John Monroe Van Vleck (1833 - 1912)

Born 4 Mar 1833 in Stone Ridge, Marbletown, Ulster, New York, United States

Ancestors

Descendants

Died 4 Nov 1912 at age 79 in Middletown, Middlesex, Connecticut, United States

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Biography

Van Vleck Observatory at Connecticut Wesleyan University. Van Vleck Crater on the moon named for John (latitude -1.9 degrees S;longitude 78.3 degrees E; Size: 31 kilometers) Education: NYU with A.B. and A.M. from Wesleyan University, CT. Honorary Degree: Northwestern University, 1876 and Wesleyan 1900 -LL.D Memberships: Astronomische Gesellschaft, American Association for theAdvancement of Science Read mathematics with Professor Peirce of Harvard and became asst. inthe office of the Nautical Almanac in Cambridge. 1855-1896 - Prepared astronomical tables for Nautical Almanac 1853-1857 - Adjunct professor of mathematics, Wesleyan 1858-1904 - professor of mathematics and astronomy 1904-1912 - professor emeritus 1890-1903 - vice president 1872-1873, 1887-1889 (during which time he appointed Woodrow Wilson to faculty) and 1896-1897 - acting president Portrait hands in Van Vleck Observatory Library. Did much of early research for Jane Van Vleck's, The Ancestry and Descendants of Tielman Van Vleeck. John Monroe Van Vleck (March 4, 1833-November 5, 1912) was an American mathematician and astronomer. Born in Stone Ridge, New York, he was the son of Peter Van Vleck and Ann Hasbrouck. He graduated from Wesleyan University in 1850, and began teaching at Greenwich Academy . (He subsequently earned an LL.D.) From 1851-3 he was an assistant at the Nautical Almanac Office. Hewas married to Ellen Maria Burr on May 2, 1854. He taught astronomy and mathematics at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut for more than 50 years, serving as adjunct professor 1853-57, professor 1885-1904, and professor emeritus1904-12. He served as the acting president for the university on two occasions, 1872-73 and 1887-89, the vice president 1890-93. In 1904 he was vice-president of the American Mathematical Society. In 1869 he was a member of the Solar Eclipse Expedition to Mount Pleasant, Iowa . He was a fellow of the American_Association_for_the_Advancement_of_Science>[1] The Van Vleck Observatory at Wesleyan University was named after him, as was the Van Vleck crater on the Moon. His wife died December 26, 1899, but he lived an additional 12 years.J. M. van Vleck was survived by a son and three daughters. Their son, Edward Burr Van Vleck, was a leading mathematician in the United States. Edward taught at the University of Wisconsin, where he became professor emeritus in 1926.

Sources

• Wikidata: Item Q1701119, en:Wikipedia

"Connecticut Marriages, 1630-1997", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F7LX-QLD : 11 January 2020), John M. Van Vleck, 1854.

"Connecticut, Charles R. Hale Collection, Vital Records, 1640-1955", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F7XZ-VPY : 16 September 2020), John Monroe Van Vleck, 1912.

"Find A Grave Index," database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:735M-TT3Z : 6 March 2021), John Monroe Van Vleck, ; Burial, Middletown, Middlesex, Connecticut, United States of America, Indian Hill Cemetery; citing record ID 193009695, Find a Grave, http://www.findagrave.com.