Benjamin Silliman
Benjamin Silliman (born August 8, 1779 in North Stratford (now Trumbull ), Connecticut , † November 24, 1864 in New Haven (Connecticut) ) was an American chemist.
Life
Silliman was a son of the lawyer Gold Selleck Silliman and his wife Mary Noyes. After completing his studies, Silliman was appointed professor of chemistry at Yale College (now Yale University ) in New Haven in 1802 . In 1805 he visited Europe to get books and science equipment for his college classes.
On September 17, 1809 Silliman married Harriet, a daughter of the politician Jonathan Trumbull junior and thus the granddaughter of the politician Jonathan Trumbull senior . He had four children with her, including Benjamin (1816–1885), who later became a chemist. Professors Oliver P. Hubbard (1809–1900) and James Dwight Dana became his sons-in-law. In 1815 Silliman was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences , in 1863 he was one of the founding members of the National Academy of Sciences .
In 1851 Silliman married Sarah Webb, daughter of John McClellan, for the second time . 1852 Emeritus Silliman and pulled slowly back into private life. He died at the age of 85 on November 24, 1864, and found his final resting place in Grove Street Cemetery , New Haven.
Services
Silliman made great contributions to the promotion of the natural sciences in North America, in particular by publishing the American Journal of science and arts (since 1818), in which he also published numerous chemical, physical, geological and other studies of his own.
In 1851 he visited England and the European continent again and reported on it in his work Narrative of a visit to Europe in 1851 .
Through the lectures that Silliman held for many years in almost all the major cities of the Union, he contributed greatly to the dissemination of scientific knowledge.
Works (selection)
- A journal of travels in England, Holland, and Scotland, and of two passages over the Atlantic, in the years 1805 and 1806 (1812). New York 1810.
- Objections to the nomenclature of the celebrated Berzelius: with suggestions respecting a substitute, in a letter to Professor Silliman ; first published in 1834, and republished in Silliman's Journal for 1835, Vol. XXVII
- Remarks made on a short tour between Hartford and Quebec, in the autumn of 1819 [microform] Printed and published by S. Converse New-Haven Conn. 1820.
- Elements of chemistry . New Haven 1831 (2 vol.). Benjamin Silliman Jr.
- Consistency of discoveries of modern geology with the Sacred History of the creation and deluge . London 1837.
- A visit to Europe in 1851 . Vol. I. Published by GP Putnam & Co., New York 1854
- A Visit to Europe in 1851 Vol. II. Publisher: GP Putnam & Co., New York 1854
Honors
The mineral sillimanite was named after him.
On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of his death in 1884 at his home in New Haven, Conn. erected a monument.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Mindat - Sillimanite (English)
literature
- George P. Fischer: Life of Benjamin Silliman. MDLLD - Vol. 1. Published by Scribner & Company, New York 1866
- George P. Fischer: Life of Benjamin Silliman. MDLLD - Vol. II. Publisher: Scribner & Company, New York 1866. late professor of chemistry, mineralogy, and geology in Yale College Chiefly from his manuscript reminiscences, diaries, and correspondence
Web links
- The American journal of science Third Series. Vol. VII. New Haven 1874
- Benjamin Silliman at the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Silliman, Benjamin |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American naturalist |
| DATE OF BIRTH | August 8, 1779 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | North Stratford, Connecticut |
| DATE OF DEATH | November 24, 1864 |
| Place of death | New Haven , Connecticut |