The lost world of James Smithson : science, revolution, and the birth of the Smithsonian

In the mid-1830s, the United States learned that it was the beneficiary of a strange and unprecedented bequest. An Englishman named James Smithson, who had never set foot in the U.S., had left all his fortune to found in Washington "an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men." He left no further instructions, and the questions surrounding the extraordinary bequest sparked a rancorous decade-long debate in Congress. Since its founding in 1846, the Smithsonian Institution has grown into the largest museum and research complex in the world. Known as "the Nation's Attic," it is the keeper of many of America's most treasured cultural icons-the Star-Spangled Banner, the Spirit of St. Louis, Lincoln's top hat, and Dorothy's ruby slippers. At its heart, however, has always been the mystery of its enigmatic benefactor. Drawing on unpublished letters and diaries from archives across Europe and the United States-including the entirety of the Smithsonian's archive-Heather Ewing paints the fullest picture to date of James Smithson and his compelling story. The illegitimate son of the first Duke of Northumberland, Smithson was born into the world of the ancien regime, where birth and name meant everything. He found a new future in science, the closest thing the eighteenth century had to a meritocracy. Against a backdrop of war and revolution, Smithson and his friends, who included many of the most famous scientists of the age, burst through boundaries at every turn, defying gravity in the first hot air balloons, upending the biblical timeline with their geological finds, and exploring the realm of the invisible with the discovery of new gases.;Intro; Title Page; Contents; Dedication; Maps: The Journey to Staffa; The Grand Tour 1791-1797; Prologue 1865; 1. Descended from Kings; 2. Oxford: The Lure of Novelty, 1782-178; 3. Staffa: The Cathedral of the Sea, 1784; 4. London: Science Like Fire, 1784-1788; 5. Science and Revolution, 1788-1791; 6. Grand Tour, 1791-1797; 7. London: Citizen of the World, 1797-1803; 8. The Hurricane of War, 1803-1807; 9. Vibrating between Existence and the Tomb, 1807-1810; 10. London: A New Race of Chemists, 1810-1814; 11. Paris: Private Vices, Publick Benefits, 1814-1825; 12. London: The Will, 1825-1829 In the mid-1830s, the United States learned that it was the beneficiary of a strange and unprecedented bequest. An Englishman named James Smithson, who had never set foot in the U.S., had left all his fortune to found in Washington "an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men." He left no further instructions, and the questions surrounding the extraordinary bequest sparked a rancorous decade-long debate in Congress. Since its founding in 1846, the Smithsonian Institution has grown into the largest museum and research complex in the world. Known as "the Nation's Attic," it is the keeper of many of America's most treasured cultural icons-the Star-Spangled Banner, the Spirit of St. Louis, Lincoln's top hat, and Dorothy's ruby slippers. At its heart, however, has always been the mystery of its enigmatic benefactor. Drawing on unpublished letters and diaries from archives across Europe and the United States-including the entirety of the Smithsonian's archive-Heather Ewing paints the fullest picture to date of James Smithson and his compelling story. The illegitimate son of the first Duke of Northumberland, Smithson was born into the world of the ancien regime, where birth and name meant everything. He found a new future in science, the closest thing the eighteenth century had to a meritocracy. Against a backdrop of war and revolution, Smithson and his friends, who included many of the most famous scientists of the age, burst through boundaries at every turn, defying gravity in the first hot air balloons, upending the biblical timeline with their geological finds, and exploring the realm of the invisible with the discovery of new gases. The Lost World of James Smithson presents a sweeping portrait of a life profoundly shaped by the exploding culture of knowledge in the late eighteenth century and by the promise that science held for transforming society. Fascinating and magisterial, it is a story that sheds an entirely new light o The first definitive biography of James Smithson, the passionate and mysterious Englishman responsible for "America's attic," based on important new research and newly discovered documents. Intro Title Page Contents Dedication Maps: The Journey to Staffa The Grand Tour 1791-1797 Prologue 1865 1. Descended from Kings 2. Oxford: The Lure of Novelty, 1782-178 3. Staffa: The Cathedral of the Sea, 1784 4. London: Science Like Fire, 1784-1788 5. Science and Revolution, 1788-1791 6. Grand Tour, 1791-1797 7. London: Citizen of the World, 1797-1803 8. The Hurricane of War, 1803-1807 9. Vibrating between Existence and the Tomb, 1807-1810 10. London: A New Race of Chemists, 1810-1814 11. Paris: Private Vices, Publick Benefits, 1814-1825 12. London: The Will, 1825-1829 13. America: The Finger of ProvidenceAcknowledgments Epilogue 1832 Appendix: Genealogy Chart Notes Picture Credits A Note on the Author Imprint Chronicles the life of James Smithson as a scientist, suspected spy, gambler, radical revolutionary, and philanthropist, telling the story of his remarkable bequest and the controversy it spawned