Measuring & Mapping

Where, how far, and how much? People have invented an astonishing array of devices to answer seemingly simple questions like these. Measuring and mapping objects in the Museum's collections include the instruments of the famous—Thomas Jefferson's thermometer and a pocket compass used by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark on their expedition across the American West. A timing device was part of the pioneering motion studies of Eadweard Muybridge in the late 1800s. Time measurement is represented in clocks from simple sundials to precise chronometers for mapping, surveying, and finding longitude. Everyday objects tell part of the story, too, from tape measures and electrical meters to more than 300 scales to measure food and drink. Maps of many kinds fill out the collections, from railroad surveys to star charts.

Matthew Berge (d. 1819) worked for Jesse Ramsden in London, succeeded to the business after Ramsden’s death in 1800, used the Ramsden dividing engine, and numbered his sextants in the sequence begun by Ramsden. This example was made in the early 1800s.
Description
Matthew Berge (d. 1819) worked for Jesse Ramsden in London, succeeded to the business after Ramsden’s death in 1800, used the Ramsden dividing engine, and numbered his sextants in the sequence begun by Ramsden. This example was made in the early 1800s. It has a double brass frame and a silvered scale. The inscription on the arc reads "Berge London late Ramsden" and "1513." The scale is graduated every 15 minutes from -2° to +136° and read by vernier with tangent screw and magnifier.
A label in the box relates the instrument’s history. "SEXTANT owned and used by JOHN C. FREMONT on his trip across the continent to CALIFORNIA. Presented by his Daughter, ELIZABETH B. FREMONT, to HON. CHARLES SILENT and by him to FRANK J. THOMAS. Loaned to and used by WELLS MORRIS on U.S. Destroyer "MUGFORD" in GREAT WAR."
Ref: A. Stimson, "The Influence of the Royal Observatory at Greenwich upon the Design of 17th and 18th Century Angle-Measuring Instruments at Sea," Vistas in Astronomy 20 (1976): 123-130.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1800-1819
maker
Berge, Matthew
ID Number
1981.0744.01
accession number
1981.0744
catalog number
1981.0744.01
This is an example of the distance alidade devised by Edward Ayearst Reeves (1862-1945), a well-known British geographer, astronomer, and cartographer. The vertical arc is graduated to 30 minutes and read by vernier and magnifier to 5 minutes.
Description
This is an example of the distance alidade devised by Edward Ayearst Reeves (1862-1945), a well-known British geographer, astronomer, and cartographer. The vertical arc is graduated to 30 minutes and read by vernier and magnifier to 5 minutes. The two long edges of the base are beveled, and one is equipped with a parallel rule. Since the pedestal and telescope can fold down flat against the base, the instrument is easily portable. The "E. R. WATTS & SON 1914 No 34" inscription refers an instrument firm that was established in London in 1857. Casella offered a similar instrument, describing it as "Reeve's Pattern Folding Alidade."
Ref: Ref: E. A. Reeves, Maps and Map-Making (London, 1910), p. 50.
C. F. Casella & Co., Ltd., Surveying and Drawing Instruments and Appliances (London, about 1940), p. 30.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
E.R. Watts and Son
ID Number
PH.325675
catalog number
325675
accession number
257193
This instrument is a specialized timekeeper designed for finding longitude at sea. Its form is that of the standardized 19th-century marine chronometer.
Description
This instrument is a specialized timekeeper designed for finding longitude at sea. Its form is that of the standardized 19th-century marine chronometer. Parkinson & Frodsham, a firm trading in high-quality chronometers, clocks and watches, was established in 1801 by William James Frodsham (1778-1850) and William Parkinson (d. about 1842). From 1801 to 1890, the firm’s business address was 4 Change Alley, and thereafter at other addresses until 1947.
Mechanism details:
Escapement: Earnshaw, spring detent
Duration: 56-hour
Power source: Spring drive with chain and fusee
Balance spring: Helical, blued steel, Earnshaw type
Inscription: "Parkinson & Frodsham." on backplate, "Change Alley / London" on barrel bridge
Bowl details:
Brass bowl
Brass gimbals
Bezel screwed and milled
Crystal convex and chamfered
Dial details:
Engraved and silvered brass
Indicates hours, minutes, seconds, winding level up and down
Hands: blued steel, early spade
Inscription: "Parkinson & Frodsham / Change Alley London. 2349"
Case details:
Box: solid wood, three-part, glazed center section
Brass corners, cartouche and key escutcheon
Roundel in bone
Inscriptions: none
References:
1. Gould, Rupert T. The Marine Chronometer. Essex: Holland Press, 1960.
2. Mercer, Tony. Chronometer Makers of the World. London: NAG Press, 1991.
3. Mercer, R. Vaudry. The Frodshams. The Story of a Family of Chronometer Makers. London: Antiquarian Horological Society monograph 21, 1981.
4. Whitney, Marvin,E. The Ship's Chronometer. Cincinnati: American Watchmakers Institute Press, 1985.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1840
maker
Parkinson & Frodsham
ID Number
ME.336641
catalog number
336641
accession number
1978.0161
catalog number
1978.0161.02
Mercury-in-glass thermometer with a constriction in the stem above the cylindrical bulb. The milk-white back is marked "J. HICKS. 8 Hatton Garden. LONDON" and "-No.217967-." The clear front is marked "FAHRT" and graduated every degree Fahrenheit from -65 to +150.
Description
Mercury-in-glass thermometer with a constriction in the stem above the cylindrical bulb. The milk-white back is marked "J. HICKS. 8 Hatton Garden. LONDON" and "-No.217967-." The clear front is marked "FAHRT" and graduated every degree Fahrenheit from -65 to +150. It was made after Hicks began working at 8 Hatton Garden in 1864 and before the expansion of his business to 8, 9, & 10 Hatton Garden in the 1880s.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
J. J. Hicks
ID Number
PH.317450
accession number
230396
catalog number
317450
In 1913 Leonard Hill, a British physiologist interested in the relationship between atmosphere and health, described a Kata thermometer (Hill’s term) that represented the humidity in terms of the time it took for the enclosed liquid to fall a certain amount.
Description
In 1913 Leonard Hill, a British physiologist interested in the relationship between atmosphere and health, described a Kata thermometer (Hill’s term) that represented the humidity in terms of the time it took for the enclosed liquid to fall a certain amount. This example is an alcohol-in-glass thermometer with a large cylindrical bulb and enlargements at the lower and upper ends of the stem. The alcohol is violet-colored (mostly faded to orange). The milk-white back of the stem is marked “J. Hicks 8 9 & 10 Hatton Garden London No 261 F531.” The front is marked “Fahrt” and has a scale reading from 100 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit, in tenths.
Ref.: Leonard Hill, et. al., “The Influence of the Atmosphere on our Health and Comfort in Confined and Crowded Places,” Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections 60 (1913), #23.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1913-1920
maker
J. J. Hicks
ID Number
PH.317457
catalog number
317457
accession number
230396
Nicolas Jansz Visscher (1618-1679), an accomplished Dutch cartographer, published an important map of the Dutch lands in North America. This is a copy of that map. The text at bottom center reads “A CORRECT COPY & IMITATION OF THE ORIGINAL DUTCH MAP in the possession of S.
Description
Nicolas Jansz Visscher (1618-1679), an accomplished Dutch cartographer, published an important map of the Dutch lands in North America. This is a copy of that map. The text at bottom center reads “A CORRECT COPY & IMITATION OF THE ORIGINAL DUTCH MAP in the possession of S. CONVERSE, PUBLISHER, NEW YORK. Engraved by THOS STARLING, WILMINGTON SQUARE, LONDON, 1833.” As in the Visscher original (which was actually published in 1655), an inset below the title depicts “NIEUW AMSTERDAM / op t’Eylant Manhattans.”
This map extends from 37° to 46°10' north latitude and from 297° to 312° longitude measured from west to east.
Sherman Converse, the one-time owner of the Visscher map, was a Yale graduate who was friendly with Noah Webster and published Webster's first dictionary. Converse moved from New York to Quebec in 1838, returned to the United States around 1844, and died in Boston.
Ref: Wilberforce Eames, “The First Three Engraved Views of New York,” New York Times (Feb. 16, 1901), p. BR 13.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1833
ID Number
PH.317824
catalog number
317824
accession number
231759
Mercury-in-glass thermometer with a small bend in the stem just above the cylindrical bulb. The stem has a milk-white back; the front is marked "B22580" and carries the N/Z monograms; and is graduated (but not numbered) every degree F. from -50 to +125.
Description
Mercury-in-glass thermometer with a small bend in the stem just above the cylindrical bulb. The stem has a milk-white back; the front is marked "B22580" and carries the N/Z monograms; and is graduated (but not numbered) every degree F. from -50 to +125. The thermometer is mounted on a white porcelain plate marked "B22580" and "NEGRETTI & ZAMBRA, LONDON" with the N/Z monogram of the firm. The plate is graduated every 5 degrees Fahrenheit from -50 to +120. This, in turn, is mounted on a wooden base with metal guards protecting the bulb, and two metal loops so that it can be hung horizontally.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
after 1850
maker
Negretti & Zambra
ID Number
PH.317475
accession number
230396
catalog number
317475
This early example of a transit theodolite was made for the U. S. Coast Survey in the 1840s.
Description
This early example of a transit theodolite was made for the U. S. Coast Survey in the 1840s. The "Thomas Jones, 4 Rupert St London" inscription refers to Thomas Jones (1775–1852), an instrument maker who worked for Jesse Ramsden, and who was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of London in 1835.The horizontal and vertical circles are silvered, and read by verniers and magnifiers to 30 seconds.
Ref: Gloria Clifton, Directory of British Scientific Instrument Makers 1550–1851 (London, 1995), p. 154.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1840s
maker
Jones, Thomas
ID Number
PH.314634
accession number
208213
catalog number
314634
The Proprietors of the Locks & Canals in Lowell, Mass., used this theodolite to lay out the canals that provided transportation and power for the textile mills in that city.
Description
The Proprietors of the Locks & Canals in Lowell, Mass., used this theodolite to lay out the canals that provided transportation and power for the textile mills in that city. It was probably made soon after 1826, when John Troughton took William Simms into partnership and began trading as Troughton & Simms. Exceot for its lack of magnifiers, it is identical to the theodolite described in F. W. Simms, A Treatise on the Principal Mathematical Instruments (London, 1836). The horizontal circle and vertical arc are silvered, and read by verniers to 20 seconds.
The scale for "Diff. of Hypo. & Base" on the back of the vertical arc is used to correlate the angle of elevation or depression with horizontal distances when surveying sloping ground. The inscription reads "Troughton & Simms LONDON."
maker
Troughton and Simms
ID Number
PH.314774
accession number
211155
catalog number
314774
Negretti & Zambra introduced this type of instrument in 1874. The stem is U-shaped, with a small U-shaped bend just above the cylindrical bulb. In use, the thermometer would be hung with the bulb down.
Description
Negretti & Zambra introduced this type of instrument in 1874. The stem is U-shaped, with a small U-shaped bend just above the cylindrical bulb. In use, the thermometer would be hung with the bulb down. Rotating it one full turn causes the mercury in the first half of the tube to flow into the second half, thereby recording the temperature at that moment. In use, it might be connected to a clock that would rotate it at a scheduled time.
In this example, the mercury-in-glass thermometer is mounted on an ebony plate marked "NEGRETTI & ZAMBRA LONDON" and "RECORDING THERMOMETER." A white porcelain strip on the plate is marked "NEGRETTI & ZAMBRA'S PATENT" and graduated every 5 degrees Fahrenheit from 0 to 120; a second graduation runs from 20 to +120. The back of the stem is milk white. The front, on the side nearer the bulb, is marked "PATENT No. 28" and graduated (but not numbered) every degree Fahrenheit from 0 to +120; the other side is graduated (but not numbered) every degree from +15 to +120.
Ref.: Negretti and Zambra, Encyclopaedic Illustrated and Descriptive Reference Catalogue (London, after 1878), pp. 101-103.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Negretti & Zambra
ID Number
PH.317478
accession number
230396
catalog number
317478
Alcohol-in-glass Rutherford-type thermometer mounted on a white porcelain plate marked "NEGRETTI & ZAMBRA, SCIENTIFIC INST. MAKERS, LONDON" with the N/Z monogram of the firm, and "24" with the M/O monogram of the British Meteorological Office.
Description
Alcohol-in-glass Rutherford-type thermometer mounted on a white porcelain plate marked "NEGRETTI & ZAMBRA, SCIENTIFIC INST. MAKERS, LONDON" with the N/Z monogram of the firm, and "24" with the M/O monogram of the British Meteorological Office. This plate is graduated every 5 degrees Fahrenheit from -20 to +110. The stem is marked "24" and with the N/Z and M/O monograms; and is graduated (but not numbered) every degree F. from -21 to +112. The whole is mounted on a wooden base with metal guards for the bulb. There are also two metal loops so that it can be hung horizontally.
Negretti & Zambra claimed that they were "the first to introduce into extensive use thermometer and barometer scale-plates made of porcelain, having the divisions and figures engraved thereon by means of fluoric acid, and permanently burnt-in and blackened so as always to present a clear legible scale" that would not be affected by sea water or by atmospheric conditions.
Ref.: Negretti & Zambra, A Treatise on Meteorological Instruments (London, 1864), pp. 65 and 76.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
after 1850
maker
Negretti & Zambra
ID Number
PH.317470
accession number
230396
catalog number
317470
This waywiser has a wooden frame and a dial of silvered brass with the usual scales, one for poles and furlongs and the other for miles. A small inset dial divided into 100 sections keeps a talley in terms of links of a chain.
Description
This waywiser has a wooden frame and a dial of silvered brass with the usual scales, one for poles and furlongs and the other for miles. A small inset dial divided into 100 sections keeps a talley in terms of links of a chain. The "Heath & Wing LONDON" signature refers to Thomas Heath and Tycho Wing who worked together during the period 1751–1773.
Ref: Gloria Clifton, Directory of British Scientific Instrument Makers 1550–1851 (London, 1995), p. 131.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Heath & Wing
ID Number
PH.318294
catalog number
318294
accession number
233468
Mercury-in-glass thermometer with a constriction in the stem above the cylindrical bulb. The milk-white back is marked "J. HICKS. 8 Hatton Garden. London" and "217112." The clear front is marked "HICKS' PATENT No.
Description
Mercury-in-glass thermometer with a constriction in the stem above the cylindrical bulb. The milk-white back is marked "J. HICKS. 8 Hatton Garden. London" and "217112." The clear front is marked "HICKS' PATENT No. 4434" and "FAHRT" and graduated every degree Fahrenheit from -40 to +140. It is equipped with a metal carrying case. It was made after Hicks began working at 8 Hatton Garden in 1864 and before the expansion of his business to 8, 9, & 10 Hatton Garden in the 1880s.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
J. J. Hicks
ID Number
PH.317448
accession number
230396
catalog number
317448
The "GREGORY, No. 148 near the India House, LONDON" inscription on this azimuth circle refers to Henry Gregory (fl.
Description
The "GREGORY, No. 148 near the India House, LONDON" inscription on this azimuth circle refers to Henry Gregory (fl. 1744-1782), a mathematical instrument maker who worked at "The Azimuth Compass, near East India House, Leadenhall St., London."
Ref: Gloria Clifton, Directory of British Scientific Instrument Makers 1550-1851 (London, 1995), p. 119.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
late 18th century
18th century
maker
Henry Gregory
ID Number
PH.319773
catalog number
319773
accession number
239771
Julien John Révy, an Austrian civil engineer living in England, designed this type of meter for his survey of the Panama and Uruguay rivers in South America begun in 1870. In his report on this project, Révy noted that “Messrs.
Description
Julien John Révy, an Austrian civil engineer living in England, designed this type of meter for his survey of the Panama and Uruguay rivers in South America begun in 1870. In his report on this project, Révy noted that “Messrs. Elliott Bros., of London, made our meters, and are acquainted with all requirements: they charge about ten guineas for the complete instrument.”
Elliott Bros. showed a Révy current meter at the Special Loan Collection of Scientific Instruments held in London in 1876, noting that it was made “for measuring the velocity of currents in large rivers.” The Elliotts went on to explain that “The spherical boss is so determined that it will displace just as much water, as to weight, as will balance the weight of all the parts which are fixed to the spindle, so as to reduce friction to a minimum. Although the apparatus is covered with glass, it has to be filled, before using it, with pure water to establish similarity of pressure inside and outside. After every experiment the water is removed and the spindle thoroughly dried.”
This example came to the Smithsonian in 1955, a transfer from the U.S. Coast & Geodetic Survey. The dial is marked “ELLIOTT BROS LONDON” and the propeller shaft housing is marked “U. S. C. & G. S. NO. 1.” It has no glass cover. It may be the Révy meter that H. L. Marindin, a Coast Survey hydrographer, reported using in 1877.
Ref: J. J. Révy, Hydraulics of Great Rivers (London and New York, 1874), pp. 155-160 and plate VIII.
Catalogue of the Special Loan Collection of Scientific Apparatus (London, 1876), p. 77.
H. L. Marindin, “Description of an Apparatus Devised for Observing Currents in Connection with the Physical Survey of the Mississippi River,” Report of the Superintendent of the United States Coast Survey Showing the Progress of the work for the Fiscal Year Ending with June, 1877 (Washington, D.C., 1880), Appendix 9.
Arthur H. Frazier, Water Current Meters in the Smithsonian Collections of the National Museum of History and Technology (Washington, D.C., 1974), pp. 50-51.
date made
ca 1875
maker
Elliott Brothers
ID Number
PH.314637
accession number
208213
catalog number
314637
This mercury-in-glass thermometer has a constriction in the stem just above the cylindrical bulb. The milk white back is marked "J. Hicks. 8 Hatton Garden.
Description
This mercury-in-glass thermometer has a constriction in the stem just above the cylindrical bulb. The milk white back is marked "J. Hicks. 8 Hatton Garden. London" and "207116." The clear front is graduated every tenth of a degree [Fahrenheit?] from -14.5 to +40.5, with calibration marks at 0 and 36. It is 24.5 inches long. It was made after Hicks began working at 8 Hatton Garden in 1864 and before the expansion of his business to 8, 9, & 10 Hatton Garden in the 1880s.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
J. J. Hicks
ID Number
PH.317447
accession number
230396
catalog number
317447
Alcohol-in-glass Rutherford-type thermometer mounted on a white porcelain plate that is marked "575" and with the M/O monogram of the British Meteorological Office and "J. HICKS, 8, 9 & 10. HATTON GARDEN LONDON" and an monogram.
Description
Alcohol-in-glass Rutherford-type thermometer mounted on a white porcelain plate that is marked "575" and with the M/O monogram of the British Meteorological Office and "J. HICKS, 8, 9 & 10. HATTON GARDEN LONDON" and an monogram. The plate is also graduated every 5 degrees Fahrenheit from -20 to +110. The thermometer stem is marked "575" and with the M/O monogram; and graduated every degree Fahrenheit from -25 to +110. The whole is mounted on a wooden base that has metal guards protecting the bulb, and that once had two metal loops so that it could be hung horizontally.
James J. Hicks (1837-1916) apprenticed with Casella and rose to the position of foreman before beginning in business on his own. He rented a shop at 8 Hatton Garden in 1864 and expanded to 8, 9 & 10 Hatton Garden in the 1880s.
Ref: Anita McConnell, King of the Clinicals. The Life and Times of J. J. Hicks (1837-1916) (York, 1998).
Location
Currently not on view
maker
J. J. Hicks
ID Number
PH.317471
accession number
230396
catalog number
317471
Joseph Saxton, an ingenious American who spent several years in London, designed a current meter at the behest of the British engineer, Joseph Cubitt, and tested it at the Adelaide Gallery in 1832.This example belonged to the Proprietors of the Locks and Canals in Lowell, Mass.,
Description
Joseph Saxton, an ingenious American who spent several years in London, designed a current meter at the behest of the British engineer, Joseph Cubitt, and tested it at the Adelaide Gallery in 1832.
This example belonged to the Proprietors of the Locks and Canals in Lowell, Mass., and was probably used by James B. Francis, the chief engineer of that organization. The “ELLIOTT & SONS London” inscription indicates that it was made between 1850 and 1854. Several features—including the vane and the rotor—resemble those in the Woltman-type current meter made by Lerebours et Secretan (see PH*314769). It came to the Smithsonian in 1956.
William Davis Haskoll included an image of “Elliott’s Current Meter” in his engineering text of 1858, and described it as “a most useful instrument for ascertaining velocities, either a few inches below the surface, or at the bottom, or at any depth between.” An Elliott price list bound with this book indicates that current meters cost between £3. 3s and £5. 5s. Similar instruments were available from other London firms such as Watkins & Hill, James J. Hicks, Louis Casella, and Adie.
William Elliott began in business in London in the early 1800s, making and selling mathematical instruments. The firm became Elliott & Sons in 1850 and Elliott Brothers in 1854. It was absorbed into what became BAE Systems in 1988. Its archives are now in the Museum of the History of Science in Oxford.
Ref: “Description of the Current-Meter as Recently Improved by Mr. Saxton,” The Magazine of Popular Science and Journal of the Useful Arts 1 (1836): 108-112.
W. Davis Haskoll, The Practice of Engineering Field Work (London, 1858), pp. 261-262.
Elliott Brothers, General Illustrated Catalogue (London, [1867]), p. 9.
Arthur H. Frazier, Water Current Meters in the Smithsonian Collections of the National Museum of History and Technology (Washington, D.C., 1974), pp. 51-56.
T. N. Clarke, A. D. Morrison-Low, and A. D. C. Simpson, Brass & Glass. Scientific Instrument Making Workshops in Scotland as illustrated by Instruments from the Arthur Frank Collection at the Royal Museum of Scotland (Edinburgh, 1989), p. 83.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1850-1854
inventor
Saxton, Joseph
ID Number
PH.314772
accession number
211155
catalog number
314772
This instrument, which the U. S. War Department transferred to the Smithsonian in 1933, was probably used by the Army Topographical Engineers.It is marked "Troughton & Simms, London 2" and was made perhaps as early as the 1840s.
Description
This instrument, which the U. S. War Department transferred to the Smithsonian in 1933, was probably used by the Army Topographical Engineers.It is marked "Troughton & Simms, London 2" and was made perhaps as early as the 1840s. It has a double-cone horizontal axis, a lamp for illuminating this axis, a large striding level, a small vertical circle at one end of the horizontal axis, and an iron base.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Troughton and Simms
ID Number
PH.310559
accession number
122836
catalog number
310559
This mercury-in-glass thermometer has a cylindrical bulb. The milk-white back is marked "L. Casella. London. 14490." The clear front is graduated every degree Fahrenheit from -25 to +130. It was made before the death of Louis Casella in 1897.Currently not on view
Description
This mercury-in-glass thermometer has a cylindrical bulb. The milk-white back is marked "L. Casella. London. 14490." The clear front is graduated every degree Fahrenheit from -25 to +130. It was made before the death of Louis Casella in 1897.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
L. P. Casella
ID Number
PH.317445
accession number
230396
catalog number
317445
Mercury-in-glass thermometer with a blackened bulb. The scale extends from -20 to +200 degrees Fahrenheit, and is graduated by degrees and marked every 10 degrees. The stem is marked "No.
Description
Mercury-in-glass thermometer with a blackened bulb. The scale extends from -20 to +200 degrees Fahrenheit, and is graduated by degrees and marked every 10 degrees. The stem is marked "No. 30 Patent 3647." This refers to the British patent for “Testing vacuum of solar thermometer” issued to J. J. Hicks, a meteorological instrument maker in London, in 1873. The surrounding glass container is marked "J. CALL New York."
This may have been used by John William Draper, an American polymath who received the Rumford Prize in in 1875 for his long-standing work on solar radiation. It may also have been used by his son, Daniel Draper, a noted meteorologist.
Ref: James J. Hicks, Illustrated & Descriptive Catalogue of Standard, Self-Recording, and Other Meteorological Instruments (London, about 1874), pp. 60-61.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1870s
maker
Hicks, J. J.
ID Number
PH.333988
catalog number
333988
accession number
304826
This "Bate London" inscription on this unusual surveyors compass refers to the London instrument maker, Robert Brettell Bate (1782-1847). The outer edge of the face is graduated to 10 degrees, and numbered from north and south.
Description
This "Bate London" inscription on this unusual surveyors compass refers to the London instrument maker, Robert Brettell Bate (1782-1847). The outer edge of the face is graduated to 10 degrees, and numbered from north and south. The rim is graduated to single degrees, numbered counterclockwise from north, and read by vernier to 6 minutes.
Unlike most vernier compasses, this one has no variation arc. And unlike most surveyor's compasses, here the sight vanes are attached to the arms, and the arms screw onto the compass box. A level vial is also mounted below the compass box, and a socket, so that the compass can be used with a jacob staff.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Bate, Robert Brettell
ID Number
PH.319793.1
accession number
239772
catalog number
319793.1
“Messrs.
Description
“Messrs. Elliott Bros., of London, made our meters, and are acquainted with all requirements: they charge about ten guineas for the complete instrument.” So wrote Julien John Révy, an Austrian civil engineer living in England, in his 1874 account of his survey of the Panama and Uruguay rivers in South America.
Elliott Bro. showed a Révy water current meter at the Special Loan Collection of Scientific Instruments held in London in 1876, noting that it was made “for measuring the velocity of currents in large rivers.” The firm went on to explain that “The spherical boss is so determined that it will displace just as much water, as to weight, as will balance the weight of all the parts which are fixed to the spindle, so as to reduce friction to a minimum. Although the apparatus is covered with glass, it has to be filled, before using it, with pure water to establish similarity of pressure inside and outside. After every experiment the water is removed and the spindle thoroughly dried.”
This example is marked “Elliott Bros. London.” The U.S. Geological Survey transferred it to the Smithsonian in 1916.
William Elliott began in business in London in the early 1800s, making and selling mathematical instruments. Following his death in 1853, his sons, Frederick and Charles, began trading as Elliott Brothers, and were soon offering a wide range of instruments for engineering and industry. The Elliotts’ involvement with water current meters probably began in 1856 when they acquired Watkins & Hill, a London firm that made meters according to the designs introduced by Joseph Saxton in 1836. Elliott Brothers was absorbed into what became BAE Systems in 1988. Its archives are now in the Museum of the History of Science in Oxford.
Ref: J. J. Révy, Hydraulics of Great Rivers (London and New York, 1874), appendix, “The Improved Current Meter, and Its Applications.”
Catalogue of the Special Loan Collection of Scientific Apparatus (London, 1876), p. 77.
Arthur H. Frazier, Water Current Meters in the Smithsonian Collections of the National Museum of History and Technology (Washington, D.C., 1974), pp. 50-51.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1874-1916
maker
Elliott Brothers
ID Number
PH.289646
accession number
59263
catalog number
289646
This compass has a black metal bowl gimbal mounted in a mahogany box. The inscriptions read "DEAD BEAT" "C.B. PATENT" "No 11904" "HUSUN," and H. HUGHES & SON, LTD LONDON, PATD GT BRIT.
Description
This compass has a black metal bowl gimbal mounted in a mahogany box. The inscriptions read "DEAD BEAT" "C.B. PATENT" "No 11904" "HUSUN," and H. HUGHES & SON, LTD LONDON, PATD GT BRIT. No 127135."
Hughes trade literature describes this form as having been "especially designed for the navigation of Yachts and Motor Craft, the rapid movements of which demand a compass of exceptional steadiness and sensitivity." To that end, it has a special expansion chamber that "precludes the formation of bubbles in the liquid." The needles are short, and made of cobalt-steel. The card is printed "by a new photographic process that eliminates discoloration." And patented damping filaments ensure the steadiness of the card.
British Patent #127,135 describes an "Aperiodic Magnetic Compass" made by attaching to the magnetic needle filaments of glass, wire, or other suitable non-magnetic material. This patent was granted in 1919 to George Campbell and Geoffrey Bennett, both of the Compass Department of the British Admiralty.
H. Hughes & Son, Ltd. was in business, as such, from 1903 to 1947.
Ref: Henry Hughes & Son, Ltd., Husun "Dead-Beat" Compasses for Yachts (London, 1939).
H. L. Hitchins and W. E. May, From Lodestone to Gyro-Compass (New York, 1953), pp.150-152.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1919-1947
maker
H. Hughes & Son, Ltd.
ID Number
PH.337074
accession number
1979.0026
catalog number
337074

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