Measuring & Mapping

Vernier Compass

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.

Topic: Navigation

Liquid Compass

The Ritchie ledgers, now held by Ritchie Navigation, indicate that this compass was manufactured on August 11, 1877, and sold to T.S. & J.D. Negus, a New York firm that sold a variety of nautical and optical instruments. It later belonged to the U.S. Coast & Geodetic Survey.
Description
The Ritchie ledgers, now held by Ritchie Navigation, indicate that this compass was manufactured on August 11, 1877, and sold to T.S. & J.D. Negus, a New York firm that sold a variety of nautical and optical instruments. It later belonged to the U.S. Coast & Geodetic Survey. The inscriptions read "RITCHIE BOSTON U.S.A." and "PATENTED APL. 7. 1863. APL. 10, 1866. MAY 12, 1868. JULY 19, 1870" and "9786."
Ref: E. S. Ritchie & Sons, Ritchie’s Liquid Compasses and Nautical Instruments (ca. 1905).
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1877
maker
Ritchie
ID Number
PH.337138
catalog number
337138
accession number
1979.0361

Sextant

This unsigned sextant belonged to Oberlin College, and may date from the time of the founding of that school in 1833. The frame is brass.
Description
This unsigned sextant belonged to Oberlin College, and may date from the time of the founding of that school in 1833. The frame is brass. The silvered scale is graduated every 15 minutes from -5° to +160° and read by vernier with tangent screw and swinging magnifier to single minutes of arc. One trade card in the box is that of Thomas Hemsley (either father or son) who were in business in London throughout the first half of the 19th century, offering a wide variety of instruments and other items for navigational use.
Ref: Gloria Clifton, Directory of British Scientific Instrument Makers 1550-1851 (London, 1995), p. 132.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
19th century
ID Number
1980.0075.02
accession number
1980.0075
catalog number
1980.0075.02

Sextant

This sextant belonged to Haverford College, and probably dates from the second half of the 19th century. The frame is brass. The silvered scale is graduated every 15 minutes from -5° to +130° and read by vernier with tangent screw and swinging magnifier to single minutes of arc.
Description
This sextant belonged to Haverford College, and probably dates from the second half of the 19th century. The frame is brass. The silvered scale is graduated every 15 minutes from -5° to +130° and read by vernier with tangent screw and swinging magnifier to single minutes of arc. The arc is engraved "JOHN BRUCE & SON, Liverpool."
Location
Currently not on view
date made
mid 19th century
maker
John Bruce & Son
ID Number
1981.0745.07
catalog number
1981.0745.07
accession number
1981.0745

Mechanical Log

William Petit Trowbridge was an 1848 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy who, while employed by the U.S. Coast Survey, worked to develop improved methods for determining the speed of a ship and the distance to the sea bottom.
Description
William Petit Trowbridge was an 1848 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy who, while employed by the U.S. Coast Survey, worked to develop improved methods for determining the speed of a ship and the distance to the sea bottom. This log came from Columbia University where Trowbridge served as professor of engineering in the years 1877-1892. Although the instrument is not signed, the box is marked "Ship’s Log and Sounding Instrument Combined. Devised by W. P. Trowbridge in 1863".
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
PH.322965
catalog number
322965
accession number
249200

Box Sextant

A box (or pocket) sextant works like a traditional sextant, but here the mechanism is enclosed in a brass box of about 3 inches diameter.
Description
A box (or pocket) sextant works like a traditional sextant, but here the mechanism is enclosed in a brass box of about 3 inches diameter. William Jones, a leading instrument maker in London, introduced the form in 1797.
This example has a silvered scale that is graduated every 30 minutes from -5° to +145° and read by vernier to single minutes of arc. The inscription reads "H. HUGHES & SON, LTD. LONDON No 510 1918." The inscription on the leather case reads "T. J. WEEKS & SONS 1916."
Ref: William Jones, "Description of a New Pocket Box Sextant," in George Adams, Geometrical and Graphical Essays, 2nd ed. by William Jones, (London, 1797), pp. 283-285.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
early 20th century
after 1903
maker
Hughes
ID Number
PH.336361
catalog number
336361
accession number
1977.1038

Ware Solar Compass

Patent model for Ralph Reeder, "Mariner's Time Compass," U.S. Patent #4,964 (1847). The inscription reads: "Ralph Reeder Patentee, Cincinnati, Ohio.
Description
Patent model for Ralph Reeder, "Mariner's Time Compass," U.S. Patent #4,964 (1847). The inscription reads: "Ralph Reeder Patentee, Cincinnati, Ohio. HENRY WARE, MAKER, CINCINNATI, O." Henry Ware (1810-1885) was a leading instrument maker in Cincinnati.
Scientific American reported that this instrument combines "three important uses." It shows "the local variation of the magnetic needle with unerring certainty," "the altitude of the sun, and thus enables the mariner readily to compute latitude." and "the true time" and thus "by the aid of the chronometer, shows the longitude." Despite journal's opinion that Reeder’s instrument "appears to be a practically useful invention," the Mariner’s Time-Compass was not a commercial success.
Ref: "Improved Nautical Instrument," Scientific American 12 (1856): 4.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1840s
maker
Henry Ware
ID Number
PH.309345
catalog number
309345
accession number
89797
patent number
4,964

Box Sextant

A box (or pocket) sextant works like a traditional sextant, but here the mechanism is enclosed in a brass box of about 3 inches diameter.
Description
A box (or pocket) sextant works like a traditional sextant, but here the mechanism is enclosed in a brass box of about 3 inches diameter. William Jones, a leading instrument maker in London, introduced the form in 1797.
This example has a silvered scale that is graduated every 30 minutes from -3° to +148° and read by vernier with swinging magnifier to single minutes of arc. The "Gilbert & Sons, London" inscription above the magnifier refers to a Navigation Warehouse in London that flourished from 1806 to 1819.
Ref: William Jones, "Description of a New Pocket Box Sextant," in George Adams, Geometrical and Graphical Essays, 2nd ed. by William Jones, (London, 1797), pp. 283-285.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
early 19th century
maker
Gilbert and Sons
ID Number
PH.318442
accession number
234476
catalog number
318442

Ritchie Liquid Compass

This compass–with six needles, and a flat card with central buoyancy–was Ritchie’s most successful design and was widely used by American merchant ships and the U.S. Navy. The Ritchie ledgers, now held by Ritchie Navigation, indicate that this example was manufactured on Jan.
Description
This compass–with six needles, and a flat card with central buoyancy–was Ritchie’s most successful design and was widely used by American merchant ships and the U.S. Navy. The Ritchie ledgers, now held by Ritchie Navigation, indicate that this example was manufactured on Jan. 5, 1873 and sold to one L. J. Sloane. The U.S. Coast & Geodetic Survey acquired it in 1914, and transferred it to the Smithsonian in 1929. The inscriptions read "E. S. RITCHIE BOSTON. PATENTED SEPT. 9, 1862. APL. 7, 1863. MAY 12, 1868. July 19, 1870" and "6937" and "U.S.C.&G.S."
Ritchie’s patent of Sept. 9, 1862 (#36,422) described a liquid compass so designed that the liquid would not oxidize the magnet or card, and that the friction and wear of the pivot and its bearing was minimized. Ritchie obtained two patents on April 7, 1863. One (#38,125) described a needle enclosed in an air-tight metallic case; the other (#38,126) described a liquid compass that could be read at a distance so it would not be affected by any iron on or about the deck of a ship. Ritchie’s patent of May 12, 1868 (#77,763) described a paint that would not deteriorate in the liquid in the compass. His patent of July 19, 1870 (#105,492) described a way to hold the glass in place with a water-tight joint..
Ref: E. S. Ritchie & Sons, Ritchie’s Liquid Compasses and Nautical Instruments (ca. 1905).
T. S. & J. D. Negus, Illustrated Catalogue of Nautical Instruments (New York, n.d.), p. 204.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1873
maker
Ritchie, Edward S.
ID Number
PH.309656
catalog number
309656
accession number
106954

Sextant

This sextant has a blackened brass frame. The silvered scale is graduated every 10 minutes from about -5° to +155° and read by vernier with tangent screw and swinging magnifier to single seconds of arc. The inscription reads "C.
Description
This sextant has a blackened brass frame. The silvered scale is graduated every 10 minutes from about -5° to +155° and read by vernier with tangent screw and swinging magnifier to single seconds of arc. The inscription reads "C. Plath Hamburg" and "2625." The serial number suggests that it was made around 1906. Captain Paul K. R. Salo acquired it in California in the early 1930s.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1906
maker
C. Plath
ID Number
PH.333959
accession number
310550
catalog number
333959

Sextant

This sextant was made for emergency use during World War II. The body is plastic. The scale is graduated every degree from -5° to +140° and read by vernier to 3 minutes of arc. The box is marked "U.S. MARITIME COMMISSION / CRUVER MFG.
Description
This sextant was made for emergency use during World War II. The body is plastic. The scale is graduated every degree from -5° to +140° and read by vernier to 3 minutes of arc. The box is marked "U.S. MARITIME COMMISSION / CRUVER MFG. CO." The Cruver Manufacturing Co., in Chicago, began making novelty objects of plastic in the early 1900s. The U.S. Maritime Commission (fl. 1936 to 1950) was responsible for further developing and maintaining a merchant marine for the promotion of American commerce and defense.
Ref: W. J. Eckert, Lifeboat Sextant. Instructions for Use in Finding Latitude and Longitude Together with Simple Sailing Instructions (U.S. Naval Observatory, 1944).
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1940s
maker
Cruver Manufacturing Company
ID Number
2003.0334.01
catalog number
2003.0334.01
accession number
2003.0334

Dry Card Compass

Dry-card nautical compass with a turned wooden bowl gimbal mounted in a wooden box. The "S. THAXTER MAKER No 27 STATE STREET BOSTON" inscription indicates a date between 1813 when Samuel Thaxter moved to No. 27 State Street, and 1822 when the firm became S. Thaxter & Son.
Description
Dry-card nautical compass with a turned wooden bowl gimbal mounted in a wooden box. The "S. THAXTER MAKER No 27 STATE STREET BOSTON" inscription indicates a date between 1813 when Samuel Thaxter moved to No. 27 State Street, and 1822 when the firm became S. Thaxter & Son. The donor believed it had belonged to his distant ancestor, Simon Mellon, and was used in a whaling vessel in the Bering Sea.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1813-1822
maker
Thaxter, Samuel
ID Number
1995.0014.01
accession number
1995.0014
catalog number
1995.0014.01

Reflecting Circle

This incomplete example of an unusual type of reflecting circle came from the U.S. Naval Observatory. It may have belonged to the Navy’s Depot of Charts and Instruments, and thus date from the 1830s. The inscription reads "Dollond London."Currently not on view
Description
This incomplete example of an unusual type of reflecting circle came from the U.S. Naval Observatory. It may have belonged to the Navy’s Depot of Charts and Instruments, and thus date from the 1830s. The inscription reads "Dollond London."
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Dollond
ID Number
PH.327707
catalog number
327707
accession number
283654

Telescope (Spyglass)

The tube of this telescope consists of two threaded wooden (mahogany) sections screwed together that measure 113 cm (closed) or 117.5 cm (fully extended). The achromatic objective lens measures 3.5 cm in diameter (or 3.4 cm clear diameter).
Description
The tube of this telescope consists of two threaded wooden (mahogany) sections screwed together that measure 113 cm (closed) or 117.5 cm (fully extended). The achromatic objective lens measures 3.5 cm in diameter (or 3.4 cm clear diameter). The eyepiece consists of four lenses in a brass cylinder (5 separate brass cylinders, screwed together) with a sliding brass cover. The instrument gives gives an erect (terrestrial) image.
The "Nairne, London" inscription on the sliding brass lens cover refers to the important instrument maker, Edward Nairne (1726-1806).
Ref: D.J. Warner, "Edwarne Nairne: Scientist and Instrument Maker," Rittenhouse 12 (1998): 65-93.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Nairne, Edward
ID Number
PH.325412
accession number
256202
catalog number
325412

Sextant

This sextant is somewhat unusual in that it has a brass frame, reinforced brass index arm, and ivory (rather than metal) scale. This scale is graduated every 20 minutes from -5° to +125° and read by vernier with tangent screw and swinging magnifier to 30 seconds of arc.
Description
This sextant is somewhat unusual in that it has a brass frame, reinforced brass index arm, and ivory (rather than metal) scale. This scale is graduated every 20 minutes from -5° to +125° and read by vernier with tangent screw and swinging magnifier to 30 seconds of arc. The "Spencer Browning & Co., London" inscription on the arc refers to a firm that was in business from 1840 to 1870.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1840-1870
maker
Spencer, Browning & Co.
ID Number
1981.0942.01
catalog number
1981.0942.01
accession number
1981.0942

Capt. Field's Improved Hinged Parallel Rule Signed Henry Hughes & Son

This 21" German silver hinged parallel rule has two small knobs for positioning the instrument. Brass round pieces cover the screws securing the two hinges. An indentation is on both blades at the center of the rule, with a line marking the center.
Description
This 21" German silver hinged parallel rule has two small knobs for positioning the instrument. Brass round pieces cover the screws securing the two hinges. An indentation is on both blades at the center of the rule, with a line marking the center. The edges of the top blade are marked as a rectangular protractor, and the edges of the bottom blade are marked for nautical compass points.
The center of the top blade is marked: U. S. C. & G. S. NO. 331. The right end of the top blade is marked: CAPT. FIELD'S IMPD. The right end of the lower blade is marked: H. HUGHES & SON LTD. LONDON. The left end has the firm's "HUSUN" logo, with a sun above the letters and waves below the letters.
Capt. William Andrew Field (about 1796–1871) of Britain added a protractor and compass scales to hinged parallel rules in 1854. This made it easier for ship navigators to move the rule without losing track of the ship's course. Henry Hughes & Son made marine and aeronautical navigational instruments in London from 1828 to 1947 and incorporated in 1903. According to the accession file, the U.S. Coast & Geodetic Survey acquired this rule on August 21, 1919, and last issued it on September 5, 1922. Compare to MA.309662 and MA.309663.
References: "Field's Parallel Rule," The Nautical Magazine and Naval Chronicle 23, no. 5 (May 1854): 280; Peggy A. Kidwell, "American Parallel Rules: Invention on the Fringes of Industry," Rittenhouse 10, no. 39 (1996): 90–96; National Maritime Museum, "Captain Field's Improved Parallel Rule," Object ID NAV0602, http://collections.rmg.co.uk/collections/objects/42814.html; Science Museum Group, "Henry Hughes and Son Limited," Collections Online – People, http://collectionsonline.nmsi.ac.uk/detail.php?type=related&kv=58792&t=people.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1919
ID Number
MA.309661
catalog number
309661
accession number
106954

Octant

Octant with an ebony frame and reinforced brass index arm. The ivory scale is graduated every 20 minutes from -2° to +107° and read by vernier and tangent screw to single minutes of arc.The "R. L.
Description
Octant with an ebony frame and reinforced brass index arm. The ivory scale is graduated every 20 minutes from -2° to +107° and read by vernier and tangent screw to single minutes of arc.
The "R. L. Shaw New York" inscription is that of Robert Ludlow Shaw (1813-1876), one of the first Americans to manufacture octants, sextants, and other nautical instruments. At the American Institute Fair of 1841 he won a gold medal for work done with his large dividing engine "of the celebrated Ramsden construction, the same as is used by the London manufacturers," the president of the American Institute intoning that "it was no longer necessary to send to a foreign country to procure Nautical Instruments, as they could now have them made at home as good, and at as low prices as they could be had from abroad."
Ref: Deborah J. Warner, "American Octants and Sextants: The Early Years," Rittenhouse 3 (1989): 86-112, on 108.
Anne Preuss and Don Treworgy, "Robert Ludlow Shaw," Rittenhouse 2 (1988): 65-69.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1845-1876
maker
Shaw, Robert Ludlow
ID Number
1995.0035.01
accession number
1995.0035
catalog number
1995.0035.01

Jorges Dry Card Compass (replica)

This compass has a wooden bowl, paper card, and wooden box with gimbal mounts. It is a replica of an instrument in the Whipple Museum of the History of Science at Cambridge University, that may be the earliest extant dry card compass.
Description
This compass has a wooden bowl, paper card, and wooden box with gimbal mounts. It is a replica of an instrument in the Whipple Museum of the History of Science at Cambridge University, that may be the earliest extant dry card compass. The inscription reads "Jorges da Costa / Mivanda afez em / Lisboa Anno 1711."
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Jorges
ID Number
PH.315105
catalog number
315105
accession number
216644

Sextant

Keuffel & Esser termed this a "high grade" sextant as made for the U.S. Navy. The frame is gun metal. The scale is silvered, graduated every 10 minutes from -5° to 155° and read by vernier with tangent screw and magnifier to 10 seconds of arc.
Description
Keuffel & Esser termed this a "high grade" sextant as made for the U.S. Navy. The frame is gun metal. The scale is silvered, graduated every 10 minutes from -5° to 155° and read by vernier with tangent screw and magnifier to 10 seconds of arc. The inscription reads "KEUFFEL & ESSER Co NEW YORK 4652." The serial number indicates that it was made in 1900. New it cost $120.
Ref: Keuffel & Esser, Catalogue (New York, 1906), p. 414.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1900
maker
Keuffel & Esser Co.
ID Number
2003.3107.01
catalog number
2003.3107.01
nonaccession number
2003.3107

Telescope (Spyglass)

Spyglass with an achromatic objective, four-element erecting eye piece, and brass body covered with leather. The "TRADE MARK / TRY ME (with image of fouled anchor)" inscription is also seen on English telescopes inscribed I. P. Cutts, Sutton & Son.S.
Description
Spyglass with an achromatic objective, four-element erecting eye piece, and brass body covered with leather. The "TRADE MARK / TRY ME (with image of fouled anchor)" inscription is also seen on English telescopes inscribed I. P. Cutts, Sutton & Son.
S. Thaxter & Son, nautical instrument dealers in Boston, sent this spyglass to the Smithsonian in 1880. The U.S. Fish Commission included it in its display at the International Fisheries Exhibition held in London in 1883, and perhaps in the similar Exhibition held in Berlin in 1880 as well.
Ref: G. Brown Goode, et. al., Descriptive Catalogues of the Collections Sent from the United States to the International Fisheries Exhibition, London, 1883 (Washington, D.C., 1884), vol. 2, p. 728.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
I. P. Cutts, Sutton & Sons
ID Number
PH.39392
catalog number
39392
accession number
8745

Tell-Tale Compass

This compass has a turned wooden bowl and card that can be seen from above and below.
Description
This compass has a turned wooden bowl and card that can be seen from above and below. The inscriptions read "SYBRAND WITTEVEEN in Amsterdam" and "1793 SW." Sybrand Witteveen was born around 1769 in the Dutch province of Friesland, married in Amsterdam in 1794, and died sometime after 1813.
Ref: Sybrich ter Kuile and W. F. J. Mörzer Bruyns, "Amsterdamse kompasmakers ca. 1580 - ca. 1850. Bijdrage tot de kennis van de instrumentmakerij in Nederland (Amsterdam, 1999), p. 109.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1793
maker
Witteveen, Sybrand
ID Number
PH.326474
catalog number
326474
accession number
260031

Telescope (Spyglass)

This telescope has an achromatic objective, a two-draw brass body covered with brown leather, and an amber-colored solar filter. An inscription reads "U.S. NAVY / OFFICER OF THE DECK SPYGLASS / POWER 12½ / KEUFFEL & ESSER CO N.Y. / N 3224."The U.S.
Description
This telescope has an achromatic objective, a two-draw brass body covered with brown leather, and an amber-colored solar filter. An inscription reads "U.S. NAVY / OFFICER OF THE DECK SPYGLASS / POWER 12½ / KEUFFEL & ESSER CO N.Y. / N 3224."
The U.S. Coast & Geodetic Survey acquired this instrument in 1920 and transferred it to the Smithsonian in 1929.
Ref: Keuffel & Esser, Catalogue (New York, 1921). P. 413.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Keuffel & Esser Co.
ID Number
PH.309651
catalog number
309651
accession number
106954

Sextant

This sextant has a brass frame. The silvered scale is graduated every 10 minutes from -5° to +145° and read by vernier with tangent screw and swinging magnifier to single minutes of arc.
Description
This sextant has a brass frame. The silvered scale is graduated every 10 minutes from -5° to +145° and read by vernier with tangent screw and swinging magnifier to single minutes of arc. The inscriptions read "Frodsham, Liverpool" and "2602." It came from Vassar College, and may have been used by the professor of astronomy, Maria Mitchell.
Ref: Gloria Clifton, Directory of British Scientific Instrument Makers 1550-1851 (London, 1995), p. 106.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1865
maker
Charles Frodsham
ID Number
1980.0318.03
catalog number
1980.0318.03
accession number
1980.0318

Octant

Octant with a rosewood frame, flat brass index arm, and ivory name plate. The ivory scale is graduated every 20 minutes from -5° to +95° and read by vernier to 2 minutes of arc.
Description
Octant with a rosewood frame, flat brass index arm, and ivory name plate. The ivory scale is graduated every 20 minutes from -5° to +95° and read by vernier to 2 minutes of arc. The inscription reads "Made by Thos Ripley London For Frans Earle July 21st 1784." Thomas Ripley was in business from 1765 to 1790, offering mathematical and optical instruments. Caroline Bates, the widow of Major General Alfred Elliott Bates, gave this to the Smithsonian in 1916.
Ref: Gloria Clifton, Directory of British Scientific Instrument Makers 1550-1851 (London, 1895), p.233.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1784
maker
Ripley, Thomas
ID Number
PH.290534
catalog number
290534
accession number
59652

Box Sextant

A box (or pocket) sextant works like a traditional sextant, but here the mechanism is enclosed in a brass box of about 3 inches diameter. William Jones, a leading instrument maker in London, introduced the form in 1797.This example was probably made around 1900.
Description
A box (or pocket) sextant works like a traditional sextant, but here the mechanism is enclosed in a brass box of about 3 inches diameter. William Jones, a leading instrument maker in London, introduced the form in 1797.
This example was probably made around 1900. New, it cost $40. The silvered scale is graduated every 30 minutes from -5° to +150° and read by vernier with swinging magnifier to single minutes of arc. The inscription reads "KEUFFEL & ESSER CO. N.Y. MADE IN ENGLAND."
Ref: William Jones, "Description of a New Pocket Box Sextant," in George Adams, Geometrical and Graphical Essays, 2nd ed. by William Jones, (London, 1797), pp. 283-285.
Keuffel & Esser, Catalogue (New York, 1906), p. 415.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
around 1900
associated person
Keuffel, William J. D.
Esser, Herman
dealer
Keuffel & Esser Co.
ID Number
PH.333639
accession number
300659
catalog number
333639

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