Nicolas Fortin, a prominent instrument maker in Paris in the early nineteenth century, introduced a mercury barometer with a glass and leather cistern so designed that the barometer could be safely moved from one place to another. James Green began making Fortin-type barometers for the Smithsonian in the 1850s, though with a slightly different design to the cistern. This example marked “JAS GREEN N.Y. 1870” was made between 1849 when Green moved to New York, and 1879 when he took his nephew into partnership and began trading as J. & H.J. Green.
Ref: “Directions for Meteorological Observations,” in Smithsonian Miscellaneous Collections 19 (1860): 54-62.
"Green's Standard Barometer," in Henry J. Green, Meteorological and Scientific Instruments (Brooklyn, 1900), pp. 4-6.
C.F. Marvin,
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.