Page:The Biographical Dictionary of America, vol. 01.djvu/384

 BOWDITCn.

BOWDOIN.

desk at wliioh lif did his work. IIo also pub- lisht'il the •■ New American Practical Navigator " (180-'). whidi was the result of an attempt to correct the previous standard manual, in which he discovered over eight thousand errors. A "Memoir of Nathaniel B<nvditch." by Nathaniel I. Bowditch (ISJiO ; '• Di.scourse on the Life and Character of Nathaniel Bowditch," by Alexander Young (18:{S). and a eulogy, with an analysis of his scientific writings, by Prof. Pickering (1838). make record of his life work. He was twice married ; his first wife died seven months after their marriage, and in October, 1800. he was married to his cousin. Mary, daughter of Jonathan Ingersoli. lie died in Boston, Mass., March Ki. ls:is

BOWDITCH, Nathaniel IngersoII, author, was K.rn at Salem. Mass.. June 17, 1805; son of Nathaniel and Mary (IngersoII) Bowditch. He was graduated from Harvard college in 1822, and admitted to the bar in October, 1825. He prac- tised for a short time with his brother-in-law, Franklin Dexter, but severed the connection to devote his time to his specialty, convej-ancing, in which he soon became a recognized authority. In 1827 he was elected secretary of the Massa- chu.setts general hospital ; in 1836, chairman of the board of trustees, and from 1850 to 1861 vice- president. In 1860 he established at Harvard college sixteen scholarships, four for each class, each with an annual income of §250. This en- dowment was §70,000. He published :" Memoir of Nathaniel Bowditch "(1839) ; " The Ether Con- trover.><y " (1848); " A History of the Massachu- setts General Hospital" (1851; 2d ed., 1872); " Wharf Property or the Law of Flats " (1852) ; "Suffolk Surnames" (1857), and fifty-five large volumes of land titles. In 1880 a collection of his "Gleaner Articles," from the Boston Tran- script, was published. He died at Brookline. Ma.ss.. April 16. 1861.

BOWDOIN, James, governor of Massachu- setts, was Vx)rn in Boston, Ma.ss., Aug. 7, 1726; grandson of Pierre Baudouin, a French Hugue- not, who immigrated to America in 1687 and settled in Boston in 1690. James was graduated from Harvard in 1745. Two years later the death of his father put him in possession of a fortune, which assured his independence in following his inclinations in regard to his life work. Naturally of a studious bent, he became interested in scien- tific subjects, and in 17.50 visited Philadelphia, and made the acquaintance of Benjamin Franklin, who communicated his ideas on electricity to the young man. The friendship thus formed was cemented by a frequent correspondence of a scientific as well as of a friendly nature. In one of his letters to Franklin. Mr. Bowdoin advanced the theory that the luminosity of the sea is

caused by the presence in it of phosphorescent animalcula, a theory which Franklin endorsed, and which has since been generally accepted. This corresjKtndence was later on read by Frank- lin before the Royal society, and afterwards pub- lished by him. Mr. Bowdoin, in 1753, became a member of the general court of Massachusetts, a j)osition which he held until 1756, when he was made a member of the council. As a councillor he was determined and zealous in his opposition to the encroachments of the royal governors. This roused the ire of Bernard, who, in 1769, re- fused to confirm his election. He was, however, immediately elected to the assembly, and in 1770, when Hutchinson became governor, he resumed his seat in the council, and maintained it until 1774. The answers of the council to the insolent assumptions of Bernard and Hutchin.son were largely drafted by James Bowdoin, as those of the assembly were by James Otis and Samuel Adams. Hutchinson himself says, " Bowdoin was without a rival in the council," and he was called by Lord Loughborough " the leader and manager of the council of Massachusetts." In 1774 his election as councillor was again nega- tived, this time by Governor Gage, and a few months later " His Majestj^'s Council " ceased to exist; Bowdoin was elected to the Continental Congress, but ill-health prevented his taking his seat. In August, 1775, the provincial congress a.ssembled at Watertown ; a body of twenty-eight councillors was elected, and he was chosen its president. In 1779 he jjresided over the conven- tion which framed the constitution of Massachu- setts, a convention made noticeable by the men of learning, talents and patriotism who composed it. During 1785 and 1786 he was governor of IMassachusetts. In his first address he made suggestions which resulted in the legislature passing resolutions, July, 1785, recommending a convention of delegates from all of the states. During liis governorship occurred the famous Shays' rebellion, and its speedy suppres.sion was altogether due to his vigorous and timely meas- ures. The public treasury lacking funds to sup- ply the expen.ses of the four thousand militia put into active service, Governor Bowdoin headed a subscription List and the amount neces- sary was furnished by the i^eople of Massachu- setts. His energy on this occasion was odious to certain partisans, and no doubt caused his defeat in the next gubernatorial election, when he was a candidate again.st Hancock. He was a mem- ber of the convention which formulated the Fed- eral constitution in 1787. Mr. Bowdoin was a per- sonal friend of George Washington, and was held in esteem by all who were foremost in the public affairs of that critical era. His political activi- ties did not prevent his interest in the polite arts.