The Nuttall Ornithological Club is the oldest

ornithology Ornithology is a branch of zoology that concerns the "methodological study and consequent knowledge of birds with all that relates to them." Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and th ...

organization in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

History

The club initially was a small informal group of William Brewster's childhood friends, all of whom shared his interest in ornithology. These friends included

Daniel Chester French Daniel Chester French (April 20, 1850 – October 7, 1931) was an American sculptor of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, best known for his 1874 sculpture ''The Minute Man'' in Concord, Massachusetts, and his 1920 monume ...

Ruthven Deane Ruthven Deane (20 August 1851 – 20 March 1934) was an American ornithologist, noted as a founding member of the American Ornithologists' Union and for his collection of photographic portraits of ornithologists and naturalists. Early life Deane ...

and

Henry Henshaw Henry Wetherbee Henshaw (March 3, 1850 – August 1, 1930) was an American ornithologist and ethnologist. He worked at the U.S. Bureau of Ethnology from 1888 to 1892 and was editor of the journal ''American Anthropologist''. Biography Early li ...

. In 1872, Henshaw suggested that the group meet on a regular weekly schedule at Brewster's house in Cambridge, Massachusetts. On November 17, 1873, the group, which had expanded to include

Henry Augustus Purdie Henry Augustus Purdie (December 16, 1840 – March 29, 1911) was an American ornithologist and naturalist. He was a founding member of the American Ornithologists' Union, and a president of the Nuttall Ornithological Club. Biography Purdie was born ...

, William Earl Dodge Scott, Francis P. Atkinson, Harry Balch Bailey,

Ernest Ingersoll Ernest Ingersoll (March 13, 1852 – November 13, 1946) was an American naturalist, writer and explorer. Biography A native of Monroe, Michigan, Ingersoll studied for a time at Oberlin College and afterward at Harvard University, where he was a ...

, and Walter Woodman, met to formally establish the first American ornithological club.Davis, William E. History of the Nuttall Ornithological Club, 1873-1986. Cambridge, 1987 They named their club after the

botanist Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek wo ...

and

zoologist Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the Animal, animal kingdom, including the anatomy, structure, embryology, evolution, Biological clas ...

Thomas Nuttall Thomas Nuttall (5 January 1786 – 10 September 1859) was an England, English botany, botanist and zoologist who lived and worked in America from 1808 until 1841. Nuttall was born in the village of Long Preston, near Settle, North Yorkshire, S ...

who published the first

field guide A field guide is a book designed to help the reader identify wildlife (flora or fauna) or other objects of natural occurrence (e.g. rocks and minerals). It is generally designed to be brought into the "field" or local area where such objects exi ...

for North American birds, ''Manual of the Ornithology of the United States and of Canada'' (1832). By 1876 the club determined to publish the ''Bulletin of the Nuttall Ornithological Club'', which was the first purely ornithological journal, under the joint editorship of

Charles Johnson Maynard Charles Johnson Maynard (May 6, 1845 – October 15, 1929) was an American naturalist and ornithologist born in Newton, Massachusetts. He was a collector, a taxidermist, and an expert on the vocal organs of birds. In addition to birds, he also s ...

and Henry Augustus Purdie. However, after one issue, Maynard and Purdie were removed as editors and

Joel Asaph Allen Joel Asaph Allen (July 19, 1838 – August 29, 1921) was an American zoology, zoologist, mammalogy, mammalogist, and ornithology, ornithologist. He became the first president of the American Ornithologists' Union, the first curator of birds and ma ...

, who had recently joined the club, became the sole editor-in-chief.

Notable members

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

, 26th President of the United States, was a member of the club, one of only a few presidents who published papers in

peer review Peer review is the evaluation of work by one or more people with similar competencies as the producers of the work (peers). It functions as a form of self-regulation by qualified members of a profession within the relevant field. Peer review ...

scientific journal In academic publishing, a scientific journal is a periodical publication intended to further the progress of science, usually by reporting new research. Content Articles in scientific journals are mostly written by active scientists such as s ...

Roger Tory Peterson Roger Tory Peterson (August 28, 1908 – July 28, 1996) was an American naturalist, ornithologist, illustrator and educator, and one of the founding inspirations for the 20th-century environmental movement. Background Peterson was born in Jam ...

, author of the Peterson

Publications

* 1876-1883 - Bulletin of the Nuttall Ornithological Club (became

The Auk ''Ornithology'', formerly ''The Auk'' and ''The Auk: Ornithological Advances'', is a peer-reviewed scientific journal and the official publication of the American Ornithological Society (AOS). It was established in 1884 and is published quarterly. ...

in 1883) * Quarterly bulletin of the Nuttall Ornithological Club * Memoirs of the Nuttall Ornithological Club

References

External links

Official site
* Ornithological organizations in the United States Organizations established in 1873 {{ornithology-stub