Mary Proctor (1862 – 11 September 1957) was an American popularizer of

astronomy Astronomy () is a natural science that studies celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and evolution. Objects of interest include planets, moons, stars, nebulae, g ...

. While not a professional astronomer, Proctor became well known for her books and articles written for the public – particularly her children's fiction. Despite various claims as being an American, there is a passenger list of about 1924 where she gives nationality as

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

Early life

Mary Proctor was born in Dublin, Ireland, the daughter of Mary and

Richard Proctor Richard Anthony Proctor (23 March 1837 – 12 September 1888) was an English astronomer. He is best remembered for having produced one of the earliest maps of Mars in 1867 from 27 drawings by the English observer William Rutter Dawes. His map w ...

. Proctor's mother died in 1879. Her father remarried in 1881 and her family immigrated to the United States settling in Saint Joseph,

Missouri Missouri is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee): Iowa to the north, Illinois, Kentucky and Tennessee to the east, Arkansas t ...

in 1882. Proctor's father was a British popularizer of astronomy, lecturer, and writer. As she grew up, Proctor often assisted her father in his work, looking after his library and correcting proofs of his books before they went to publication. She graduated from the London College of Preceptors in 1898. The crater Proctor 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 ...

was named after her and Proctor on

Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin at ...

was named after her father.)''Autostar Suite Astronomer Edition''. CD-ROM. Meade, April 2006.

Career

In 1881, Proctor assisted her father in founding and producing a journal called ''Knowledge.'' She wrote a series of articles on the topic of comparative mythology. After a well-received appearance at the

World's Columbian Exposition The World's Columbian Exposition (also known as the Chicago World's Fair) was a world's fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. The centerpiece of the Fair, hel ...

1893, she eventually developed a career as an astronomy lecturer. Her book-length debut, ''Stories of Starland'' (1898), was adopted by the New York City Board of Education. She worked as an astronomy teacher in private schools while attending

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

Works

Proctor authored many articles for newspapers, journals and published numerous popular books. Her articles and books were mostly aimed for young readers, which earned her the nickname "the children's astronomer." Her books were easy to read, accurate, informative and well illustrated. Known and respected by many professional astronomers, Proctor became an elected member of 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 ...

in 1897 and the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1898. On 11 February 1916, she was elected as a fellow of the

Royal Astronomical Society (Whatever shines should be observed) , predecessor = , successor = , formation = , founder = , extinction = , merger = , merged = , type = NG ...

Bibliography

* ''Stories Of Starland'', 1895. * ''Giant Sun And His Family'', 1896.
"Halley's Comet after 75 years rushes Earthward again"
''

San Francisco Call ''The San Francisco Call'' was a newspaper that served San Francisco, California. Because of a succession of mergers with other newspapers, the paper variously came to be called ''The San Francisco Call & Post'', the ''San Francisco Call-Bulletin ...

'', August 23, 1908. * ''Half Hours With The Summer Stars'', 1911. * ''Legends Of The Stars'', 1922. * ''The Children's Book Of The Heavens'', 1924. * ''Evenings With The Stars'', 1924. * ''Legends Of The Sun And Moon'', 1926. * ''The Romance Of Comets'', 1926. * ''The Romance Of The Sun'', 1927. * ''The Romance Of The Moon'', 1928. * ''The Romance Of The Planets'', 1929. * ''Wonders Of The Sky'', 1931. * ''Our Stars Month By Month'', 1937 * M. Proctor and A. C. D. Crommelin, ''Comets'', 1937. * ''Everyman's Astronomy'' 1939. * ''Comets, Meteors And Shooting Stars'', 1940.

References

External links