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: Thermometers and Hygrometers

Kiosk Thermometer

This is a mercury-in-glass thermometer with a mile-white back that reads from -40 to +110 degrees Fahrenheit. Its lower part is bent so that the cylindrical bulb protrudes out the back of the supporting black metal plate. This plate is marked, at top, “U.S.
Description
This is a mercury-in-glass thermometer with a mile-white back that reads from -40 to +110 degrees Fahrenheit. Its lower part is bent so that the cylindrical bulb protrudes out the back of the supporting black metal plate. This plate is marked, at top, “U.S. / WEATHER BUREAU / No 2” and in the middle “Taylor Instrument Companies / ROCHESTER, N.Y.” It is also marked “Tycos” with a flag announcing the company logo, “ACCURATUS TB.”
The Weather Bureau began building kiosks in 1909, equipping them with meteorological instruments, and placing them around the country where they would be seen by citizens. This thermometer was designed for that purpose, and probably was not available commercially.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1910
maker
Taylor Instrument Co.
ID Number
PH.314534
catalog number
314534
accession number
204612

Minimum Thermometer

Alcohol-in-glass Rutherford-type thermometer mounted on a brass plate marked "J. & H. J. GREEN NEW YORK" and "YALE MIN. STD. MAY 1881. CORNING GLASS, SQUIBBS ETHER" and "SIGNAL SERVICE U.S. ARMY No. 3." The plate is graduated every 5 degrees F. from 0 to +250.
Description
Alcohol-in-glass Rutherford-type thermometer mounted on a brass plate marked "J. & H. J. GREEN NEW YORK" and "YALE MIN. STD. MAY 1881. CORNING GLASS, SQUIBBS ETHER" and "SIGNAL SERVICE U.S. ARMY No. 3." The plate is graduated every 5 degrees F. from 0 to +250. The back of the stem is milk white. The clear front is graduated (but not numbered) every degree from 0 to +250.
John Rutherford, a Scottish country doctor, devised this form in 1790. Green stated in 1900 that it was "the only one in general use." It has a black index inside the tube. "On a decrease of temperature the alcohol recedes, taking with it the glass index; on an increase of temperature the alcohol alone ascends the tube, leaving the end of the index farthest from the bulb indicating the minimum temperature."
Ref.: Henry J. Green, Meteorological and Scientific Instruments (Brooklyn, 1900), p. 23.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1879-1885
maker
J. & H. J. Green
ID Number
PH.328772
accession number
277511
catalog number
328772

Daniell Hygrometer

John Frederic Daniell, a young English natural philosopher, described this type of hygrometer in 1820. It consists of two glass balls, one partially filled with ether and the other covered with muslin, connected by a thin tube from which the air has been evacuated.
Description
John Frederic Daniell, a young English natural philosopher, described this type of hygrometer in 1820. It consists of two glass balls, one partially filled with ether and the other covered with muslin, connected by a thin tube from which the air has been evacuated. There is a thermometer in the tube above the ball with the ether, and another on the supporting stand. When a few drops of ether are poured onto the muslin, their evaporation chills the covered ball; that in turn causes the ether vapor inside the instrument to condense, thereby cooling the other ball and causing dew to form on its surface.
The stand of this example is wood. The interior thermometer has a paper inside the stem that is graduated every degree from +13 to +120. The exterior thermometer is mounted on a white porcelain plate that is marked "Fahrenheit" and graduated every degree from -20 to +122.
This example came from the United States Military Academy, and may date from the middle years of the nineteenth century.
Ref: J. F. Daniell, "On a new Hygrometer, which Measures the Force and Weight of Aqueous Vapour in the Atmosphere, and the Corresponding Degree of Evaporation," Quarterly Journal of Science 8 (1820): 298-336.
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
PH.315734
catalog number
315734
accession number
217544

Hygrometer (replica)

This is a modern replica of the oat-beard hygrometer that was designed by the English natural philosopher Robert Hooke and illustrated in his Micrographia (London, 1665). The inscription reads "Eichner Fecit MCMLIX"Currently not on view
Description
This is a modern replica of the oat-beard hygrometer that was designed by the English natural philosopher Robert Hooke and illustrated in his Micrographia (London, 1665). The inscription reads "Eichner Fecit MCMLIX"
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Eichner, Laurits Christian
ID Number
PH.316858
accession number
228484
catalog number
316858

Winlock & Huddleston Psychrometer

This is the model that Joseph Winlock, a professor of astronomy at Harvard College, and John S. F. Huddleston, a thermometer and barometer maker in Boston, submitted along with their patent application in 1873.
Description
This is the model that Joseph Winlock, a professor of astronomy at Harvard College, and John S. F. Huddleston, a thermometer and barometer maker in Boston, submitted along with their patent application in 1873. The wet bulb thermometer is mounted on a brass plate that is marked "HUDDLESTON BOSTON" and graduated every degree Fahrenheit from +10 to +115. The dry bulb thermometer is missing.
The wooden tower holds a rotating chart that indicates relative humidity, and carries a brass plate graduated every degree from +6 to +113. The patent described "a simple, efficient, and convenient means of determining the relative humidity of the atmosphere or the dew-point, so called, without calculation."
Ref: J. Winlock and J. S F. Huddleston, "Psychrometer," U.S. Patent 149176 (issued 1874).
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1873
maker
Huddleston, John S. F.
Winlock, Joseph
ID Number
PH.309319
catalog number
309319
accession number
89797
patent number
149,176

Minimum Thermometer

Rutherford-type alcohol-in-glass thermometer with a spherical bulb. The back of the tube is milk white; the front has a scale that extends from -40 to +108, marked in degrees; the side is marked “U.S. 2795.”Currently not on view
Description
Rutherford-type alcohol-in-glass thermometer with a spherical bulb. The back of the tube is milk white; the front has a scale that extends from -40 to +108, marked in degrees; the side is marked “U.S. 2795.”
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
PH.317468
catalog number
317468
accession number
230396

Daniell Hygrometer

John Frederic Daniell, a young English natural philosopher, described this type of instrument in 1820. It consists of two glass balls, one partially filled with ether and the other covered with muslin, connected by a thin tube from which the air has been evacuated.
Description
John Frederic Daniell, a young English natural philosopher, described this type of instrument in 1820. It consists of two glass balls, one partially filled with ether and the other covered with muslin, connected by a thin tube from which the air has been evacuated. There is a thermometer in the tube above the ball with the ether, and another on the supporting stand. When a few drops of ether are poured on the muslin, their evaporation chills the covered ball; that in turn causes the ether vapor inside the instrument to condense, thereby cooling the other ball and causing dew to form on its surface. These instruments, Daniell said, were "accurately constructed, and packed in a box for the pocket, by Mr. Newman, Lisle-Street." The reference was to John Frederick Newman, a noted instrument maker in London.
The stand of this example is metal. The interior thermometer is mounted on a white ivory plate, the front is graduated every degree Fahrenheit from +15 to +95, and the back is marked "5 x 31 J. NEWMAN LONDON." The exterior thermometer is missing, and the dry bulb is broken. The U.S. Military Academy purchased it sometime between 1831 and 1844.
Ref: J. F. Daniell, "On a New Hygrometer, which Measures the Force and Weight of Aqueous Vapour in the Atmosphere, and the Corresponding Degree of Evaporation," Quarterly Journal of Science 8 (1820): 298-336.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1831-1844
maker
J. Newman
ID Number
PH.315733
catalog number
315733
accession number
217544

Edson's Hygrodeik

William Edson, a civil engineer in Boston, designed a "Hygrometrical Index" that, when connected to a common wet and dry bulb hydrometer, "will enable any one, by simple inspection of the instrument, to ascertain the relative humidity and dew-point of the air, also the absolute a
Description
William Edson, a civil engineer in Boston, designed a "Hygrometrical Index" that, when connected to a common wet and dry bulb hydrometer, "will enable any one, by simple inspection of the instrument, to ascertain the relative humidity and dew-point of the air, also the absolute amount of moisture in the air, without the aid of tables or calculation." In this example, which came from Cornell College, the paper chart is marked "EDSON'S HYGRODEIK MANUFACTURED BY N.M. LOWE, BOSTON." Nathaniel M. Lowe is known to have manufactured Edson's Hygrodeik from 1866 until the early 1890s.
Ref: William Edson, "Hydrometer," U.S. Patent 48620 (1865), as well as similar patents in England and France.
William Edson, The Use of Edson's Hygrodeik (1865).
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1866-1895
maker
Lowe, Nathaniel M.
ID Number
PH.329004
catalog number
329004
accession number
278100

Thermometer

Simple mercury-in-glass thermometer with a brass scale housed in a maple case suitable for hanging on the wall. The scale is graduated in degrees from -40 to +150. and marked "C.J. Tagliabue Mfg. Co. Bklyn. N.Y. Made in U.S.A."Currently not on view
Description
Simple mercury-in-glass thermometer with a brass scale housed in a maple case suitable for hanging on the wall. The scale is graduated in degrees from -40 to +150. and marked "C.J. Tagliabue Mfg. Co. Bklyn. N.Y. Made in U.S.A."
Location
Currently not on view
date made
after 1885
maker
C. J. Tagliabue Manufacturing Company
ID Number
PH.335521
catalog number
335521
accession number
321714

Thermometer

This mercury-in-glass thermometer has a cylindrical bulb. A milk white plate carries a scale that ranges from -20 to +360 degrees Centigrade graduated every degree. The back of the plate is marked “72.” The thermometer tube is joined to the plate only at the top.
Description
This mercury-in-glass thermometer has a cylindrical bulb. A milk white plate carries a scale that ranges from -20 to +360 degrees Centigrade graduated every degree. The back of the plate is marked “72.” The thermometer tube is joined to the plate only at the top. The whole is enclosed in a glass tube. It came from the Chemistry Department at the Johns Hopkins University.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1900
ID Number
CH.315872
catalog number
315872
accession number
221777

Hygrograph

This instrument is marked "Hygrograph SOFNJ No. 2133 Julien P. Friez & Sons Baltimore Md. U.S.A." The firm began trading under this name in 1914; it became the Friez Instrument Division of Bendix in 1930.Ref: Julien P.
Description
This instrument is marked "Hygrograph SOFNJ No. 2133 Julien P. Friez & Sons Baltimore Md. U.S.A." The firm began trading under this name in 1914; it became the Friez Instrument Division of Bendix in 1930.
Ref: Julien P. Friez & Sons, Hygrograph, or Self Registering Hygrometer (Baltimore, 1908).
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Friez, Julien P.
Julien P. Friez & Sons, Inc.
ID Number
PH.327634
accession number
268279
catalog number
327634

Thermometer

Mercury-in-glass thermometer with a fairly large cylindrical bulb that could probably float in water.
Description
Mercury-in-glass thermometer with a fairly large cylindrical bulb that could probably float in water. An auxiliary glass tube attached to the stem holds a hand-written piece of paper marked “Thermometre Selon Fahrenheit et Decimal par Pixii rue du Jardinet N° 2 A Paris.” This paper also carries two parallel scales. One extends from -30 to +127 graduated every degree, with indications for “Glace Tempere” at zero and “Eau Bte” at 100. The other extends from -22 to +260, graduated every 2 degrees.
This thermometer was made between 1818 and 1838 when Pixii worked at rue du Jardinet N° 2. It may have belonged to the American scientist, John William Draper.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1818-1838
maker
Maison Pixii
ID Number
PH.333986
accession number
304826
catalog number
333986

Minimum Thermometer

This unfinished alcohol-in-glass Rutherford-type thermometer has a spherical bulb. The back of the tube is milk white; there is no scale on the front.Currently not on view
Description
This unfinished alcohol-in-glass Rutherford-type thermometer has a spherical bulb. The back of the tube is milk white; there is no scale on the front.
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
PH.317461
catalog number
317461
accession number
230396

Thermometer

This mercury-in-glass thermometer has a bend in the stem that accommodates a white porcelain plate. This plate carries a scale that extends from -23 to +50 degrees, graduated in fifths; it is marked “Celsius” and, at zero degrees, “E.P.” (German for ice point).
Description
This mercury-in-glass thermometer has a bend in the stem that accommodates a white porcelain plate. This plate carries a scale that extends from -23 to +50 degrees, graduated in fifths; it is marked “Celsius” and, at zero degrees, “E.P.” (German for ice point). The whole is enclosed in an outer glass casing with a brass cap.
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
PH.316446
catalog number
316446
accession number
223721

Bimetallic Pocket Thermometer

This lovely bibelot, which probably dates from the 19th century, has a silvered case like a pocket watch. Several concentric scales on the white porcelain face show the temperature according to various scales.
Description
This lovely bibelot, which probably dates from the 19th century, has a silvered case like a pocket watch. Several concentric scales on the white porcelain face show the temperature according to various scales. The one marked "REAU" refers to René Antoine Ferchault de Réaumur, a French scientist who, in 1730, proposed a temperature scale according to which water froze at 0 degrees and boiled at 80 degrees. The one marked "FAHR" refers to Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit, a Polish scientist who in 1724 propsed a temperature scale according to which water froze at 32 degrees and boiled at 212 degrees.
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
PH.325408
catalog number
325408
accession number
256201

Thermometer

Mercury-in-glass thermometer with a milk-white back, held in a cylindrical brass housing. The scale reads from 20 to 220 degrees Fahrenheit and from -6 to +87 degrees Reaumur. It was probably made by Hohmann & Maurer, and it came to the Smithsonian in 1923.Currently not on view
Description
Mercury-in-glass thermometer with a milk-white back, held in a cylindrical brass housing. The scale reads from 20 to 220 degrees Fahrenheit and from -6 to +87 degrees Reaumur. It was probably made by Hohmann & Maurer, and it came to the Smithsonian in 1923.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1885-1908
ID Number
PH.308159
catalog number
308159
accession number
70532

Maximum Thermometer

This thermometer is so designed that an air bubble separates a small amount of mercury from the main part of the column.
Description
This thermometer is so designed that an air bubble separates a small amount of mercury from the main part of the column. When the instrument is mounted horizontally, the detached mercury remains in place when the rest of the column falls, thereby indicating the maximum temperature. John Phillips, an English geologist, introduced the form at the 1832 meeting of the British Association for the Advancement of Science. In 1856 he showed an improved form made by Louis P. Casella of London.
Appleton's Encyclopaedia noted in 1860 that James Green of New York "appears to have removed the objections to the previous forms of the maximum thermometers, and produced a highly simple and perfect instrument." Henry J. Green, who was James Green's nephew and successor, also made instruments of this sort. This example has a grooved aluminum plate that is marked "H. J. GREEN B'KLYN. N.Y." and "NO. 9746 U. S. WEATHER BUREAU" and "MAXIMUM." The plate is graduated every 5 degrees Fahrenheit from -20 to +125. The bulb is spherical. The stem is marked "U.S. 9746" and is graduated every degree F. from -22 to +126. It was made between 1890 (when H. J. Green moved his business to Brooklyn) and 1904 (when it came to the Smithsonian).
Ref.: Henry J. Green, Meteorological and Scientific Instruments (Brooklyn, 1900), p. 22.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1900
maker
H. J. Green
ID Number
PH.230005
catalog number
230005
accession number
42625

Mercury Thermometer

This tiny mercury-in-glass thermometer is mounted on a silver scale that extends from -20 to +40 degrees, and that is marked "Reaur." The reference is to René Antoine Ferchault de Réaumur, a French scientist who, in 1730, proposed a temperature scale according to which water froz
Description
This tiny mercury-in-glass thermometer is mounted on a silver scale that extends from -20 to +40 degrees, and that is marked "Reaur." The reference is to René Antoine Ferchault de Réaumur, a French scientist who, in 1730, proposed a temperature scale according to which water froze at 0 degrees and boiled at 80 degrees. The thermometer is protected by a black leather case, and was probably designed for a traveler.
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
PH.325407
catalog number
325407
accession number
256201

Minimum Thermometer

This apparently unfinished alcohol-in-glass Rutherford-type thermometer has a spherical bulb. The back of the tube is milk white; the front carries a scale that extends from -68.0 to +127.0 marked in degrees; the side is marked “918.”Currently not on view
Description
This apparently unfinished alcohol-in-glass Rutherford-type thermometer has a spherical bulb. The back of the tube is milk white; the front carries a scale that extends from -68.0 to +127.0 marked in degrees; the side is marked “918.”
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
PH.317460
catalog number
317460
accession number
230396

Minimum Thermometer

This alcohol-in-glass Rutherford-type thermometer is mounted on a silvered brass plate that is marked "H. J. GREEN B'KLYN. N.Y." and "NO. 7390 U. S. WEATHER BUREAU" and "MINIMUM" and graduated every 5 degrees Fahrenheit from -35 to +105. The stem is graduated every degree F.
Description
This alcohol-in-glass Rutherford-type thermometer is mounted on a silvered brass plate that is marked "H. J. GREEN B'KLYN. N.Y." and "NO. 7390 U. S. WEATHER BUREAU" and "MINIMUM" and graduated every 5 degrees Fahrenheit from -35 to +105. The stem is graduated every degree F. from -39 to +117. The thermometer was made between 1890 (when H. J. Green moved his business to Brooklyn) and 1904 (when it came to the Smithsonian).
John Rutherford, a Scottish country doctor, devised this form in 1790. Green stated in 1900 that it was "the only one in general use." It has a black index inside the tube. "On a decrease of temperature the alcohol recedes, taking with it the glass index; on an increase of temperature the alcohol alone ascends the tube, leaving the end of the index farthest from the bulb indicating the minimum temperature."
Ref: Henry J. Green, Meteorological and Scientific Instruments (Brooklyn, 1900), p. 23.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1900
maker
H. J. Green
ID Number
PH.230006
catalog number
230006
accession number
42625

Thermometer

Small mercury-in-glass thermometer mounted on a flat ivory plate that is marked "J. GREEN N.Y." and graduated every degree [Fahrenheit?] from +185 to +245. There are no graduations or marks on the stem.
Description
Small mercury-in-glass thermometer mounted on a flat ivory plate that is marked "J. GREEN N.Y." and graduated every degree [Fahrenheit?] from +185 to +245. There are no graduations or marks on the stem. It was made between 1849 (when James Green began in business in New York) and 1879 (when he took his nephew into partnership and began trading as J. & H. J. Green). It came to the Smithsonian from the U.S. Military Academy.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1849-1879
maker
Green, James
ID Number
PH.316452
accession number
223721
catalog number
316452

Thermometer

This mercury-in-glass thermometer has a cylindrical bulb. The back of the stem is milk white; the front carries a scale, on its upper part, that extends from 100 to 200, graduated by degrees Centigrade. It came to the Smithsonian from the U.S.
Description
This mercury-in-glass thermometer has a cylindrical bulb. The back of the stem is milk white; the front carries a scale, on its upper part, that extends from 100 to 200, graduated by degrees Centigrade. It came to the Smithsonian from the U.S. Military Academy.
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
PH.316449
catalog number
316449
accession number
223721

Solar Radiation Thermometer

This is a non-standard, possibly experimental, glass thermometer with a spherical bulb. The scale extends from about 60 to 135 degrees Fahrenheit. The inscriptions read “J. & H. J. Green, N.Y.” and “Signal Service, U.S. Army No.
Description
This is a non-standard, possibly experimental, glass thermometer with a spherical bulb. The scale extends from about 60 to 135 degrees Fahrenheit. The inscriptions read “J. & H. J. Green, N.Y.” and “Signal Service, U.S. Army No. 11.” It is enclosed in a glass tube that, according to Green trade literature, was “very perfectly exhausted of air and moisture.” James and Henry J. Green worked in partnership in the years 1879-1885.
Ref.: Henry J. Green, Meteorological and Scientific Instruments (Brooklyn, 1900), pp. 28-29.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1879-1885
maker
J. & H. J. Green
ID Number
PH.314553
catalog number
314553
accession number
204612

Standard Bimetallic Thermometer

Circular thermometer with scale ranging from -45 to +155 degrees. Inscriptions read "FAHRENHEIT" and "MANUFACTURED FOR / FAIRBANKS & CO. / BY THE / STANDARD THERMOMETER CO. / PEABODY, MASS." and "PATENTED NOVEMBER 10, 1885 / DECEMBER 28, 1886."The Standard Thermometer Co.
Description
Circular thermometer with scale ranging from -45 to +155 degrees. Inscriptions read "FAHRENHEIT" and "MANUFACTURED FOR / FAIRBANKS & CO. / BY THE / STANDARD THERMOMETER CO. / PEABODY, MASS." and "PATENTED NOVEMBER 10, 1885 / DECEMBER 28, 1886."
The Standard Thermometer Co. was established in Peabody in the mid-1880s and soon employed 21 workmen. It later became the Standard Thermometer & Electric Company. Roger Upton, a Harvard graduate, was president of the firm. Edgar W. Upton, who was also involved with the firm, was an inventor. Among his patents was one (D16989) for the "Design for a Case for Mechanical Thermometers" (1886).
The first date on this thermometer refers to the thermometer patent (#330,161) that was issued to Thomas W. Shepherd of Peabody, Mass., and assigned to Edgar W. Upton. The second date refers to the "Metallic Thermometer" patent (#355,291) issued to George B. St. John of Boston.
Ref: "D. Hamilton Hurd, History of Essex County, Massacusetts," (Philadelphia, 1888), vol. 2, p. 1027.
Beverly, Danvers and Peabody: Their Representative Business Men and Points of Interest (New York, 1893), p. 4.
"Factory of the Standard Thermometer & Electric Company," Electrical World 33 (1899): 33.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
late 19th century
maker
Standard Thermometer Co.
ID Number
PH.333984
catalog number
333984
accession number
304826

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