![Robert Maskell Patterson](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/98/Robert_Maskell_Patterson.jpg)
Robert Maskell Patterson (March 23, 1787 – September 5, 1854) was an American chemist, mathematician, and physician. He was a professor of mathematics, chemistry and natural philosophy at the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...
and professor of
natural philosophy
Natural philosophy or philosophy of nature (from Latin ''philosophia naturalis'') is the philosophical study of physics
Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior throu ...
at the
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...
. He also served as director of the
United States Mint
The United States Mint is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury responsible for producing coinage for the United States to conduct its trade and commerce, as well as controlling the movement of bullion. It does not produce paper money; tha ...
and as president of the
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...
(elected in 1809).
[Robert Patterson – Philadelphia, PA]
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Biography
Born in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
, to
Robert Patterson
Robert Patterson (January 12, 1792 – August 7, 1881) was an Irish-born United States major general during the American Civil War, chiefly remembered for inflicting an early defeat on Stonewall Jackson, but crucially failing to stop Confede ...
, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania, and director of the Mint from 1805 to 1824, who had emigrated to the British North American colonies from
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
. His mother was Amy Hunter Ewing and he was one of eight children of that marriage.
Patterson attended the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...
graduating in 1804 with a
B.A.
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...
, followed by his
M.D.
Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. ...
in 1808. He journeyed to France that year, where he studied with
Haüy,
Vauquelin,
Legendre and
Poisson. In 1811, Patterson went to England where he studied with
Humphry Davy
Sir Humphry Davy, 1st Baronet, (17 December 177829 May 1829) was a British chemist and inventor who invented the Davy lamp and a very early form of arc lamp. He is also remembered for isolating, by using electricity, several elements for t ...
.
Returning to the United States in 1812, he was appointed a professor at the University of Pennsylvania. Patterson remained at Penn until 1828 when he joined the faculty of the University of Virginia. He was elected an Associate Fellow of the
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and ...
in 1834.
Patterson returned to Philadelphia in 1835 to become director of the U.S. Mint. He was asked by a committee of the American Philosophical Society in 1836 to write a brief report on recommendations for astronomical and physics observations to be carried out by the
United States Exploring Expedition
The United States Exploring Expedition of 1838–1842 was an exploring and surveying expedition of the Pacific Ocean and surrounding lands conducted by the United States. The original appointed commanding officer was Commodore Thomas ap Catesby ...
, which sailed in 1838. Ill health forced him to resign from the Mint in 1851.
Patterson died in Philadelphia on September 5, 1854. He is buried at
Laurel Hill Cemetery
Laurel Hill Cemetery is a historic rural cemetery in the East Falls neighborhood of Philadelphia. Founded in 1836, it was the second major rural cemetery in the United States after Mount Auburn Cemetery in Boston, Massachusetts.
The cemetery is ...
in Philadelphia in Section H, Plot 13, 20, 25 & 26. He was married to Helen Hamilton Leiper (April 20, 1792 – December 17, 1874), daughter of
Thomas Leiper
Thomas Leiper (15 December 1745 – 6 July 1825) was a Scottish American businessman, banker and politician who owned a successful tobacco exportation business as well as several mills and stone quarries. He served as a lieutenant in the Philad ...
.
[
]
Cryptology
Patterson was interested in cipher
In cryptography, a cipher (or cypher) is an algorithm for performing encryption or decryption—a series of well-defined steps that can be followed as a procedure. An alternative, less common term is ''encipherment''. To encipher or encode i ...
s and regularly exchanged coded correspondence with Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 18 ...
. One of Patterson's ciphers included in a December 19, 1801 dated letter to Jefferson was decoded in 2007 by Lawren Smithline.
The cipher consists of 7 digit pairs and is decoded by decrypting 7 blocks at a time.
The cipher was of the Declaration of Independence
A declaration of independence or declaration of statehood or proclamation of independence is an assertion by a polity in a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the ...
, of which Jefferson was the primary author. Patterson called it his "perfect cipher" and Jefferson considered adopting it for government use.
American Philosophical Society
Patterson was the youngest person elected to the American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...
at 22 in 1809. Four years later he was elected a secretary, the a vice-president in 1825. He became president in 1849 and served in that capacity until his death.
References
* Frederik Nebeker, Astronomy and the Geophysical Tradition in the United States in the Nineteenth Century: A Guide to Manuscript Sources in the Library of the American Philosophical Society, APS Publication No. 16 (Philadelphia, 1991), p. 75–76.
* Obituary
Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, Vol. 6
No. 52 (Jul. – Dec., 1854), pp. 60–65
External links
Robert M. (Robert Maskell) Patterson papers, 1775-1853
{{DEFAULTSORT:Patterson, Robert M.
1787 births
1854 deaths
19th-century American chemists
19th-century American mathematicians
19th-century American physicians
American people of Irish descent
Burials at Laurel Hill Cemetery (Philadelphia)
Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Directors of the United States Mint
Members of the American Philosophical Society
Mathematicians from Philadelphia
University of Pennsylvania alumni
University of Pennsylvania faculty
University of Virginia faculty
Physicians from Philadelphia
Jackson administration personnel
Van Buren administration personnel
William Henry Harrison administration personnel
Tyler administration personnel
Polk administration personnel
Taylor administration personnel
Fillmore administration personnel