Jonathan Dwight by John Adams Whipple 1852

Jonathan Dwight V (1858–1929) was an American ornithologist.

Life

Jonathan Dwight was born December 8, 1858 in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. His father was civil engineer Jonathan Dwight (1831–1910), grandfather Jonathan Dwight (1799–1856), great grandfather Jonathan Dwight (1772–1840), and great-great grandfather also named Jonathan Dwight (1743–1831), all part of the large

New England Dwight family The Dwight family of New England had many members who were military leaders, educators, jurists, authors, businessmen and clergy. Around 1634, John Dwight came with his wife Hannah, daughter Hannah, and sons Timothy (1629–1718) and John (d. 163 ...

. His mother was Julia Lawrence Hasbrouck. In 1861 the family moved to

Madison, New Jersey Madison is a borough in Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 16,937. Located along the Morris & Essex Lines, it is noted for Madison's historic railroad station becoming on ...

. His family had a summer home in

Tadoussac, Quebec Tadoussac () is a village in Quebec, Canada, at the confluence of the Saguenay and Saint Lawrence rivers. The indigenous Innu call the place ''Totouskak'' (plural for ''totouswk'' or ''totochak'') meaning "bosom", probably in reference to the tw ...

, and his first paper was published in 1879 on the birds observed there. He graduated from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

in 1880, and joined his father in railroad design. He enlisted in the New York National Guard in 1889. After serving in the ambulance corps, he developed an interest in medicine. In 1893 he entered the

Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons (VP&S) is the graduate medical school of Columbia University, located at the Columbia University Irving Medical Center in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Manhattan. Founded ...

. He worked for a while in a hospital and private practice, but over time devoted more time to the study of birds. Dwight was a member of the American Ornithologists' Union since its founding on September 26, 1883. He was treasurer from 1903 to 1920, vice president until 1923, and president to 1926. The American Museum of Natural History provided a room for his collection in 1909. He married Georgina Gertrude Rundle (daughter of Richard Plaskett Rundle) in 1901; she died January 29, 1903. He married Ethel Gordon Wishart Adam in 1914. Obituary read October 22, 1929. He died of cancer at his home at 43 West 70th Street in New York City on February 22, 1929.

Legacy

After Dwight's death, Fiduciary Trust Company founder Carll Tucker purchased Dwight's collection of ornithology books as a gift for his wife Marcia Brady Tucker, daughter of Anthony N. Brady, a founder of

Union Carbide Union Carbide Corporation is an American chemical corporation wholly owned subsidiary (since February 6, 2001) by Dow Chemical Company. Union Carbide produces chemicals and polymers that undergo one or more further conversions by customers befo ...

. Marcia Brady Tucker, two-time director of the National Association of Audubon Societies, donated the collection to the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...

in 1970.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dwight, Jonathan 1858 births 1929 deaths American ornithologists Deaths from cancer in New York (state) Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons alumni Harvard University alumni People from Madison, New Jersey People from the Upper West Side Scientists from New York (state)