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 ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

, and Catherine Wolfe (1785–1861), the daughter of David Wolfe (1748–1836) of New York City. 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 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 (; oc, Carrèra) 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 546 communes of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques ...

. 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 Canadian–American astronomer, applied mathematician, and autodidactic polymath. He served as Professor of Mathematics in the United States Navy and at Johns Hopkins University. Born in N ...

claiming all the major discoveries in astronomy have occurred. Bruce turned to telescope maker Alvan Graham Clark to see how she can 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 to 2018. Owner ...

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

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

Honors

Asteroid

323 Brucia Brucia (minor planet designation: 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. ...

, discovered by Max Wolf 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 is the fifth largest satellite in the Solar System and the largest and most massive relative to its parent planet, with a diameter about one-quarter that of Earth (comparable to the width of ...

. She received a gold medal by the

Grand Duke of Baden The Grand Duchy of Baden (german: Großherzogtum Baden) was a state in the southwest German Empire on the east bank of the Rhine. It existed between 1806 and 1918. It came into existence in the 12th century as the Margraviate of Baden and subse ...

. Astronomer Johann Palisa 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