Thaddeus William Harris (November 12, 1795 – January 16, 1856) was an American

entomologist Entomology (from Ancient Greek ἔντομον (''éntomon''), meaning "insect", and -logy from λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study") is the branch of zoology that focuses on insects. Those who study entomology are known as entomologists. In ...

and librarian. His focus on insect life cycles and interactions with plants was influential in broadening American entomological studies beyond a narrow taxonomic approach. He was an early agricultural entomologist and served as a mentor and role model for others in this new field. For 25 years Harris served as the librarian of

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

where oversaw the rapid growth of the library and introduced one of the earliest American library card catalogs.Elliott 2000

Life and career

Thaddeus William Harris was born in

Dorchester, Massachusetts Dorchester () is a Neighborhoods in Boston, neighborhood comprising more than in the city of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Originally, Dorchester was a separate town, founded by Puritans who emigrated in 1630 from Dorchester, Dorset, E ...

on November 12, 1795. His father,

Thaddeus Mason Harris Thaddeus Mason Harris (July 7, 1768 – April 3, 1842) was a Harvard librarian, Unitarian minister and author in the early 19th Century. One of his most noted books on theology was ''The Natural History of the Bible'' first published in Boston in ...

, was a Unitarian minister who served at the church on

Meeting House Hill Meeting House Hill is one of the oldest sections of Boston's historic Dorchester, Boston, Dorchester neighborhood. It is the site of the First Parish Church of Dorchester, First Parish Church (est. 1631) and the The Mather School, Mather Scho ...

and had also for a time served as librarian of Harvard. Harris himself received his undergraduate degree at Harvard in 1815, and then went on to study

medicine Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...

there, receiving his

M.D. A Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated MD, from the Latin ) is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the ''MD'' denotes a professional degree of physician. This ge ...

in 1820. He went into medical practice with Amos Holbrook until 1831, first in Milton and then in Dorchester, Massachusetts. In 1824 he married Catherine Holbrook, a daughter of his medical partner. Thaddeus and Catherine had 12 children. Harris became interested in entomology while still a student at Harvard where he attended the natural history lectures of

William D. Peck William Dandridge Peck (May 8, 1763 – October 8, 1822) was an American naturalist, the first native-born entomologist and a pioneer in the field of economic entomology. In 1806 he became the first professor of natural history at Harvard, a pos ...

. After graduation he spent much of his spare time studying insects. His first publication, "Upon the Natural History of the Salt-marsh Caterpillar", appeared in 1823 in the ''Massachusetts Agricultural Repository''. His early work demonstrated a commitment to understanding the life history of insects and a focus on insects that were injurious to agriculture.Elliott 2008 p. 78 By 1836 he had published thirty-three papers, mostly in agricultural or horticultural journals (especially the ''New England Farmer''). While his published works focused on agricultural entomology, his prolific correspondence with other entomologists was more often related to insect classification and other technical aspects. In 1837 Harris was appointed by the Massachusetts Commission on the Zoological and Botanical Survey to prepare a report on the insects of Massachusetts. The results, ''A Treatise on Some of the Insects of New England, Which Are Injurious to Vegetation,'' was published in 1842. A second edition appeared in 1852, and a third, illustrated edition was issued posthumously in 1862. In 1831 Harris became the librarian of Harvard. He replaced

Benjamin Peirce Benjamin Peirce (; April 4, 1809 – October 6, 1880) was an American mathematician who taught at Harvard University for approximately 50 years. He made contributions to celestial mechanics, statistics, number theory, algebra, and the philoso ...

who had just died in this position. Harris' study of insects was a result of his having interacted with

while a student at Harvard. Harris lectured on various topics related to his work as a naturalist while he was Harvard librarian, and originated the Harvard Natural History Society for the students. In 1837 he was appointed one of the commissioners for a zoological and botanical survey of Massachusetts, the result of which was his ''Systematic Catalogue of the Insects of Massachusetts'' in which 2,350 species are enumerated. He sought a permanent appointment to the faculty in 1842, but the position was given to

Asa Gray Asa Gray (November 18, 1810 – January 30, 1888) is considered the most important American botany, botanist of the 19th century. His ''Darwiniana'' (1876) was considered an important explanation of how religion and science were not necessaril ...

instead. He was one of the founders of the

Massachusetts Horticultural Society The Massachusetts Horticultural Society, sometimes abbreviated to Mass Hort or MHS, is an American horticultural society based in Massachusettsbr>It describes itself as the oldest formally organized horticultural institution in the United States ...

. He was elected a Fellow of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...

in 1827.

Notes

Bibliography

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External links

Characteristics of some previously described North American coleopterous insects
(1836)
Descriptive catalogue of the North American insects belonging to the Linnaean genus Sphinx in the cabinet of Thaddeus William Harris
(1839)
Entomological correspondence of Thaddeus William Harris, M.D.
(1869)
A treatise on some of the insects of New England which are injurious to vegetation
(1852)
Papers of Thaddeus William Harris, 1818?-1852 (Harvard University Library)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, Thaddeus 1795 births 1856 deaths 19th-century American physicians American entomologists American botanists Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Harvard Medical School alumni Harvard University librarians People from Dorchester, Boston