USA > Washington DC > Washington DC > Centennial history of the city of Washington, D. C. With full outline of the natural advantages, accounts of the Indian tribes, selection of the site, founding of the city to the present time > Part 67
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The mural circle, 5 feet in diameter, mounted in 1844; the transit instrument, a 7-foot achromatic, with a clear aperture of 5.35 inches, mounted in 1844; the prime vertical transit instrument, with an object glass of 4.86 inches aperture, and a focal length of 6 feet and 5 inches, mounted in 1845; the 9.6-inch equatorial, with an object glass having a clear aperture of 9.62 inches, and a focal length of 14 feet 4.5 inches, mounted in 1845; the transit circle, having telescope with clear aperture of 8.52 inches, and focal length of 12 feet .7 inches, mounted in 1865; the 26-inch equatorial, which was provided for by act of Congress approved July 15, 1870, and cost $46,000, with a 32- foot tube, a clear aperture of 28 inches, and the principal focal dis- tance of nearly 390 inches, mounted in 1873; a chronometer, with barrel 6 inches in diameter and 13.5 inches long; a comet seeker, with an object glass 3.9 inches in diameter and 32.4 inches focal length, and 5 eyepieces magnifying from 13.6 to 41.6 diameters; a standard sidereal clock, a counting clock, a standard mean time clock, a barometer of the cistern form, a thermometer with Fahren- heit scale graduated from -36 degrees to + 157 degrees, a spectroscope, a dynameter, a sidereal clock, a driving clock, and a chronograph.
Following is a list of the superintendents of the observatory: Commander M. F. Maury, from October 1, 1844, to April 20, 1861; Captain J. M. Gilliss, from April 22, 1861, to February 9, 1865; Rear Admiral C. H. Davis, from April 28, 1865, to May 8, 1867; Rear Ad- miral B. F. Sands, from May 8, 1867, to February 23, 1874; Rear Admiral C. H. Davis, from February 23, 1874, to May 1, 1877; Rear Admiral John Rodgers, May 1, 1877, to May 5, 1882; Commander William T. Sampson, temporarily, June 3, 1882, to July 1, 1882; Vice- Admiral S. C. Rowan, July 1, 1882, to May 2, 1883; Rear Admiral R. W. Shufeldt, May 2, 1883, to February 21, 1884; Rear Admiral S. R. Franklin, February 21, 1884, to March 31, 1885; Commander A. D. Brown, temporarily, April 2, 1885, to May 31, 1885; Captain (now Rear Admiral) George E. Belknap, June 1, 1885, to June 7, 1886;
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Commander A. D. Brown, temporarily, June 7, 1886, to November 15, 1886: Captain R. L. Phythian, November 15, 1886, to June 28, 1890; Captain F. V. MeNair, June 28, 1890, to the present time.
The nucleus of a library was formed in 1843 by Lieutenant Gilliss, when in Europe, by the receipt of donations of books amount- ing to nearly three hundred volumes, on astronomical and other scientific subjects. The donors were the Royal Astronomical Society, the Royal Society, the Admiralty, the East India Company, and the directors of the observatories at Greenwich, Berlin, Brussels, and Munich. Besides these donations there were upward of seven hun- dred volumes purchased by Lieutenant Gilliss. Up to 1874 the number of volumes had increased to about six thousand volumes, by an annual exchange of publications made by the observatory with most of the scientific institutions in the world, of scientific treatises. The number of volumes contained in the library in 1891 was about thirteen thousand, besides about three thousand unbound pamphlets.
Following is a list of those who have acted as librarians of the Naval Observatory since its foundation :
J. S. Hubbard, professor of mathematics, from May, 1845, to August, 1863; William Harkness, professor of mathematics, from August, 1863, to October, 1865; J. E. Nourse, professor of mathe- maties, from October, 1865, to February, 1879; E. S. Holden, pro- fessor of mathematics, from February, 1879, to February, 1881; E. F. Qualtrough, lieutenant United States Navy, from February, 1881, to June, 1882; G. E. Yardley, lieutenant United States Navy, from June, 1882, to July, 1883; J. C. Wilson, lieutenant United States Navy, from July, 1883, to August, 1885; L. L. Reamey, lieutenant United States Navy, from August, 1885, to May, 1887; W. D. Hori- gan,' assistant in library (acting librarian ), from May, 1887, to May, 1889; H. M. Paul, assistant astronomer, from May, 1889, to date.
1 During the interval from May, 1887, to May, 1889, no one was formally assigned to the charge of the library; but Mr. W. D. Horigan, who had been an assistant in the library for several years, performed all the duties of an aeting librarian. Beginning with July 1, 1891, a regular position of assistant librarian has been provided for by Congress, and Mr. Horigan has been appointed to that position. No salary for a libra- rian has ever been provided by Congress, and at present it is necessary to take one of the assistant astronomers entirely from astronomical work to perform this duty. The library is the most complete and important in the literature of astronomy and mathematics to be found in this country, and Congress should provide for its proper care and growth by providing a salary adequate to secure the services of a librarian not only trained in modern library methods, but also thoroughly familiar with the literature and history of mathematics and astronomy.
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A new observatory building has recently been erected in George- town, to which the instruments are at the present time (1892) being removed.
The Congressional Library was established in 1800, with a number of books obtained from London by Albert Gallatin, Dr. Mitehell, and others. The following is the list thus obtained: "212 folios, 164 quartos, 581 octavos, 7 duodecimos, and 9 magazines," -973 volumes in all. It was then the only library of reference possessed by the Government. In 1804 the number of volumes had increased to nearly 1,500, of different languages. During the session of Congress of 1805-06, an appropriation was made for the purchase of books, and placed in the hands of a joint committee of the two Houses, consisting of Messrs. Mitchell and Baldwin of the Senate, and J. Clay, T. M. Rudolph, and Dana of the House. Mr. Beckley was at this time librarian. The library was then beginning to attract the attention of the country, and the suggestion was frequently made to authors that they leave a copy of each of their works to it, "as it would be a better advertisement than could be secured otherwise."
December 6, 1811, an aet was passed by Congress appropriating $1,000 per year for five years, which was to be added to what remained on hand from former appropriations, for the purchase of books. Pre- vious to the War of 1812-15 the number of books had increased to three thousand, but during the invasion of the city by the British in August, 1814, they were all destroyed. Thereupon, Mr. Jefferson offered his valuable collection to Congress, consisting of about seven thousand volumes, considered then the finest in the country, and this, purchased for $23,950, became the nucleus for the new library. To its purchase, however, objections were made, on account of the great number of Bibles it contained, as well as the infidel character of some of the other volumes. George Watterston was appointed libra- rian by President Madison in 1815, and superintended the removal of the library three times. His successor was appointed by President Jackson in 1829.
The room for the library was finished in 1824. It is entered from the gallery of the principal stairway west of the rotunda. As first occu- pied, it was ninety-two feet long, thirty-four feet wide, and thirty-five feet high. This was the main room, and in addition there was a room adjoining, making the whole in the form of an L, the wing portion being of the same width and height as the main room. This main room was divided into twelve arched alcoves, ornamented with pilas- ters copied from the pillars of the celebrated octagonal tower at
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Athens. On the roof, which was ten feet above the ceiling, were the skylights, through which, and also through the windows on the west, the room was lighted. The principal room, as well as the reading-room on the north, attached to it, was furnished with sofas, mahogany tables, desks, brussels carpets, ete. At each corner of the apartment was a staircase leading to the galleries above, of which there were three extending all round the room, and which were calculated to hold several thousand volumes. These galleries were so arranged that anyone could read or write in them with comfort and convenience.
The Congressional Library was destroyed by fire December 24, 1851. Immediately afterward, Mr. T. U. Walter, at that time architect of the public buildings, in obedience to a request, made an investiga- tion as to the extent of the injury, and made plans and estimates for repairing the damage. On the 27th of February, 1852, Mr. Walter submitted a design for the reconstruction of the principal apartment of the library within its original limits, and an aet was passed by Congress appropriating $72,500 for carrying out Mr. Walter's design. A contract for supplying the iron needed in this work was entered into June 21, 1852, with Messrs. Janes, Beebe, & Company, of New York. The work went on as rapidly as possible, and when complete it may be described as follows:
It embraced the entire western projection of the Capitol as it then was. The main room occupying the center of this western projec- tion is ninety-one feet long, thirty-five feet wide, and thirty-eight feet high. At each end it connects with a room of corresponding height, twenty-nine feet and six inches wide, and seventy feet long. The three rooms are fitted up with iron cases and iron ceilings. They are roofed with copper laid on iron rafters, and lighted by ornamental skylights. There are also two additional apartments, each eighteen feet and six inches by thirty-five feet in size, thus forming a suite of live rooms, embracing an extent of three hundred and two feet.
The main library room occupies the space of the old library before the fire. On each side of the room are three stories of iron cases, each nine feet and six inches in height. The lower story consists of aleoves projecting eight feet and six inches into the room, with eases on each side of the projections. The second story has similar alcoves, excepting that their extension into the room is but five feet, leaving a platform three feet and six inches in width resting on the cases below, which constitutes a commodious gallery. A similar platform is constructed on the alcoves of the second story,
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forming a gallery to approach the upper cases; thus making three stories, receding as they ascend, and the galleries are continued across the ends of the room. The galleries are all floored with cast-iron plates, and are protected by pedestals and railings. They are approached by two semicircular staircases of cast iron, recessed in the end of the walls of the room.
At the time of the fire of December 24, 1851, there were in the library fifty-five thousand volumes, of which thirty-five thousand were destroyed, besides a number of valuable paintings, including Gilbert Stuart's portraits of the first five Presidents. Since then, as the value of such an institution has been more and more appreciated, the library has constantly grown. In 1866, through the efforts of Rutherford B. Hayes, then a member of Congress from the second Ohio district, who was chairman of the committee on the library, the invaluable collections belonging to Peter Force of Washington were purchased for $100,000, and deposited in the library. These collections of books, pamphlets, etc., pertaining to early American history, are of inestimable value. In 1866 the Smithsonian Library was added to the Library of Congress. In 1882 this library was enriched by the addition of the Toner Library, mentioned in the sketch of Dr. J. M. Toner in the "Medical" chapter of this volume. According to the latest published report of the librarian, that for the vear ending December 31, 1890, the aggregate number of volumes in the library was then six hundred and forty-eight thousand, nine hundred and twenty-eight, and of pamphlets about two hundred and seven thousand. Two copies of all copyright publications are required to be deposited in this library.
John S. Meehan was appointed librarian May 28, 1839; John G. Stephenson, May 24, 1861; and Ainsworth R. Spofford, December 31, 1864, retaining the position up to the present time.
The Navy Yard at the city of Washington was established by an act of Congress approved March 27, 1804. It contains within its limits about twenty-eight acres of land on the right bank of the Eastern Branch. All the vessels that were afloat at the beginning of the War of 1812-15 had been thoroughly repaired at this yard. Before the war, there had been built here the following vessels: Ships, the Wasp and the Argus; the brig Viper, the frigate Essex, and twelve gunboats. After the war, and previous .to 1830, there were built the Columbus, of 74 guns; the frigates Potomac and Brandywine, each of 44 guns; the schooners Shark and Grampus, each of 12 guns; the sloop of war St. Louis, of 24 guns; and the frigate Columbia, of 44 guns. In
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1830 there were employed in the Navy Yard about two hundred men, and when ships were being built, the number of men employed was increased according to the necessities of the case. The manufactures about the Navy Yard were such as main anchors, chain cables, cam- booses, blocks, ordnance fixtures, and all kinds of stores, brass and other castings. A great deal of labor-saving machinery was erected to carry on operations in the yard, the most important of which, previous to 1830, was a fourteen horse-power steam engine, by which there were kept in motion nearly five hundred feet of shafting. There had also been erected a gang saw, by which a log of any dimensions could be cut into lumber by one passage through it. There were 2 ham- mers for forging hammers, 2 hydraulic pulleys, 2 circular saws, 1 turning and boring lathe, which was capable of being converted into a machine for boring steam-engine cylinders; 9 turning lathes, 5 grindstones, and four drill lathes for boring sheaves, and other machinery.
There is in the yard a beautiful monument erected by the officers of the navy to the memory of their associates who fell in the Tripol- itan War. It is a small Dorie column with emblematical designs, and is crowned with an eagle in the attitude of flight. The base is sculptured in basso-relievo, representing Tripoli, its forts, the Mediterra- nean Sea. and the American fleet in the foreground, and on each angle stands an appropriate marble figure. One represents Columbia, direeting the attention of her children to History, who is recording the daring deeds of American heroes; the third represents Fame, with a wreath of laurel in one hand and a pen in the other; while the fourth represents Mercury, or the god of commerce, with his cornucopia and caduceus.
In 1850 a new foundry was put in operation, which made brass cannon, shells, shot, and machinery necessary for the various shops of the yard itself, and there were numerous shops for anchors, cables, tanks, etc., in full operation. An improvement was made in 1851, in the erection of a building two hundred by sixty feet in size, in which machinery was erected for rolling copper, etc.
On April 21, 1861, the commandant of the Navy Yard, Captain Franklin Buchanan, received an order from the Secretary of the Navy to have the steamers Baltimore, Mount Vernon, Philadelphia, and Powhatan equipped for service forthwith. Upon its receipt, he resigned his commission and joined the Confederate forces. All the officers of the yard at that time who were of Southern birth, with one shining exception in the person of John Rainbow, followed the example of Captain Buchanan. The next day Commander John A. Dahlgren was appointed commandant of the yard.
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It is manifestly impracticable to go into details with reference to the history of the Navy Yard during the whole period of its exist- ence. Suffice it to say that, in accordance with an order issued April 14, 1886, the Navy Yard was changed into an ordnance yard. It is now utilized for the manufacture of all kinds of ordnance, the largest. guns so far made being twelve-inch guns, weighing 101,300 pounds, and of a total length of 36 feet 8 inches. The greatest diameter of these guns is 45 inches, and the charge is 425 pounds. The projectile weighs 850 pounds, and the distance to which it is thrown is 12 miles. The yard has just commenced to build thirteen-inch guns, the weight of which is 135,500 pounds, or 673 tons. The length of these guns is 40 feet; the greatest diameter, 49 inches; the charge, 550 pounds; and the projectile weighs 1,100 pounds. The penetrating power is 26.5 inches of steel, and the distance to which the projectile is thrown is 13 miles.
The Soldiers' Home, formerly called the Military Asylum, occupies a site once the property of George W. Riggs, from whom it was purchased by the Government. At the time of the purchase there were two hundred and eighty-five acres in the tract, but since that time it has been increased to five hundred acres. It is situated about three miles north of the Capitol, and a mile north of Florida Avenue. A large edifice of native marble, whose white tower may be seen for miles in all directions, was first erected, and was ready for occupancy January 1, 1857. It contains spacious sleeping-rooms, sufficient to accommodate two hundred and fifty inmates. While this building was in process of erection, the inmates, numbering seventy-four, occupied the mansion built by Mr. Riggs. In 1856, besides the main building, two large mansions were upon the property, one occupied by Colonel M. M. Payne as governor of the home, the other by Dr. Benjamin King, secretary and treasurer, and who was then also in temporary charge of the sick. Major Larkin Smith was deputy governor.
In the early history of the home, the old soldiers could do pretty much as they pleased, yet they were subject to certain wholesome regulations, and there were workshops provided where they could work at their trades, and the products of their industry were pur- chased by the Ordnance and Quartermaster's departments at fair prices. Those who were then entitled to the benefits of the asylum or home were the following:
1. Those who had served faithfully in the United States Army for twenty years.
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2. Soldiers and members of the Marine Corps wounded or disabled by disease in the Mexican War.
3. Soldiers who had contributed to the funds of the asylum, under certain conditions.
The commissioners in charge of the asylum in 1856, by virtue of their offices, were General Winfield Scott, General George Gibson, and General Thomas S. Jesup, the Surgeon-General of the United States Army, and Colonels Cooper and Larned. The funds of the asylum were supplied from a monthly contribution by the rank and file of the army, added to the proceeds of a large sum of money brought from Mexico by General Scott at the close of the war with that country. Upon his return from Mexico, General Scott labored assiduously with Congress to procure the passage of a law authorizing the establishment of this home, and at length his efforts were success- ful. In the spring of 1852, the War Department detailed as architect of the buildings, Captain B. S. Alexander, of the corps of engineers of the United States Army who had constructed a lighthouse at Minot's Lodge, below Boston Harbor. The work of construction was given to Mr. Gilbert Cameron, then late of New York. The day upon which the building was required to be completed was December 1, 1855, but on account of changes in the plan made and determined upon while the work was in progress, the building was not completed on time, and about that time the contractor and his men were expelled from the building and he was informed that if he again appeared upon the ground he would be arrested as a trespasser. The work was then transferred to other persons, the building being com- pleted at the expense of the institution. The building was constructed of white marble from quarries in New York, as were also the General Post Office and Brown's Hotel. After the expulsion of the contractor, other changes were made, involving a large expenditure of the funds proper of the institution.
There are five public entrances to the grounds of the Soldiers' Home - Whitney Avenue Gate, on the west side; Ivy and Scott gates, on the north side; by way of Rock Creek Church road, and East Gate, by Sherman and Harewood roads, on the east side. The grounds, which are very beautiful, are open every day in the year. This was the first home of the kind ever established, and is used exclusively for soldiers of the regular army.
The main building is the one already mentioned, and stands in the northern end of the grounds. It is named the Scott building. The south front of this building was first erected of marble, and in the Nor-
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man style of architecture. This portion has recently undergone important improvements, an additional story having been added at a cost of $80,000. The ornamental capstones have cut into them emblems of different arms of the service. A fine view of the surrounding country and the city of Washington is presented from the large square tower, which rises to a height of one hundred and twenty feet, and was designed by W. M. Poindexter, the well-known Washington architect.
The Sherman building connects with this addition on the north. It was named in honor of General W. T. Sherman, the first president of the board of commissioners after the reorganization in 1883. This building contains one of the handsomest military mess halls in the world. A billiard room is in the northwest corner of the building. The dormitory contains accommodations for one hundred and twenty- five inmates. The Scott and Sherman buildings, as will readily be seen, are in reality but one structure, though its parts were erected at different times. The entire structure, when viewed from the east or west, resembles the outlines of a capital H.
The King dormitory stands immediately east of the Scott build- ing, and is a plain brick edifice. It was named in honor of Captain Benjamin King, the first secretary and treasurer of the asylum. Next to the Scott building it is the oldest structure on the grounds. Ninety- five inmates are accommodated in this building, among them the colored veterans.
The Anderson building, named in honor of General Robert Anderson, of Fort Sumter fame, is west of the Scott building. This building is also known as the "President's Cottage," having been the summer home of some of the Presidents of the United States. It was once the country residence of the Riggs family, and was erected nearly eighty years ago. Thirty-five inmates and the band of the Home are accommodated in this building.
The Library building is immediately north of the Sherman build- ing. It contains reading-rooms and other appropriate conveniences. The library has five thousand volumes, and the reading-room is well supplied with periodicals and papers.
West of the Library building stands the Sheridan building, named after General P. H. Sheridan, who was president of the managers of the home when the building was erected. This is the most popular of the dormitories connected with the home, all its appointments being first-class. It contains accommodations for one hundred and twenty-five inmates, besides the Temperance Hall and theater. This is a square brick building, surrounded by three tiers of balconies.
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The gardener's cottage and the chapel are south of the Scott building. From the front of the former is obtained a view of the Capitol, by means of what is called the Capitol Vista. The chapel is of Seneca freestone, and has two vestry rooms and a movable altar. Services are held on Sundays, under the anspices of three different denominations- the Roman Catholics in the morning, Lutherans in the afternoon, and the Episcopalians in the evening. At the southeast corner of the chapel is a granite monnment, erected to the memory of llenry Wilson, of Massachussetts, and bearing the following inserip- tion: "Henry Wilson, the soldiers' friend, died, Vice President of the United States, November 22, 1875. Erected by the enlisted men of the army."
In the distance directly south are Barnes' Hospital, ambulance, and carriage houses, and hospital steward's cottage, pump honse, and dead honse. The hospital is a model institution, and has accommodations for eighty-five patients. Its annual expenses amount to $20,000. A pretty summer house stands on the high ground west of the hospital. The lodges at the different gates and two other buildings, one of these being the old farm house on what was formerly the Wood farm, the other a small house north of the mansion, are the only ones provided for the families of inmates of the home.
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