Science & Mathematics

The Museum's collections hold thousands of objects related to chemistry, biology, physics, astronomy, and other sciences. Instruments range from early American telescopes to lasers. Rare glassware and other artifacts from the laboratory of Joseph Priestley, the discoverer of oxygen, are among the scientific treasures here. A Gilbert chemistry set of about 1937 and other objects testify to the pleasures of amateur science. Artifacts also help illuminate the social and political history of biology and the roles of women and minorities in science.

The mathematics collection holds artifacts from slide rules and flash cards to code-breaking equipment. More than 1,000 models demonstrate some of the problems and principles of mathematics, and 80 abstract paintings by illustrator and cartoonist Crockett Johnson show his visual interpretations of mathematical theorems.

In 1974 Stanford University doctoral graduates Harry Garland and Roger Melen established a partnership named for their former dormitory Crothers Memorial Hall. Cromemco was formally incorporated in 1976.
Description
In 1974 Stanford University doctoral graduates Harry Garland and Roger Melen established a partnership named for their former dormitory Crothers Memorial Hall. Cromemco was formally incorporated in 1976. For the life of the company Garland and Melen remained the sole shareholders and avoided outside investment. At the insistence of their accountant, the company held a bank credit line but never had to tap the full amount. Their business philosophy was to grow only within the parameters of available cash. Revenues in 1975 were $50,000 and grew to an estimated $55 million by 1987 when the owners sold the company to Dynatech.
The company’s first products were a microcomputer system digital camera, the Cyclops, and a color graphics card called the Dazzler. From these products the company moved on to making reliable, high-quality business and scientific computers and in 1982, they introduced the C-10 Personal Computer. Cromemco systems were the first commercially marketed microcomputers certified by the U.S. Navy for use aboard ships and Ohio class submarines for data logging during tests. The United States Air Force became a major customer for their Theater Air Control System (TACS) and the Mission Support System (MSS) for F-16, F-15 and other aircraft. By 1986 more than 80 percent of the major-market television stations in the U.S. used Cromemco systems to produce news and weather graphics.
According to the user manual, “The C-10’s high-quality construction, continual self-testing, and proven design assure that it will perform faithfully year after year.”
This Cromemco C-10 microcomputer was used at Monroe High School in Monroe, MI from 1982-2008. In 1980 physics teacher Darol Straub started an after school computer class which led to the development of the school’s first formal computer curriculum. To be accepted into the course, students were required to take an aptitude entrance test. Classes were two periods per day for three years. Hardware and software topics included basic circuits to microcomputer design and building, and programming in binary code and assembly language as well as higher level languages such as BASIC, FORTRAN, PASCAL, COBOL, and “C.” The third year focused on developing advanced projects using speech recognition, numeric control, fiber optic communication, graphic design, and robotics.
Many of Straub’s students went on to college to study computer science and earned jobs with companies such as Microsoft and Intel. Two brothers who completed the curriculum opened a computer company when they graduated from high school. According to Mr. Straub, the company was still in business in 2018. The brother of the donor, also a student of Straub’s, graduated from Monroe High School in 2009 and MIT in 2013. He now works for Space X.
In 1988 the Computer Engineering Program students produced a 20 minute video “Monroe High School – Current Generation” which the school used to promote and recruit new students for the course.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1982
user
Straub, Darol
Gagnon, Blair
maker
Cromemco Inc.
ID Number
2018.0113.01
accession number
2018.0113
catalog number
2018.0113.01
William Dougal (1822–1895) of Washington, D.C.
Description (Brief)
William Dougal (1822–1895) of Washington, D.C. engraved this print of “Phrynosoma regale [Girard] and Doliosaurus m’callii [Girard]”—now "Phrynosoma solare" (Regal horned lizard) and "Phrynosoma mcallii" (Flat–tail horned lizard); from one or more original illustrations by John H. Richard (c.1807–1881) of Philadelphia. The illustration was published as Plate 28 in the “Reptiles” section of the second part of volume II of the Report on the United States and Mexican Boundary Survey, written by S.F. Baird (1823–1887). The volume was printed in 1859 by Cornelius Wendell of Washington, D.C.
Description
William Dougal (1822–1895) of Washington, D.C. engraved this print of “Phrynosoma regale [Girard] and Doliosaurus m’callii [Girard]”—now "Phrynosoma solare" (Regal horned lizard) and "Phrynosoma mcallii" (Flat–tail horned lizard); from an original sketch by John H. Richard (c.1807–1881) of Philadelphia. The illustration was printed as Plate 28 in the “Reptiles” section of the second part of volume II of the Report on the United States and Mexican Boundary Survey, written by S.F. Baird (1823–1887). The volume was printed in 1859 by Cornelius Wendell of Washington, D.C.
Location
Currently not on view
date of book publication
1859
author
Baird, Spencer Fullerton
original artist
Richard, John H.
graphic artist
Dougal, William H.
printer
Wendell, Cornelius
author
Emory, William H.
publisher
U.S. Department of the Interior
U.S. Army
ID Number
2009.0115.062
catalog number
2009.0115.062
accession number
2009.0115
This spectroscope was designed to be used with a telescope to study the light of the sun. It was made in Dublin in 1877 by the famous instrument maker Howard Grubb (1844–1931).
Description
This spectroscope was designed to be used with a telescope to study the light of the sun. It was made in Dublin in 1877 by the famous instrument maker Howard Grubb (1844–1931). It was used with the 9 ½ inch Alvan Clark & Sons refractor at Princeton University.
When the College of New Jersey at Princeton hired the astronomer Charles A. Young in 1877, they also gave him funds to equip the new John C. Green student observatory. One of his first purchases was this instrument. It was custom-made, and Young helped refine the design. (Grubb's company later advertised that this was the first such spectroscope that they had sold.) The most unusual feature of this instrument is the use of a complicated system of multiple prisms to disperse the light and produce a highly detailed view of the solar spectrum.
In use, the spectroscope was mounted at the eyepiece end of the telescope and light from the sun would be directed through it. As the light passed from one prism into the next, it would be increasing dispersed, or spread out. To make the instrument more compact, the beam of light was directed first through the upper portion of the prisms and then back through the bottom part. Depending on how it was configured, the light could thus be passed through either 2, 4, 6 or 8 prisms. A particular area of the solar spectrum could be viewed by turning a small chain that moved each prism by the same amount. Because of the large number of optical surfaces involved, the light loss in this instrument was almost certainly in the 90 percent range. This was an advantage when viewing the Sun, but it reduced the usefulness of this instrument for other purposes, such as measuring the spectra of stars. The success of this instrument in making precise measurements of the solar spectrum (and thus revealing information about the composition of the sun and its atmosphere) led to its wider adoption as an important astronomical tool.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1877
user
Young, Charles A.
maker
Grubb, Howard
ID Number
PH.328885
accession number
277637
catalog number
328885
William Dougal (1822–1895) of Washington, D.C. engraved this print of “Euphryne obesus [Baird]" from an original illustration by John H. Richard (c.1807–1881) of Philadelphia.
Description (Brief)
William Dougal (1822–1895) of Washington, D.C. engraved this print of “Euphryne obesus [Baird]" from an original illustration by John H. Richard (c.1807–1881) of Philadelphia. The illustration was published as Plate 27 in the “Reptiles” section of the second part of volume II of the Report on the United States and Mexican Boundary Survey, written by S.F. Baird (1823–1887). The volume was printed in 1859 by Cornelius Wendell of Washington, D.C.
Description
William Dougal (1822–1895) of Washington, D.C. engraved this print of “Euphryne obesus [Baird]”, now "Sauromalus ater" or Northern chuckwalla, from an original sketch by John H. Richard (c.1807–1881) of Philadelphia. The illustration was printed as Plate 27 in the “Reptiles” section of the second part of volume II of the Report on the United States and Mexican Boundary Survey, written by S.F. Baird (1823–1887). The volume was printed in 1859 by Cornelius Wendell of Washington, D.C.
Location
Currently not on view
date of book publication
1859
author
Baird, Spencer Fullerton
original artist
Richard, John H.
graphic artist
Dougal, William H.
printer
Wendell, Cornelius
author
Emory, William H.
publisher
U.S. Department of the Interior
U.S. Army
ID Number
2009.0115.068
catalog number
2009.0115.068
accession number
2009.0115
William Dougal (1822–1895) of Washington, D.C. engraved this print of “Crotaphylus wislizenii [B & G]" from an original illustration by John H. Richard (c.1807–1881) of Philadelphia.
Description (Brief)
William Dougal (1822–1895) of Washington, D.C. engraved this print of “Crotaphylus wislizenii [B & G]" from an original illustration by John H. Richard (c.1807–1881) of Philadelphia. The illustration was published as Plate 31 in the “Reptiles” section of the second part of volume II of the Report on the United States and Mexican Boundary Survey, written by S.F. Baird (1823–1887). The volume was printed in 1859 by Cornelius Wendell of Washington, D.C.
Description
William Dougal (1822–1895) of Washington, D.C. engraved this print of “Crotaphylus wislizenii [sic] [B & G],” now "Gambelia wislizenii" or Longnose leopard lizard, from an original sketch by John H. Richard (c.1807–1881) of Philadelphia. The illustration was printed as Plate 31 in the “Reptiles” section of the second part of volume II of the Report on the United States and Mexican Boundary Survey, written by S.F. Baird (1823–1887). The volume was printed in 1859 by Cornelius Wendell of Washington, D.C.
Location
Currently not on view
date of book publication
1859
author
Baird, Spencer Fullerton
original artist
Richard, John H.
graphic artist
Dougal, William H.
printer
Wendell, Cornelius
author
Emory, William H.
publisher
U.S. Department of the Interior
ID Number
2009.0115.060
catalog number
2009.0115.060
accession number
2009.0115
William H. Dougal (1822-1895) of Washington, D.C. produced this engraving of "Dryophis Vittatus, Grd" from an original illustration by John H. Richard (1807- ca 1881).
Description (Brief)
William H. Dougal (1822-1895) of Washington, D.C. produced this engraving of "Dryophis Vittatus, Grd" from an original illustration by John H. Richard (1807- ca 1881). The image was published as Plate XXXVI in Volume 2, following page 210 of Appendix F (Zoology Reptiles) by Charles Girard (1822-1895) in the report describing "The U.S. Naval Astronomical Expedition to the Southern Hemisphere during the Years 1849, 1850, 1851, and 1852" by James M. Gillis (1811-1865). The volume was printed in 1855 by A. O. P. Nicholson (1808-1876) of Washington, D.C.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1855
original artist
Richard, John H.
graphic artist
Dougal, William H.
printer
Nicholson, A. O. P.
publisher
United States Navy
author
Gilliss, James Melville
ID Number
2008.0175.30
accession number
2008.0175
catalog number
2008.0175.30
William H. Dougal (1822-1895) of Washington, D.C. produced this pre-press engraving proof of “Mastodon andium,” from an original illustration by O. J. Wallis (fl. 1850s).
Description (Brief)
William H. Dougal (1822-1895) of Washington, D.C. produced this pre-press engraving proof of “Mastodon andium,” from an original illustration by O. J. Wallis (fl. 1850s). The image was published as Plate XIII in Volume 2, following page 278 of Appendix H (Fossil Mammals) by Jeffries Wyman (1814-1874) in the report describing "The U.S. Naval Astronomical Expedition to the Southern Hemisphere during the Years 1849, 1850, 1851, and 1852" by James M. Gillis (1811-1865). The volume was printed in 1855 by A. O. P. Nicholson (1808-1876) of Washington, D.C.
Location
Currently not on view
date of book publication
1855
original artist
Richard, John H.
graphic artist
Dougal, William H.
printer
Nicholson, A. O. P.
publisher
United States Navy
author
Gilliss, James Melville
ID Number
2008.0175.24
accession number
2008.0175
catalog number
2008.0175.24
William H. Dougal (1822-1895) of Washington, D.C. produced this pre-press engraving proof of "Cnemidophorus Presignis, B&G" now Ameiva ameiva (Giant ameiva or Amazon racerunner), from an original illustration by John H. Richard (1807- ca 1881).
Description (Brief)
William H. Dougal (1822-1895) of Washington, D.C. produced this pre-press engraving proof of "Cnemidophorus Presignis, B&G" now Ameiva ameiva (Giant ameiva or Amazon racerunner), from an original illustration by John H. Richard (1807- ca 1881). The image was published as Plate XXXVIII in Volume 2, following page 226 of Appendix F (Zoology Reptiles) by Charles Girard (1822-1895) in the report describing "The U.S. Naval Astronomical Expedition to the Southern Hemisphere during the Years 1849, 1850, 1851, and 1852" by James M. Gillis (1811-1865). The volume was printed in 1855 by A. O. P. Nicholson (1808-1876) of Washington, D.C. The print is signed "Correct CGirard."
Location
Currently not on view
date of book publication
1855
original artist
Richard, John H.
graphic artist
Dougal, William H.
printer
Nicholson, A. O. P.
publisher
United States Navy
author
Gilliss, James Melville
ID Number
2008.0175.25
accession number
2008.0175
catalog number
2008.0175.25
This tinted lithograph of “Mission and Plain of San Fernando” was originally drawn by an expedition artist Charles Koppel (fl. 1853-1865). It was printed as Plate VI following page 74 in the "Geological Report by W. P.
Description (Brief)
This tinted lithograph of “Mission and Plain of San Fernando” was originally drawn by an expedition artist Charles Koppel (fl. 1853-1865). It was printed as Plate VI following page 74 in the "Geological Report by W. P. Blake (1826-1910), Geologist and Minerologist to the Expedition," as part of Volume V, Part II of the "Report of Lieutenant R. S. Williamson (1825-1882), Corps of Topographical Engineers, Upon the Routes in California to Connect with the Routes Near the Thirty-fifth and Thirty-second Parallels" by Lieutenant R. S. Williamson ... in 1853."
The volume was printed as part of the "Reports of Explorations and Surveys, to ascertain the most practicable and economical route for a railroad from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean" in 1856 by A. P. O. Nicholson (1808-1876) in Washington, D.C.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1856
publisher
U.S. War Department
printer
Tucker, Beverley
author
Williamson, Robert Stockton
Blake, William Phipps
original artist
Koppel, Charles
graphic artist
unknown
publisher
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Topographic Command
ID Number
GA.10729.38
accession number
62261
William H. Dougal (1822-1895) of Washington, D.C. produced this engraving of "Elaps nigrocinctus [Grd]," now "Micrurus nigrocinctus nigrocinctus" or Central American coral snake, from an original illustration by John H. Richard (1807- ca 1881).
Description
William H. Dougal (1822-1895) of Washington, D.C. produced this engraving of "Elaps nigrocinctus [Grd]," now "Micrurus nigrocinctus nigrocinctus" or Central American coral snake, from an original illustration by John H. Richard (1807- ca 1881). The image was published as Plate XXXV in Volume 2, following page 210 of Appendix F (Zoology Reptiles) by Charles Girard (1822-1895) in the report describing "The U.S. Naval Astronomical Expedition to the Southern Hemisphere during the Years 1849, 1850, 1851, and 1852" by James M. Gillis (1811-1865). The volume was printed in 1855 by A. O. P. Nicholson (1808-1876) of Washington, D.C.
Location
Currently not on view
date of book publication
1855
original artist
Richard, John H.
graphic artist
Dougal, William H.
book printer, publisher
Nicholson, A. O. P.
publisher
United States Navy
author
Girard, Charles
Gilliss, James Melville
ID Number
2008.0175.08
accession number
2008.0175
catalog number
2008.0175.08
This tinted lithograph of “Mirage on the Colorado River” was prepared after an original sketch by ah expedition geologist and artist William P. Blake (1826-1910). It was printed as Plate XII in Volume V, Part II following page 250 in the "Geological Report by W. P.
Description
This tinted lithograph of “Mirage on the Colorado River” was prepared after an original sketch by ah expedition geologist and artist William P. Blake (1826-1910). It was printed as Plate XII in Volume V, Part II following page 250 in the "Geological Report by W. P. Blake, Geologist and Minerologist to the Expedition," as part of Volume V, Part II of the “Routes in California, to Connect with the Routes near the Thirty–Fifth and Thirty–Second Parallels, Explored by Lieutenant R. S. Williamson, Corps of Topographical Engineers, in 1853."
The volume was printed as part of the "Reports of Explorations and Surveys, to ascertain the most practicable and economical route for a railroad from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean" in 1856 by A. P. O. Nicholson (1808-1876) of Washington, D.C.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1856
publisher
U.S. War Department
printer
Tucker, Beverley
expedition leader
Williamson, Robert Stockton
author
Blake, William Phipps
original artist
Blake, William Phipps
graphic artist
unknown
publisher
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Topographic Command
ID Number
GA.10729.32
accession number
62261
William H. Dougal (1822-1895) of Washington, D.C. produced this pre-press engraving proof of "Proctotretus Tenius, Proctotretus Femoratus, and Proctotretus Stantoni" from an original illustration by John H. Richard (1807- ca 1881).
Description (Brief)
William H. Dougal (1822-1895) of Washington, D.C. produced this pre-press engraving proof of "Proctotretus Tenius, Proctotretus Femoratus, and Proctotretus Stantoni" from an original illustration by John H. Richard (1807- ca 1881). The image was published as Plate XL in Volume 2, following page 216 of Appendix F (Zoology Reptiles) by Charles Girard (1822-1895) in the report describing "The U.S. Naval Astronomical Expedition to the Southern Hemisphere during the Years 1849, 1850, 1851, and 1852" by James M. Gillis (1811-1865). The volume was printed in 1855 by A. O. P. Nicholson (1808-1876) of Washington, D.C.
Location
Currently not on view
date of book publication
1855
original artist
Richard, John H.
graphic artist
Dougal, William H.
printer
Nicholson, A. O. P.
publisher
United States Navy
author
Gilliss, James Melville
ID Number
2008.0175.29
accession number
2008.0175
catalog number
2008.0175.29
William H. Dougal (1822-1895) of Washington, D.C. produced this pre-publication engraving proof of “Trichomycterus maculatus [Cuv.
Description (Brief)
William H. Dougal (1822-1895) of Washington, D.C. produced this pre-publication engraving proof of “Trichomycterus maculatus [Cuv. -Val.], Cheiroden pisciculus [Grd], Cystignathus taeniatus [Grd], and Phyllobates auratus [Grd]” now "Trichomycterus maculatus," "Cheiroden pisciculus," "Batrachyla taeniata," (Banded tree frog), and "Dendrobates auratus" (Poison dart frog, Green poison frog, Green and black poison dart frog) from an original illustration by John H. Richard (1807- ca 1881). The image was published as Plate XXXIV in Volume 2, following page 208 of Appendix F (Zoology-Fishes) by Charles Girard (1822-1895) in the report describing "The U.S. Naval Astronomical Expedition to the Southern Hemisphere during the Years 1849, 1850, 1851, and 1852" by James M. Gillis (1811-1865). The volume was printed in 1855 by A. O. P. Nicholson (1808-1876) of Washington, D.C. The print is also signed in pen "Correct, C.Girard."
Location
Currently not on view
date of book publication
1855
original artist
Richard, John H.
graphic artist
Dougal, William H.
printer
Nicholson, A. O. P.
publisher
United States Navy
author
Girard, Charles
Gilliss, James Melville
ID Number
2008.0175.16
accession number
2008.0175
catalog number
2008.0175.16
William H. Dougal (1822-1895) of Washington, D.C. produced this engraving of “Nematogenys inermis [Grd]” from an original illustration by John H. Richard (1807- ca 1881).
Description (Brief)
William H. Dougal (1822-1895) of Washington, D.C. produced this engraving of “Nematogenys inermis [Grd]” from an original illustration by John H. Richard (1807- ca 1881). The image was published as Plate XXXII in Volume 2, following page 248 of Appendix F (Zoology-Fishes) by Charles Girard (1822-1895) in the report describing "The U.S. Naval Astronomical Expedition to the Southern Hemisphere during the Years 1849, 1850, 1851, and 1852" by James M. Gillis (1811-1865). The volume was printed in 1855 by A. O. P. Nicholson (1808-1876) of Washington, D.C.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1855
original artist
Richard, John H.
graphic artist
Dougal, William H.
printer
Nicholson, A. O. P.
publisher
United States Navy
author
Girard, Charles
Gilliss, James Melville
ID Number
2008.0175.17
accession number
2008.0175
catalog number
2008.0175.17
This tinted lithograph of “Great Basin from the Summit of Tejon Pass” was produced after an original sketch by expedition artist Charles Koppel (fl. 1853-1865). It was printed as Plate V in Volume V, Part II following page 50 in the "Geological Report by W. P.
Description (Brief)
This tinted lithograph of “Great Basin from the Summit of Tejon Pass” was produced after an original sketch by expedition artist Charles Koppel (fl. 1853-1865). It was printed as Plate V in Volume V, Part II following page 50 in the "Geological Report by W. P. Blake, Geologist and Minerologist to the Expedition," as part of the “Routes in California, to Connect with the Routes near the Thirty–Fifth and Thirty–Second Parallels, Explored by Lieutenant R. S. Williamson, Corps of Topographical Engineers, in 1853."
The volume was printed as part of the "Reports of Explorations and Surveys, to ascertain the most practicable and economical route for a railroad from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean" in 1856 by A. P. O. Nicholson (1808-1876) of Washington, D.C.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1856
publisher
U.S. War Department
printer
Tucker, Beverley
author
Williamson, Robert Stockton
original artist
Koppel, Charles
Koppel, Charles
graphic artist
unknown
publisher
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Topographic Command
original artist
Koppel, Charles
ID Number
GA.10729.33
accession number
62261
Thomas Sinclair (ca 1805-1881) of Philadelphia produced this chromolithographic print of "Phalacrocorax brasilianus [GM]" or Neotropic cormorant, from an original illustration by William Dreser (ca 1820, fl. 1849-1860).
Description (Brief)
Thomas Sinclair (ca 1805-1881) of Philadelphia produced this chromolithographic print of "Phalacrocorax brasilianus [GM]" or Neotropic cormorant, from an original illustration by William Dreser (ca 1820, fl. 1849-1860). The image was published as Plate XXVIII in Volume 2, following page 204 of Appendix F (Zoology-Birds) by John Cassin (1813-1869) in the report describing "The U.S. Naval Astronomical Expedition to the Southern Hemisphere during the Years 1849, 1850, 1851, and 1852" by James M. Gillis (1811-1865). The volume was printed in 1855 by A. O. P. Nicholson (1808-1876) of Washington, D.C.
Location
Currently not on view
date of book publication
1855
graphic artist
Sinclair, Thomas
original artist
Dreser, William
publisher
United States Navy
printer
Nicholson, A. O. P.
author
Cassin, John
Gilliss, James Melville
ID Number
2008.0175.02
accession number
2008.0175
catalog number
2008.0175.02
From its infancy, timekeeping has depended on astronomy. The motion of celestial bodies relative to the rotating Earth provided the most precise measure of time until the mid-twentieth century, when quartz and atomic clocks proved more constant.
Description
From its infancy, timekeeping has depended on astronomy. The motion of celestial bodies relative to the rotating Earth provided the most precise measure of time until the mid-twentieth century, when quartz and atomic clocks proved more constant. Until that time, mechanical observatory clocks were set and continuously corrected to agree with astronomical observations.
The application of electricity to observatory timepieces in the late 1840s revolutionized the way American astronomers noted the exact movement of celestial events. U.S. Coast Survey teams devised a method to telegraph clock beats, both within an observatory and over long distances, and to record both the beats and the moment of observation simultaneously. British astronomers dubbed it the "American method of astronomical observation" and promptly adopted it themselves.
Transmitting clock beats by telegraph not only provided astronomers with a means of recording the exact moment of astronomical observations but also gave surveyors a means of determining longitude. Because the Earth rotates on its axis every twenty-four hours, longitude and time are equivalent (fifteen degrees of longitude equals one hour).
In 1849 William Cranch Bond, then director of the Harvard College Observatory, devised an important improvement for clocks employed in the "American method." He constructed several versions of break-circuit devices—electrical contracts and insulators attached to the mechanical clock movement—for telegraphing clock beats once a second. The Bond regulator shown in the forground incorporates such a device. Bond's son Richard designed the accompanying drum chronograph, an instrument that touched a pen to a paper-wrapped cylinder to record both the beats of the clock and the instant of a celestial event, signaled when an observer pressed a telegraph key.
Location
Currently not on view (unidentified components)
Currently not on view (weight (?))
Date made
ca 1868
maker
William Bond & Son
ID Number
ME.318759
catalog number
318759
accession number
230288
Most nineteenth century American clocks were cheaply made for the mass market and domestic use.
Description
Most nineteenth century American clocks were cheaply made for the mass market and domestic use. But a few firms made finely finished precision clocks for applications where accuracy was vital: determining the time of scientific observations, for example, or regulating other clocks and watches. One such firm was E. Howard and Company of Boston, specialists in quality clocks, watches, and scales since 1842.
Howard's 1860 catalog featured this clock. It was advertised as an "astronomical clock" available in various styles, sizes, and prices, and recommended for observatories, watchmakers' shops, and railroad depots. Such a clock is today called a regulator, a particularly accurate timepiece designed exclusively for keeping time. Nonessential complications like striking mechanisms, calendar work, and moon dials are omitted. The case is likewise unadorned. This particular clock has a sixteen-inch silvered dial that indicates hours, minutes, and seconds separately. The steel pendulum rod carries two glass jars filled with mercury. The expansion and contraction of the mercury compensates for changes in the rod's length as the room temperature rises and falls.
About 1855, E. Howard and Company sold this clock to James Allan and Company, a Charleston, South Carolina, jewelry firm whose name is engraved on the dial. The regulator stood in the same Allan family store (called Charles Kerrison Company after 1960) from 1865 until it came to the Smithsonian in 1977, except for one brief period. On August 31, 1886, the regulator fell over when an earthquake rocked Charleston, and it briefly returned to the Howard factory for repairs.
Location
Currently not on view
Currently not on view (pendulums)
Currently not on view (plaque)
Date made
1855-1859
manufacturer
E. Howard & Co.
ID Number
ME.335723
catalog number
335723
accession number
1977.0507
Ever since the invention of the telescope around 1600, many opticians have considered the advantages of binocular telescopes, and some actually produced instruments of this sort. The form, however, did not become widely available until the latter decades of the19th century.
Description
Ever since the invention of the telescope around 1600, many opticians have considered the advantages of binocular telescopes, and some actually produced instruments of this sort. The form, however, did not become widely available until the latter decades of the19th century. This example is an aluminum instrument with aluminum sunshades. The objective lenses are about 1.6 inches diameter; the length overall, when closed, is about 11 inches. One eyepiece barrel is marked “T. W. Watson / Optician” and the other is marked “4 Pall Mall / London.” The cross frame has two knobs, one for focusing and one for adjusting the inter-ocular distance. The barrels are covered with black leather. The case is brown leather.
T. W. Watson (fl. 1868 to 1884) sold guns and optical instruments.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
late 19th century
ID Number
1983.0515.01
catalog number
1983.0515.01
accession number
1983.0515
Arthur J. Weed was a skilled mechanic who, as chief instrument maker of the U.S. Weather Bureau, built and maintained the seismograph that Charles Marvin had designed in 1895.
Description
Arthur J. Weed was a skilled mechanic who, as chief instrument maker of the U.S. Weather Bureau, built and maintained the seismograph that Charles Marvin had designed in 1895. Moving in 1920 to the Rouss Physical Laboratory at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Weed gained access to resources that allowed him to go further in this field. With the aid of engineering students, Weed built a inverted pendulum seismograph with a 750-pound weight. Photographs of Weed with this massive instrument ran as an A.P. story in several newspapers. One headline read: “Trapping earthquakes has become a popular business at the University of Virginia, where one of the most unique and sensitive seismographs in the country keeps a twenty-four hour watch for tremors.”
Weed also designed a smaller inverted pendulum seismograph that could “be used in many places where a more elaborate installation is out of the question.” One account described a cylindrical steady mass of about six pounds resting on three wires placed in the form of an equilateral triangle to which an oil damping device is attached.” This is an instrument of that sort. It came to the Smithsonian in 1963.
When Weed died in 1936, the chief seismologist of the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey noted that “the science of seismology has lost one who has given much thought to instrumental problems, an active worker and a true friend.” The American Geophysical Union noted the loss of “a member who has long been active in the field of instrumental seismology.”
Ref: “Seismograph is Homemade,” Washington Post (July 10, 1927), p. 12, and Salt Lake Tribune (July 10, 1927), p. 10.
“Something New In Seismographs,” The Telegraph (May 4, 1932).
N. H. Heck, “Arthur J. Weed,” Science 83 (1936): 404.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1930
ID Number
PH.323393
catalog number
323393
accession number
251562
Brass instrument with a black japan finish. The objective lenses are about 40 mm diameter, and the optics are excellent.
Description
Brass instrument with a black japan finish. The objective lenses are about 40 mm diameter, and the optics are excellent. The “CHEVALIER * PARIS” inscription on each eyepiece refers to an optical firm that was begun by Louis Vincent Chevalier in 1765, and that was still in the business in the late 19th century. The left eye tube is marked “DAY & NIGHT / EXTRA POWER” and the right is marked “ARMY & NAVY / EXTRA POWER.” The case is black leather.
Ref: Paolo Brenni, “19th Century French Scientific Instrument Makers. II: The Chevalier Dynasty,” Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society 39 (1993): 11–14.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
late 19th century
maker
Chevalier
ID Number
PH.323411
catalog number
323411
accession number
251004
This mezzotint was issued in 1722, a year after Edmond Halley (1656-1742) was named Astronomer Royal. The signatures at bottom read “T. Murray pinx.
Description
This mezzotint was issued in 1722, a year after Edmond Halley (1656-1742) was named Astronomer Royal. The signatures at bottom read “T. Murray pinx. 1712” and “John Faber Fecit 1722” and “Sold by John Bowles at the Black Horse in Cornhill.” The text identifies Halley as “Astronomus Regius et Geometriæ Professor Savilianus.”
This half-length portrait print is based on a full-length oil portrait done in 1712 by Thomas Murray, a painter from Scotland who enjoyed prominence and prosperity in England. Murray depicted Halley as the Savilian Professor of Geometry at the University of Oxford, wearing a long wig, clerical bands (a symbol of ecclesiastical or academic profession) around his neck, and a fur vest. The mezzotint was done by John Faber Jr., an artist from The Hague who spent his working life in London. It was sold by John Bowles, a printmaker and dealer in London.
Ref: D. W. Hughes, “The Portraits of Edmond Halley,” Vistas in Astronomy 27 (1984): 55-62.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1722
ID Number
PH.329182
catalog number
329182
accession number
280072
Aluminum binoculars with a black finish, and black leather on the barrels. The left eye plate is marked “CARL ZEISS / JENA” and the right on is marked “DELACTIS / 1135801 / 8 x 40.” The objective lenses are 40 mm diameter.
Description
Aluminum binoculars with a black finish, and black leather on the barrels. The left eye plate is marked “CARL ZEISS / JENA” and the right on is marked “DELACTIS / 1135801 / 8 x 40.” The objective lenses are 40 mm diameter. The eyepieces are separately adjustable as is the inter-ocular distance. The case is black leather.
Zeiss produced the Delactis form between 1921 and 1936.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1921-1936
maker
Zeiss
ID Number
PH.336784
catalog number
336784
accession number
1978.2216
This half-length engraved portrait of Jean LeRond d’Alembert (1717-1783) shows this French mathematician and philosophe sitting with quill pen in one hand and dividers in the other.
Description
This half-length engraved portrait of Jean LeRond d’Alembert (1717-1783) shows this French mathematician and philosophe sitting with quill pen in one hand and dividers in the other. Papers, books, and other drawing instruments are strewn across the desk in front of him, and more books, a rolled chart, and a globe sit on the cabinet behind. The text at bottom reads: “Dessiné par M. R. Jollain, Peintre du Roi, et Gravé par B. L. Henriquez, Graveur de S. M. I. de / toutes les Russies, et de l’Academie Imperiale des Beaux Arts de St. Petersbourg.”
This image was published in Paris in 1777, along with similar portraits of Montesquieu, Voltaire, and Diderot, the other principal authors of the Encyclopédie. The prints were commissioned by Charles-Joseph Panckoucke, the Paris bookman who was then producing a Supplément to the Encyclopédie. They sold for three francs each. Nicholas-René Jollain was an artist in Paris. Benoît-Louis Henriquez was an engraver in Paris.
Ref: Thomas L. Hankins, Jean d’Alembert. Science and the Enlightenment (Oxford, 1970).
George B. Watts, “The Supplément and the Table Analytique et Rainsonée of the Encyclopédie,” The French Review 28 (1954): 4-19, on 16.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1777
ID Number
PH.329189
accession number
280072
catalog number
329189

Our collection database is a work in progress. We may update this record based on further research and review. Learn more about our approach to sharing our collection online.

If you would like to know how you can use content on this page, see the Smithsonian's Terms of Use. If you need to request an image for publication or other use, please visit Rights and Reproductions.