Mary Emma Byrd (November 15, 1849 – July 13, 1934) was an American educator and is considered a pioneer astronomy teacher
at college level. She was also an astronomer in her own right, determining cometary positions by photography.
Early life
Mary E. Byrd was born November 15, 1849 in
Le Roy, Michigan to the reverend John Huntington Byrd and Elizabeth Adelaide Lowe as the second of six children. The family moved to
Kansas
Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to th ...
in 1855. Her father was strongly opposed to
slavery and the slave trade, and managed a station of the Underground Railroad.
Her mother was a descendant of
John Endecott
John Endecott (also spelled Endicott; before 1600 – 15 March 1664/1665), regarded as one of the Fathers of New England, was the longest-serving governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, which became the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. He serv ...
. Her parents instilled in her a strong
Puritan
The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to purify the Church of England of Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should become more Protestant. ...
belief, making her a person of high moral principles. Her uncle,
David Lowe, a Kansas judge, who served for one term in
Congress
A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...
, refused to seek re-election because he found "politics and ideal honesty incompatible."
Education
In the late 19th century it was very difficult for a young woman to get a decent education. This is reflected in her education. She was a teacher, on and off, while trying to get an education. Byrd graduated from
Leavenworth High School
Leavenworth High School is a public high school located in Leavenworth, Kansas, operated by Leavenworth USD 453 school district. The school was established in 1865, making it one of the first high schools in Kansas. The school colors are blue and ...
. She attended
Oberlin College from 1871–1874, when
John Millott Ellis was the college president. She left Oberlin before graduating. She graduated from the
University of Michigan
, mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth"
, former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821)
, budget = $10.3 billion (2021)
, endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...
with a B.A. in 1878. In 1879 Byrd worked as the principal of
Wabash High School
Wabash High School is a public high school in Wabash, Indiana, United States with approximately 500 students in grades 9–12.
The nickname of the students and the athletic teams is "Wabash Apaches."
Demographics
The demographic breakdown of the ...
in Indiana until 1882, when she left to study astronomy at Harvard College Observatory under Dr.
E.C. Pickering.
She received the degree of Doctor of Philosophy from
Carleton College in 1904.
Byrd was one of a group of young women who were the pioneers of
coeducation. Most notable in this group was probably
Alice Freeman Palmer
Alice Freeman Palmer (born Alice Elvira Freeman; February 21, 1855 – December 6, 1902) was an American educator. As Alice Freeman, she was president of Wellesley College from 1881 to 1887, when she left to marry the Harvard professor George H ...
. She worked briefly at The Coast Star in
Manasquan, NJ prior to her death.
Career
In 1883 she became the First Assistant at the
Godsell Observatory at
Carleton College, and in 1887 she was appointed Director of the
Smith College Observatory and professor of astronomy.
Byrd had a particular research interest in "fixing positions of comets by micrometer measures of their distance from known stars."
In 1906, Byrd, at the height of her career, resigned from her positions at Smith because the college accepted money from
Andrew Carnegie
Andrew Carnegie (, ; November 25, 1835August 11, 1919) was a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist. Carnegie led the expansion of the American steel industry in the late 19th century and became one of the richest Americans i ...
and
John D. Rockefeller
John Davison Rockefeller Sr. (July 8, 1839 – May 23, 1937) was an American business magnate and philanthropist. He has been widely considered the wealthiest American of all time and the richest person in modern history. Rockefeller was ...
, which she found reprehensible.
Upon her resignation, she returned to Lawrence, Kansas. She continued writing, and contributed many articles to
Popular Astronomy magazine.
During her life Byrd was a member of the Astronomical and Astrophysical Society of America (now the
American Astronomical Society or simply AAS), the
Astronomical Society of the Pacific, the
British Astronomical Association
The British Astronomical Association (BAA) was formed in 1890 as a national body to support the UK's amateur astronomers.
Throughout its history, the BAA has encouraged observers to make scientifically valuable observations, often in collaborati ...
, the
Anti-Imperialist League of Northampton, the
American Mathematical Society
The American Mathematical Society (AMS) is an association of professional mathematicians dedicated to the interests of mathematical research and scholarship, and serves the national and international community through its publications, meetings, ...
(Ref. New York Mathematical Society list of members June 1892, page 6.
Death
Byrd died of
cerebral hemorrhage on July 13, 1934 in
Lawrence, Kansas and is buried in Oak Hill Cemetery.
Works
*''Laboratory Manual in Astronomy'' which was published in 1899 and is currently available as a reprint by BiblioLife,
*''First Observations In Astronomy: A Handbook For Schools And Colleges'' which was published in 1913 and is currently available as a reprint by Kessinger Publishing,
Further reading
*Bailey, Martha J. ; "Byrd, Mary Emma (1849–1934), astronomer". In ''American women in science, a biographical dictionary''. Santa Barbara, Calif., ABC-CLIO, 1994. p. 46.; 1994
*Leonard, John William, editor-in-chief; "Byrd, Mary Emma". In ''Woman's who's who of America. A biographical dictionary of contemporary women of the United States and Canada. 1914-1915''; New York, American Commonwealth Co.; p. 152.; 1914
References
External links
Mary E. Byrd papersat the
Smith College Archives
Smith College is a private, independent women's liberal arts college with coed graduate and certificate programs, located in Northampton, Massachusetts, United States. The Smith College Archives document the life of the College by collecting mat ...
, Smith College Special Collections
{{DEFAULTSORT:Byrd, Mary Emma
American women astronomers
University of Michigan alumni
Carleton College faculty
Smith College staff
1849 births
1934 deaths
People from Osceola County, Michigan