National Institute for the Promotion of Science
Encyclopedia
The National Institution for the Promotion of Science organization was established in Washington, D.C. in May, 1840, and was heir to the mantle of the earlier Columbian Institute for the Promotion of Arts and Sciences. The National Institution for the Promotion of Science was later renamed the National Institute and eventually became a part of the Smithsonian Institution
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The National Institute was the initial repository for collections of artifacts brought to the US by the United States Exploring Expedition
, as well as various other object accumulated by the government, such as items owned by early American politicians, patent models, and natural objects. Housed in the Patent Office Building, these were the precursor to the Smithsonian Institution collection.
The cabinet was managed by a group of scientists in 1840 and others to secure control of the Smithson bequest and create a National Museum in Washington.
Among those who were elected as corresponding members were such distinguished men as:
Foreign scientists were also represented:
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...
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The National Institute was the initial repository for collections of artifacts brought to the US by the United States Exploring Expedition
United States Exploring Expedition
The United States Exploring Expedition was an exploring and surveying expedition of the Pacific Ocean and surrounding lands conducted by the United States from 1838 to 1842. The original appointed commanding officer was Commodore Thomas ap Catesby Jones. The voyage was authorized by Congress in...
, as well as various other object accumulated by the government, such as items owned by early American politicians, patent models, and natural objects. Housed in the Patent Office Building, these were the precursor to the Smithsonian Institution collection.
The cabinet was managed by a group of scientists in 1840 and others to secure control of the Smithson bequest and create a National Museum in Washington.
Among those who were elected as corresponding members were such distinguished men as:
- Matthew Fontaine MauryMatthew Fontaine MauryMatthew Fontaine Maury , United States Navy was an American astronomer, historian, oceanographer, meteorologist, cartographer, author, geologist, and educator....
1st superintendent of the United States Naval ObservatoryUnited States Naval ObservatoryThe United States Naval Observatory is one of the oldest scientific agencies in the United States, with a primary mission to produce Positioning, Navigation, and Timing for the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Department of Defense...
in Washington, D.C., - Jacob Whitman BaileyJacob Whitman BaileyJacob Whitman Bailey was an American naturalist, known as the pioneer in microscopic research in America. He was born in Auburn, Mass., and in 1832 graduated at West Point, where, after 1834, he was successively assistant professor, acting professor, and professor of chemistry, mineralogy, and...
, professor of chemistryChemistryChemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
and mineralogyMineralogyMineralogy 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...
at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point; - Professor Joseph HenryJoseph HenryJoseph Henry was an American scientist who served as the first Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, as well as a founding member of the National Institute for the Promotion of Science, a precursor of the Smithsonian Institution. During his lifetime, he was highly regarded...
, of the College of New Jersey, at Princeton; - Alexander Dallas BacheAlexander Dallas BacheAlexander Dallas Bache was an American physicist, scientist and surveyor who erected coastal fortifications and conducted a detailed survey mapping of the United States coastline.-Biography:...
, president of Girard College of Orphans, Philadelphia; - Denison OlmstedDenison OlmstedDenison Olmsted , U.S. physicist and astronomer, was born at East Hartford, Connecticut. Professor Olmsted is credited with giving birth to meteor science after the 1833 Leonid meteor shower over North America spurred him to study this phenomenon.-Biography:In 1813, he graduated from Yale...
, professor of natural history at Yale College;
Foreign scientists were also represented:
- Professor Charles WheatstoneCharles WheatstoneSir Charles Wheatstone FRS , was an English scientist and inventor of many scientific breakthroughs of the Victorian era, including the English concertina, the stereoscope , and the Playfair cipher...
of King's College, LondonKing's College LondonKing's College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London. King's has a claim to being the third oldest university in England, having been founded by King George IV and the Duke of Wellington in 1829, and... - Adolphe QueteletAdolphe QueteletLambert Adolphe Jacques Quetelet was a Belgian astronomer, mathematician, statistician and sociologist. He founded and directed the Brussels Observatory and was influential in introducing statistical methods to the social sciences...
, the astronomer royal of Belgium; - Professor Friedrich Georg Wilhelm von StruveFriedrich Georg Wilhelm von StruveFriedrich Georg Wilhelm von Struve was a Danish-Baltic German astronomer from a famous dynasty.-Life:...
, director of the Russian Imperial Central Observatory near St. Petersburg.