Uriah Atherton Boyden (February 17 1804 – October 17 1879) was a
BostonBoston is the capital and largest city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is considered the economic and cultural center of the region and is sometimes regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England"...
inventor and mechanical engineer. He was the brother of
Seth BoydenSeth Boyden was an American inventor. He was the brother of Uriah A. Boyden.A New England native who moved to Newark, New Jersey, Boyden perfected the process for making patent leather, created malleable iron, invented a nail-making machine, and built his own steamboat...
.
He designed a
water turbineA water turbine is a rotary engine that takes energy from moving water.Water turbines were developed in the nineteenth century and were widely used for industrial power prior to electrical grids. Now they are mostly used for electric power generation...
that became known as the Boyden turbine.
His will left about a quarter of a million dollars to a suitable astronomical institution that would build an
observatoryAn observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial and/or celestial events. Astronomy, climatology/meteorology, geology, oceanography and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which observatories have been constructed...
on a mountain for the better atmospheric seeing conditions than those available at lower altitudes.
His heirs challenged the will, but it was found valid.
Uriah Atherton Boyden (February 17 1804 – October 17 1879) was a
BostonBoston is the capital and largest city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is considered the economic and cultural center of the region and is sometimes regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England"...
inventor and mechanical engineer. He was the brother of
Seth BoydenSeth Boyden was an American inventor. He was the brother of Uriah A. Boyden.A New England native who moved to Newark, New Jersey, Boyden perfected the process for making patent leather, created malleable iron, invented a nail-making machine, and built his own steamboat...
.
He designed a
water turbineA water turbine is a rotary engine that takes energy from moving water.Water turbines were developed in the nineteenth century and were widely used for industrial power prior to electrical grids. Now they are mostly used for electric power generation...
that became known as the Boyden turbine.
His will left about a quarter of a million dollars to a suitable astronomical institution that would build an
observatoryAn observatory is a location used for observing terrestrial and/or celestial events. Astronomy, climatology/meteorology, geology, oceanography and volcanology are examples of disciplines for which observatories have been constructed...
on a mountain for the better atmospheric seeing conditions than those available at lower altitudes.
His heirs challenged the will, but it was found valid. In 1887,
Edward Charles PickeringEdward Charles Pickering was an American astronomer and physicist, brother of William Henry Pickering.Along with Carl Vogel, Pickering discovered the first spectroscopic binary stars. He wrote Elements of Physical Manipulations .Pickering attended Boston Latin School, and received his B.S. from...
convinced the trustees of Boyden's will to award the Boyden Fund to
Harvard College ObservatoryThe Harvard College Observatory 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, USA, and was founded in 1839...
, of which he was director.
Although he initially planned to establish an observatory at
Mount WilsonMount Wilson is one of the better known peaks in the San Gabriel Mountains, part of the Angeles National Forest in Los Angeles County, California. It is the location of the Mount Wilson Observatory and has become the astronomical center of Southern California with and telescopes, and and tall...
, those plans were abandoned (although the
Mount Wilson ObservatoryThe Mount Wilson Observatory is an astronomical observatory in Los Angeles County, California. The MWO is located on Mount Wilson, a 5,715 foot peak in the San Gabriel Mountains near Pasadena, northeast of Los Angeles....
was later built by a different group). Instead, needing an observation station for southern hemisphere skies, Harvard College Observatory established the "Boyden Station" at
ArequipaArequipa is the capital of the Arequipa Region in southern Peru. With a population of 904,931 it is the second most populous city of the country. Arequipa lies in the Andes mountains, at an altitude of 2,380 meters above sea level; the snow-capped volcano El Misti overlooks the city...
,
PeruPeru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean.Peruvian territory was home to the Norte Chico...
in 1889.
In 1927, Boyden Station was moved to
South AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country located at the southern tip of Africa, with a coastline on the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. To the north lie Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe, to the east are Mozambique and Swaziland, while Lesotho is an independent country surrounded by South Africa.Modern...
due to better weather conditions and became known as the
Boyden ObservatoryBoyden Observatory is a South African astronomical research observatory and science education centre.-History:It was originally founded by Harvard University and placed near Lima, Peru in 1889...
.
The Boyden Public Library in Foxboro, Massachusetts is also named after him.
The
National Museum of American HistoryThe National Museum of American History: Kenneth E. Behring Center collects, preserves and displays the heritage of the United States in the areas of social, political, cultural, scientific and military history. Among the items on display are the original Star-Spangled Banner and Dorothy's ruby...
in Washington, DC is home to the Uriah A. Boyden Papers.
External links