John Cassin | |
|---|---|
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| Born | September 6, 1813 |
| Died | 10 January 1869 (1869-01-11) (aged 55) Philadelphia,Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Resting place | Laurel Hill Cemetery, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Known for |
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| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Ornithology,Naturalist |
John Cassin (September 6, 1813 – January 10, 1869) was an Americanornithologist from Pennsylvania. He worked ascurator and vice president at thePhiladelphia Academy of Natural Sciences and focused on the systemic classification of the academy's extensive collection of birds. He was one of the founders of theDelaware County Institute of Science and published several books describing 194 new species of birds. Five species of North American birds, a cicada, and a mineral are named in his honor.
Cassin was born inUpper Providence Township, Pennsylvania on September 6, 1813. He was educated at theWesttown School inWesttown Township, Pennsylvania.[1] His great Uncle,John Cassin, was a commodore in the U.S. Navy and served in the War of 1812.[2]
He served in theUnion Army during theAmerican Civil War and was held prisoner in the infamous ConfederateLibby Prison inRichmond, Virginia.[3]
Cassin moved to Philadelphia in 1834 and became the head of alithographing business in which many of his illustrations of birds were later printed.[4] He served for a brief time in thePhiladelphia City Council.[5] He was a member of theZoological Society, theAmerican Philosophical Society and thePennsylvania Historical Society.[2]
In 1833, Cassin, along with 4 colleagues, founded the Delaware County Institute of Science inMedia, Pennsylvania.[6]
In 1842, he was elected curator of the Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences.[4] From 1846 to 1850,Thomas Bellerby Wilson, a wealthy patron of the academy, became interested in the department of ornithology and procured a collection of over 25,000 birds.[7] The academy had the largest ornithological collection in the United States at the time and included an extensive collection of non-North American species.[8] This exceptional collection of birds allowed Cassin to become the leading ornithologicaltaxonomist in the world.[2]
Cassin worked almost exclusively at the academy, focused on research and the systematic classification of species rather than field work.[9] He described 194 new species of birds[7] and revised a number of families in the academy's publications. His publications includeBirds of California, with descriptions and colored engravings of fifty species;Synopsis of the Birds of North America;Ornithology of the United States Exploring Expedition;Ornithology of the Japan Expedition;Ornithology of Gillis's Astronomical Expedition to Chile; and chapters on raptorial birds and waders inOrnithology of the Pacific Railroad Explorations and Surveys.[10] He also co-authoredBirds of North America (1860) withSpencer Fullerton Baird andGeorge Newbold Lawrence.
Specimens collected from thePacific Railroad Surveys and the Mexican Boundary Surveys were sent to the academy and further supplemented the collection. Cassin helped revise the publications that arose from these surveys.[11]
Martha Maxwell was a student of Cassin at the Academy of Natural Sciences from 1862 to 1869.[12]
Cassin was elected vice president of the Academy of Natural Sciences in 1864.[4]
He died in 1869 ofarsenic poisoning caused by his handling of bird skins preserved with arsenic.[13] His collection of 4,300 birds was purchased for $500, equivalent to $11,811 in 2024 dollars, byJohn Whipple Potter Jenks forBrown University's museum of natural history.[14]
He is buried atLaurel Hill Cemetery in Philadelphia.[2]
Five birds from North America are named in his honor: theCassin's auklet,Cassin's kingbird,Cassin's vireo,Cassin's sparrow, andCassin's finch.[15] The periodic cicadaMagicicada cassini and the mineral orthoclase variety cassinite are also named for him.[1]
In 1901, the journal of theDelaware Valley Ornithological Club was renamedCassinia in his honor.[16]
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