Fernando Sanford (February 12, 1854 – May 21, 1948) was an American

physicist A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate cau ...

and university professor. He was one of the 22 "pioneer professors" (founding faculty) for

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

. Sanford was born on a farm near Franklin Grove in

Lee County, Illinois Lee County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 34,145. Its county seat is Dixon. The Dixon, IL Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Lee County. History The area's ...

, on February 12, 1854. He was the son of Faxton and Maria Mariah (Bly) Sanford. He attended Carthage College, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in 1879. He taught school until the mid-1880s, then studied physics in Germany under

Hermann von Helmholtz Hermann Ludwig Ferdinand von Helmholtz (; ; 31 August 1821 – 8 September 1894; "von" since 1883) was a German physicist and physician who made significant contributions in several scientific fields, particularly hydrodynamic stability. The ...

for two years. Returning to the United States, he became a Professor of Physical Science at

Lake Forest College Lake Forest College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Lake Forest, Illinois. Founded in 1857 as Lind University by a group of Presbyterian ministers, the college has been coeducatio ...

David Starr Jordan David Starr Jordan (January 19, 1851 – September 19, 1931) was the founding president of Stanford University, serving from 1891 to 1913. He was an ichthyologist during his research career. Prior to serving as president of Stanford Universi ...

, president of Stanford University, chose him as one of the founding professors for Stanford, where he remained until his retirement in 1919. At Stanford he was the founder and first president of the Science Association. He was an early promoter of the use of laboratory instruction for undergraduates. He also helped to formulate the entrance requirements for Stanford. In 1891-1893 he made photographs of coins with electric discharges, calling the technique "electric photography". This led to later speculations that he may have accidentally made some

X-ray An X-ray (also known in many languages as Röntgen radiation) is a form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength shorter than those of ultraviolet rays and longer than those of gamma rays. Roughly, X-rays have a wavelength ran ...

photographs. His book ''Elements of Physics'' (published in 1902, digitized in 2007) was an important textbook in the field. Other books and monographs included ''The Scientific Method And Its Limitations'' (1899), ''The Electrical Charges of Atoms and Ions'' (1919), ''A Physical Theory of Electrification'', and ''How To Study; Illustrated Through Physics''. His interest in electricity led to his construction of a "terrestrial electric observatory," whose results were published over many years in his ''Bulletin of the Terrestrial Electric Observatory of Fernando Sanford''. His research included an early type of electric photography. His former residence is now one of the most important structures in the historic district of Professorville in

Palo Alto, California Palo Alto ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for ) is a charter city in northwestern Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area, named after a Sequoia sempervirens, coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto. Th ...

. He died May 21, 1948, in

Santa Clara, California Santa Clara ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for "Clare of Assisi, Saint Clare") is a city in Santa Clara County, California. The city's population was 127,647 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities and towns i ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sanford, Fernando 1854 births 1948 deaths American physicists Carthage College alumni Lake Forest College faculty People from Lee County, Illinois Stanford University Department of Physics faculty