” of the Report on the Geology of North Carolina (Raleigh, 1875); also First and Second Preliminary Reports on the Mineralogy of Pennsylvania (Harrisburg, 1875-'6), and Minerals and Mineral Localities of North Carolina (Raleigh, 1881).
, calaverite
, cosalite, schirmerite, coloradoite
, montanite, kerrite, maconite, willcoxite, dudleyite, endlichite, landsfordite, nesquehonite, phosphuranylite
, and penfieldite.
Wächtersbach
-Location:Wächtersbach lies between the Spessart and the Vogelsberg Mountains in the middle Kinzig valley at the edge of the Büdingen Forest, not far from the towns of Gelnhausen, Birstein, Bad Orb and Bad Soden-Salmünster.-Neighbouring communities:...
, Hesse-Cassel, 17 May 1820; died in Philadelphia 2 February 1893) was a United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
chemist
Chemist
A chemist is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties such as density and acidity. Chemists carefully describe the properties they study in terms of quantities, with detail on the level of molecules and their component atoms...
.
Biography
Genth studied at the HanauHanau
Hanau is a town in the Main-Kinzig-Kreis, in Hesse, Germany. It is located 25 km east of Frankfurt am Main. Its station is a major railway junction.- Geography :...
gymnasium
Gymnasium (school)
A gymnasium is a type of school providing secondary education in some parts of Europe, comparable to English grammar schools or sixth form colleges and U.S. college preparatory high schools. The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, meaning a locality for both physical and intellectual...
and at the University of Heidelberg, under Justus von Liebig
Justus von Liebig
Justus von Liebig was a German chemist who made major contributions to agricultural and biological chemistry, and worked on the organization of organic chemistry. As a professor, he devised the modern laboratory-oriented teaching method, and for such innovations, he is regarded as one of the...
at Giessen
University of Giessen
The University of Giessen is officially called the Justus Liebig University Giessen after its most famous faculty member, Justus von Liebig, the founder of modern agricultural chemistry and inventor of artificial fertiliser.-History:The University of Gießen is among the oldest institutions of...
, and finally under Christian Gerling (physics) and Robert Bunsen
Robert Bunsen
Robert Wilhelm Eberhard Bunsen was a German chemist. He investigated emission spectra of heated elements, and discovered caesium and rubidium with Gustav Kirchhoff. Bunsen developed several gas-analytical methods, was a pioneer in photochemistry, and did early work in the field of organoarsenic...
(chemistry) at Marburg, where he received the degree of Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in 1846. For three years (1845-1848) he acted as assistant to Bunsen.
In 1848 he came to Philadelphia and organized an analytical laboratory. In 1872 he was appointed professor of chemistry and mineralogy
Mineralogy
Mineralogy is the study of chemistry, crystal structure, and physical properties of minerals. Specific studies within mineralogy include the processes of mineral origin and formation, classification of minerals, their geographical distribution, as well as their utilization.-History:Early writing...
in the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
. He resigned his professorship in 1888, and re-established his laboratory. He also held the office of chemist to the Geological Survey of Pennsylvania and also to the board of agriculture of that state.
Genth was a member of many scientific societies in the United States: he was elected in 1872 to membership in the National Academy of Sciences
United States National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences is a corporation in the United States whose members serve pro bono as "advisers to the nation on science, engineering, and medicine." As a national academy, new members of the organization are elected annually by current members, based on their distinguished and...
; he was a member of the American Philosophical Society
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society, founded in 1743, and located in Philadelphia, Pa., is an eminent scholarly organization of international reputation, that promotes useful knowledge in the sciences and humanities through excellence in scholarly research, professional meetings, publications,...
(1854-93), one of the founders of the American Chemical Society
American Chemical Society
The American Chemical Society is a scientific society based in the United States that supports scientific inquiry in the field of chemistry. Founded in 1876 at New York University, the ACS currently has more than 161,000 members at all degree-levels and in all fields of chemistry, chemical...
, and its president in 1880, and a fellow of the Boston Academy of Arts and Sciences. Benjamin Silliman, Jr., alluded to Genth as having “no superior in this country as an analytical chemist.”
Publications
Genth contributed many and careful analyses of minerals to the literature of chemistry. His name is associated with the ammonia cobalt bases which he discovered in 1846, and, in joint authorship with Wolcott GibbsWolcott Gibbs
Wolcott Gibbs was an American editor, humorist, theatre critic, playwright and author of short stories, who worked for The New Yorker magazine from 1927 until his death. He is best remembered for his 1936 parody of Time magazine, which skewered the magazine's inverted narrative structure...
, he contributed to the “Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge” a monograph on “Researches on the Ammonia-Cobalt Bases” (Washington, 1856).
Genth is the author of 102 separate papers on subjects in chemistry and mineralogy. Of these, about 30 were not related to mineralogy. Among the non-mineralogical papers were papers on fertilizers, which were related to his work for the Pennsylvania Board of Agriculture.
He also published “Tabellarische Übersicht der wichtigsten Reactionen welche Basen in Salzen zeigen” (Marburg, 1845), also the same in relation to “Acids” (1845); “Corundum” (in American Philosophical Society Proceedings, 1873); “Minerals of North Carolina,” being appendix “C” of the Report on the Geology of North Carolina (Raleigh, 1875); also First and Second Preliminary Reports on the Mineralogy of Pennsylvania (Harrisburg, 1875-'6), and Minerals and Mineral Localities of North Carolina (Raleigh, 1881).
Minerals discovered and characterized
Genth was first to describe and characterize a number of new minerals, often ores of tellurium. Among those still recognized today are: meloniteMelonite
Melonite is a telluride of nickel; it is a metallic mineral. Its chemical formula is NiTe2. It is opaque and white to reddish-white in color, oxidizing in air to a brown tarnish....
, calaverite
Calaverite
Calaverite, or gold telluride, is an uncommon telluride of gold, a metallic mineral with the chemical formula AuTe2, with approximately 3% of the gold replaced by silver. It was first discovered in Calaveras County, California in 1861, and was named for the county in 1868.The mineral often has a...
, cosalite, schirmerite, coloradoite
Coloradoite
Coloradoite, also known as mercury telluride , is a rare telluride ore associated with metallic deposit . Gold usually occurs within tellurides as a high finess native-metal ....
, montanite, kerrite, maconite, willcoxite, dudleyite, endlichite, landsfordite, nesquehonite, phosphuranylite
Phosphuranylite
Phosphuranylite is a uranyl phosphate mineral with formula KCa374O4·8.It was first described in 1879 by Frederick Augustus Genth, from an occurrence in the Flat Rock pegmatite in Mitchell County, North Carolina, USA....
, and penfieldite.