Archives

Albrecht, Sebastian

Papers of Sebastian Albrecht, 1903-1937

Sebastian Albrecht was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1876. In 1900, he was graduated from The University of Wisconsin with a Bachelor of Science degree. He continued his education at The University of California where he earned his Ph.D. in 1906. He was a frequent contributor to the Astrophysical Journal, Astronomical Journal, Popular Astronomy, and Lick Observatory Bulletin. Dr. Albrecht's astronomical studies concentrated on the solar and stellar spectrums and wavelengths. He was an employee of the Dudley Observatory from 1913-1937. He served as Chairman of the Committee on Standards of wavelength and Tables of the Solar Spectrum for the American Section of the International Astronomical Union in 1925. In 1930, he was elected Secretary of the American Astronomical Society. He made his home in Delmar, NY.

Dr. James H. Armsby

Papers of James H. Armsby

Dr. James H. Armsby, a physician, was born in Sutton, Massachusetts, December 31, 1809, and died in Albany, New York on December 3, 1875. His early years were spent on his father's farm and in the common school, with a short time in the Worcester and Monson academies. He studied with his brother-in-law, Dr. Alden March at the Vermont academy of medicine, Castleton, Vt. , graduating in 1833. He taught for a year in a private medical school, and from 1834 to 1839 was professor of anatomy and physiology in the Vermont academy. In 1839 he and March moved to Albany to co-found the Albany Medical College.

Armsby delivered there what has been described as "the first American course of medical lectures illustrated with dissections of the human body." In addition to teaching, he served as a surgeon at the Albany Hospital, which he helped found in 1849, and in private practice. He made two visits to Europe, one in 1839 and one in 1845, for the purpose of inspecting the principal medical schools of the old world. He went to Naples in 1861 as U.S. consul, and in the following years helped organize U.S. medical services during the Civil War. He was also one of the originators of the Young Men's Christian Association.

In 1851 -1852, Dr. Armsby led a group of leading Albany citizens in the creation of the Dudley Observatory. In 1855, he negotiated an agreement with the U.S. Coast Survey that led to the purchase of telescopes and other equipment, and the launching of the Dudley Observatory's first program of astronomical research. During the Dudley Observatory controversy of 1858-1860, he was a leader of the majority group of trustees that successfully withstood challenges from the observatory's scientific council and retained control of the institution. He continued to serve on the Dudley Observatory Board of Trustees until his death in 1875.

The contents of several letterbooks belonging to; Dr. Armsby can be found in the Dudley Observatory Archives.

Digital Archives

-- Selections from our archives are available in this digital database.

Access policy

The Dudley Observatory Library and Archives are open by appointment to the public and researchers. Items in the library collection can be borrowed by special arrangement with the Archivist. The collection is catalogued on OCLC through the Capital District Library Council and is available for interlibrary loan with the exceptions of rare and fragile materials.

Reference services are available through e-mail (info@dudleyobservatory.org) and telephone (518-382-7583.) Dudley Observatory's rare book collection is currently housed in Special Collections at Union College and is available subject to their access conditions.