Catherine Wolfe Bruce (January 22, 1816, New York – March 13, 1900, New York) was a noted American philanthropist and patron of astronomy.

Early life

Bruce was born on January 22, 1816. She was the daughter of the George Bruce (1781–1866), a famous type founder who was born in

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

, and Catherine Wolfe (1785–1861), the daughter of David Wolfe (1748–1836) of New York City. One of five children,Ogilvie, Marilyn Bailey, and Joy Dorothy Harvey. ''The Biographical Dictionary of Women in Science: Pioneering Lives from Ancient Times to the Mid-20th Century''. New York: Routledge, 2000. her brother was David Wolfe Bruce (1824–1895), who, along with David Wolfe Bishop, inherited the fortune of their cousin, Catharine Lorillard Wolfe.

Career

She studied painting, learned Latin, German, French and Italian, and was familiar with the literature of those languages. In 1890, she wrote and published a translation of the "'' Dies Irae''."

Personal life

Due to an ever-increasing illness, she was confined to her home and died on March 13, 1900, at 810

Fifth Avenue Fifth Avenue is a major thoroughfare in the borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan in New York City. The avenue runs south from 143rd Street (Manhattan), West 143rd Street in Harlem to Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village. The se ...

in New York City.

Philanthropy

In 1877, she donated $50,000 for the construction of a library building and the purchase of books in memory of her father. The library, known as " The George Bruce Library" was completed in 1888 and was located at 226 West 42nd Street and designed by G. E. Harney. The building was sold in 1913 and the proceeds were used to build the current George Bruce library located on 125th Street in Harlem and designed by

Carrère & Hastings Carrère (; ) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in south-western France. See also *Communes of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department The following is a list of the 545 Communes of France, communes of the Pyrénées-Atlan ...

. As an amateur astronomer, she turned to philanthropy in this field at the age of 73, only after reading an article by

Simon Newcomb Simon Newcomb (March 12, 1835 – July 11, 1909) was a Canadians, Canadian–Americans, American astronomer, applied mathematician, and autodidactic polymath. He served as Professor of Mathematics in the United States Navy and at Johns Hopkins ...

claiming all the major discoveries in astronomy have occurred. Bruce turned to telescope maker

Alvan Graham Clark Alvan Graham Clark (July 10, 1832 – June 9, 1897) was an American astronomer and telescope-maker. Biography Alvan Graham Clark was born in Fall River, Massachusetts, Fall River, Massachusetts, the son of Alvan Clark, founder of Alvan Clark & S ...

to see how she could support research in astronomy. Bruce made over 54 gifts to astronomy, totaling over $275,000, between 1889 and 1899. She donated funds to the

Harvard College Observatory The Harvard College Observatory (HCO) is an institution managing a complex of buildings and multiple instruments used for astronomical research by the Harvard University Department of Astronomy. It is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United St ...

(U.S.A.),

Yerkes Observatory Yerkes Observatory ( ) is an astronomical observatory located in Williams Bay, Wisconsin, United States. The observatory was operated by the University of Chicago Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics from its founding in 1897 until 2018. O ...

(U.S.A.) and Landessternwarte Heidelberg-Königstuhl (Germany), run by

Max Wolf Maximilian Franz Joseph Cornelius Wolf (21 June 1863 – 3 October 1932) was a German astronomer and a pioneer in the field of astrophotography. He was the chairman of astronomy at the University of Heidelberg and director of the Heidelberg-K� ...

at the time, to buy new telescopes at each of those institutes. In 1887, she donated the ''George Bruce Free Library''. Bruce established the

Bruce Medal The Catherine Wolfe Bruce Gold Medal is awarded every year by the Astronomical Society of the Pacific for outstanding lifetime contributions to astronomy. It is named after Catherine Wolfe Bruce, an American patroness of astronomy, and was ...

of the

Astronomical Society of the Pacific The Astronomical Society of the Pacific (ASP) is an American scientific and educational organization, founded in San Francisco on February 7, 1889, immediately following the solar eclipse of January 1, 1889. Its name derives from its origins on ...

in recognition of lifetime achievements and contributions to astrophysics, and is one of the prestigious awards in the field.

Honors

Asteroid

323 Brucia 323 Brucia is a stony Phocaea asteroid and former Mars-crosser from the inner regions of the asteroid belt, approximately in diameter. It was the first asteroid to be discovered by the use of astrophotography. Description ''Brucia'' was a ...

, discovered by

is named after her, as well as the crater ''

Bruce The English language name Bruce arrived in Scotland with the Normans, from the place name Brix, Manche in Normandy, France, meaning "the willowlands". Initially promulgated via the descendants of king Robert the Bruce (1274−1329), it has been ...

'' on the

Moon The Moon is Earth's only natural satellite. It Orbit of the Moon, orbits around Earth at Lunar distance, an average distance of (; about 30 times Earth diameter, Earth's diameter). The Moon rotation, rotates, with a rotation period (lunar ...

. She was awarded a gold medal by the

Grand Duke of Baden The Grand Duchy of Baden () was a German polity on the east bank of the Rhine. It originally existed as a sovereign state from 1806 to 1871 and later as part of the German Empire until 1918. The duchy's 12th-century origins were as a margravi ...

. Astronomer

Johann Palisa Johann Palisa (6 December 1848 – 2 May 1925) was an Austrian astronomer, born in Troppau, Austrian Silesia, now Czech Republic. He was a prolific discoverer of asteroids, discovering 122 in all, from 136 Austria in 1874 to 1073 G ...

gave her the honor of naming 313 Chaldaea as a token for the gratitude of astronomers.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bruce, Catherine Wolfe 1816 births 1900 deaths People associated with astronomy American people of Scottish descent Harvard College Observatory people