A Brief History of Joseph Henry
Joseph Henry studied meteorology at the Albany Academy. In two years he established six hundred observation stations around the country. Using the telegraph, he daily plotted atmospheric conditions on a US map and forecast the weather to the nation by telegraph. He then persuaded Congress to establish a Department of Meteorology.
Born Albany, NY Dec. 17, 1797 Moved to Galway, NY 1804 Attended the school later named the Joseph Henry Elementary School in Galway Elected President of the Rostrum (theatrical society) 1813 Enrolled in the Albany Academy 1819 Graduated from the Albany Academy 1822 Appointed Professor of Mathematics
and Natural Philosophy at the Albany Academy1826 Became Librarian of the Albany Institute 1829 Awarded an Honorary A.M. from Union College 1829 Appointed Professor of Natural Philosophy at the College of New Jersey (Princeton) 1832 Elected the First Secretary of Smithsonian Institution 1846 Elected President of the American Association
for the Advancement of Science1849 Awarded an Honorary LL.D. from Harvard 1851 Elected President of the National Academy of Sciences 1869 Elected President of the Philosophical Society of Washington, DC 1871 Appointed Chairman of the US Lighthouse Board 1871 Died in Washington, DC May 14, 1878 Material from C. L. Andrews, The Physics Teacher, January 1965, Barbara Myers Swartz, The Physics Teacher, September 1978, the Smithsonian Institution and other sources.
Joseph Henry Bicentennial Conference