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Joseph Saxton (ca
Joseph Saxton (March 22, 1799 – October 26, 1873) was an American inventor, watchmaker, machinist, and photographer from Pennsylvania. A daguerrotype taken by Saxton in 1839 is one of the oldest surviving photographs taken in the United States. Early life Saxton was born in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, and first entered as an apprentice to a watchmaker when he was twelve years old. Saxton was the son of a Mr. Saxton, a mechanic, and Elizabeth Ashbaugh, daughter of John Ashbaugh Sr. Career Philadelphia In 1817, aged 18, Joseph Saxton moved to Philadelphia, where he found employment as a watchmaker, engraver, and apprentice in the machine shop of Isaiah Lukens. During this time, he made his first inventions: a machine for cutting the teeth of marine chronometer wheels and an escapement and compensating pendulum for clocks. He also helped Lukens with the construction of a clock for the newly rebuilt steeple of the Independence Hall. In 1884, an anecdote about Saxton's apprenticeship w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Philadelphia Mint
The Philadelphia Mint is a branch of the United States Mint in Philadelphia. It was built in 1792 following the Coinage Act of 1792, in order to establish a national identity and the needs of commerce in the United States, and is the first and oldest national mint. History First building (1792–1833) The Coinage Act of 1792 entered into law on April 2, proclaiming the creation of the United States Mint. Philadelphia at that time was the nation's capital, and the first mint facility was built there. David Rittenhouse, an American scientist, was appointed the first director of the mint by President George Washington. Two lots were purchased by Rittenhouse on July 18, 1792, at Seventh Street and 631 Filbert Street in Philadelphia for $4,266.67. The next day, demolition of an abandoned whiskey distillery on the property began. Foundation work began on July 31; by September 7, the first building was ready for installation of the smelting furnace. The smelt house was the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Scott Legacy Medal
John Scott Award, created in 1816 as the John Scott Legacy Medal and Premium, is presented to men and women whose inventions improved the "comfort, welfare, and happiness of human kind" in a significant way. "...the John Scott Medal Fund, established in 1816...". Since 1919 the Board of Directors of City Trusts of Philadelphia provide this award, recommended by an advisory committee. Eugene Garfield is member of the Advisory Committee. In 1822 the first awards were given to thirteen people by the Philadelphia Society for Promoting Agriculture entrusted by the " Corporation of the city of Philadelphia". The druggist John Scott of Edinburgh organized a $4,000 fund which, after his death in 1815 was administered by a merchant until the first award, a copper medal and "an amount not to exceed twenty dollars", was given in 1822. (At the time, $20 could buy one ox or a 12-volume encyclopedia.) Several hundred recipients have since been selected by the City Council of Philadelphia, which ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Franklin Institute
The Franklin Institute is a science museum and a center of science education and research in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is named after the American scientist and wikt:statesman, statesman Benjamin Franklin. It houses the Benjamin Franklin National Memorial. Founded in 1824, the Franklin Institute is one of the oldest centers of science education and development in the United States. Its chief astronomer is Derrick Pitts. History 19th century On February 5, 1824, Samuel Vaughan Merrick and William H. Keating founded the Franklin Institute of the State of Pennsylvania for the Promotion of the Artes Mechanicae, Mechanic Arts. The opening was chronicled by ''The Literary Chronicle for the Year 1824'': Begun in 1825, the institute was an important force in the professionalization of American science and technology through the nineteenth century, beginning with early investigations into steam engines and water power. In addition to conducting scientific inquiry, it fostered re ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society (APS) is an American scholarly organization and learned society founded in 1743 in Philadelphia that promotes knowledge in the humanities and natural sciences through research, professional meetings, publications, source text, library resources, and community outreach. It was founded by the polymath Benjamin Franklin and is considered the first learned society founded in what became the United States.Philosophical Hall, the society's headquarters and a museum, is located just east of Independence Hall in Independence National Historical Park. In 1965, in recognition of the building's history, it was designated a National Historic Landmark. The society has about 1,000 elected members. As of April 2020, 5,710 members had been inducted since its creation. Through research grants, published journals, the American Philosophical Society Museum, an extensive library, and regular meetings, the society supports a variety of disciplines in the humanitie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
United States Coast Survey
United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two film * ''The United'' (film), an unreleased Arabic-language film Literature * ''United!'' (novel), a 1973 children's novel by Michael Hardcastle Music * United (band), Japanese thrash metal band formed in 1981 Albums * ''United'' (Commodores album), 1986 * ''United'' (Dream Evil album), 2006 * ''United'' (Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell album), 1967 * ''United'' (Marian Gold album), 1996 * ''United'' (Phoenix album), 2000 * ''United'' (Woody Shaw album), 1981 Songs * "United" (Judas Priest song), 1980 * "United" (Prince Ital Joe and Marky Mark song), 1994 * "United" (Robbie Williams song), 2000 * "United", a song by Danish duo Nik & Jay featuring Lisa Rowe * "United (Who We Are)", a song by XO-IQ, featured in the television ser ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robert Cornelius
Robert Cornelius (; March 1, 1809 – August 10, 1893) was an American photographer and pioneer in the history of photography. His daguerreotype self-portrait taken in 1839 is generally accepted as the first known photographic portrait of a person taken in the United States, and a significant achievement for self-portraiture. He operated some of the earliest photography studios in the United States between 1840 and 1842 and implemented innovative techniques to significantly reduce the exposure time required for portraits. Cornelius was an inventor, businessman and lamp manufacturer. He created and patented the "solar lamp" in 1843 which burned brighter and allowed for the use of cheaper lard as a fuel source rather than more expensive whale oil. Life and career Cornelius was born in Philadelphia to Sarah Cornelius () and Christian Cornelius. His father immigrated from Amsterdam in 1783 and worked as a silversmith before opening a lamp-manufacturing company. He attended private ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Central High School (Philadelphia)
Central High School is a public high school in the Logan, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Logan"." Philadelphia City Planning Commission. May 2002. 1 (document page 3). Retrieved on August 2, 2011. "The neighborhood is generally defined as including the area from Wingohocking Street north to Olney Avenue and from Broad Street east to the railroad right-of-way east of Marshall Street. Logan extends west to 16th Street north of Lindley Avenue, where Wakefield Park forms the boundary." section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1836, it is a four-year university preparatory magnet school. About 2,400 students attend grades 9 through 12. Central High School is the only high school in the United States with authority, granted by an 1849 Act of Assembly of the Pennsylvania General Assembly, to confer academic degrees upon its graduates. This authority to grant academic degrees led Central to refer to the principal of the school as the “President” of Central High School. The cur ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Calotype
Calotype or talbotype is an early photographic process introduced in 1841 by William Henry Fox Talbot, using paper coated with silver iodide. Paper texture effects in calotype photography limit the ability of this early process to record low contrast details and textures. The term ''calotype'' comes from the Ancient Greek (), "beautiful", and (), "impression". The process Talbot made his first successful camera photographs in 1835 using paper sensitised with silver chloride, which darkened in proportion to its exposure to light. This early "photogenic drawing" process was a ''printing-out'' process, i.e., the paper had to be exposed in the camera until the image was fully visible. A very long exposure—typically an hour or more—was required to produce an acceptable negative. In late 1840, Talbot worked out a very different ''developing-out'' process (a concept pioneered by the daguerreotype process introduced in 1839), in which only an extremely faint or completely i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Daguerreotype
Daguerreotype was the first publicly available photography, photographic process, widely used during the 1840s and 1850s. "Daguerreotype" also refers to an image created through this process. Invented by Louis Daguerre and introduced worldwide in 1839, the daguerreotype was almost completely superseded by 1856 with new, less expensive processes, such as ambrotype (collodion process), that yield more readily viewable images. There has been a revival of the daguerreotype since the late 20th century by a small number of photographers interested in making artistic use of early photographic processes. To make the image, a daguerreotypist polished a sheet of Plating#Silver plating, silver-plated copper to a mirror finish; treated it with fumes that made its surface light-sensitive; exposure (photography), exposed it in a camera obscura, camera for as long as was judged to be necessary, which could be as little as a few seconds for brightly sunlit subjects or much longer with less ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hydrometer
A hydrometer or lactometer is an instrument used for measuring density or relative density of liquids based on the concept of buoyancy. They are typically Calibration, calibrated and Graduation (instrument), graduated with one or more scales such as specific gravity. A hydrometer usually consists of a sealed hollow glass tube with a wider bottom portion for buoyancy, a ballast such as lead or Mercury (element), mercury for stability, and a narrow stem with graduations for measuring. The liquid to test is poured into a tall container, often a graduated cylinder, and the hydrometer is gently lowered into the liquid until it floats freely. The point at which the surface of the liquid touches the stem of the hydrometer correlates to relative density. Hydrometers can contain any number of scales along the stem corresponding to properties correlating to the density. Hydrometers are calibrated for different uses, such as a lactometer for measuring the density (creaminess) of milk, a sa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
