Page:The Biographical Dictionary of America, vol. 08.djvu/309

 PETERS

PETERS

gaged on the geodetic survey of Naples, Italy ; joined the revolutionists under Garibaldi ; was appointed major of artillery, and after the insur- rection was brought to a close in 1848, fled to Turkey. He immigrated to the United States in 1853 and was employed by the U.S. coast survey, 1854-57. He was elected first director of the Litch- field observatory, Hamilton college, N. Y., in 1858, and was professor of astronomy at the college, 1867-90. He was the first discoverer of forty-seven asteroids and made many observa- tions on comets and solar spots. He was employed by the regents of the University of the State of New York to determine the longitude of several places in the state of New York, including the western boundary line. He had charge of an expedition to observe the solar eclipse at Des Moines, Iowa, Aug. 7, 1869, and headed the gov- ernment expedition to New Zealand to observe the transit of Venus, Dec. 9, 1874. He was a member of the National Academy of Sciences, 1876-90, and received the decoration of the cross of the Legion of Honor from the French govern- ment in 1887. He prepared twenty " Celestial Charts" and is the author of numerous articles in various scientific publications. He died in Clinton. N.Y., July 18, 1890.

PETERS, John Abram, educator, was born in Hagerstown, Md.. Jan. 25, 1833 ; son of George and Caroline (Reynolds) Peters, and grandson of Abraham Peters, who emigrated from the vicinity of Strasburg, Germany, in 1774, and settled at Millersville, Lancaster county. Pa., and of John Reynolds. His mother was of English-Irish de- scent. He removed with his parents to Lancas- ter, Pa., where he attended the public schools ; was a student at the academy at Mercersburg, Pa., in 1851 ; at the preparatory department of Franklin and Marshall college, Lancaster, Pa., in 1858 ; was graduated from the college A.B., 1857, A.M., 1860. and studied theology privately under Rev. George L. Staley, D.D. He was principal of Irwin academy. Pa., 1857-59; vice-principal of Mt. Washington Female college, Md. ; was licensed to preach by the classis of the Reformed church in 1863, and was in Pennsylvania as pastor at Mt. Pleasant, 1864-69, Carlisle, 1869-70, Alex- andria, 1871-78, Lancaster, 1878-84, and Danville, 1884-91. He was president of the General Synod of the Reformed chiu'ch at Dayton, Ohio, in 1899, and president of the literary department of Heidelberg university. Tiffin, Ohio, 1891-1901. He was married first in 1864 to Roberta George of Lovettsville, Va., who died leaving four sons ; and secondly in 1880 to Mary H. Harnish of Alex- andria, Pa., who, with their two sons, survived him. The degree of D.D. was conferred upon him by Heidelberg university in 1887. He died at Tiffin, Ohio, Sept. 28, 1901.

PETERS, John Andrew, jurist, was born at Ellsworth, Maine, Oct. 9, 1832 ; son of Andrew and Sally (Jordan) Peters ; grandson of Mel- atich and Elizabeth Jordan and of John and Mary Peters, and a descendant of the Rev. Robert Jordan of the Church of England, who came to America about 1643. Melatich Jordan was collector of customs, Frenchman's Bay dis- trict, 1789. John Andrew Peters was prepared for college at Gorham academy ; was graduated from Yale in 1843 ; studied law at Harvard, 1843- 44 ; was admitted to the bar in 1844, and prac- tised in Bangor. He %vas married first, Sept. 3, 1846, to Mary Ann, daughter of Judge Joshua W. Hathaway of Bangor ; and secondly, Sept. 33, 1857, to Fannie E., daughter of the Hon. Amos M. and Charlotte Roberts of Bangor. He was a member of tlie Maine senate, 1862-63 ; of the house of representatives, 1864 ; attorney-general of the state, 1864-67 ; Republican representative in the 40th, 41st and 43d congresses, 1867-73 ; associate justice of the Maine supreme court, 1873-88, and its chief justice, 1883-1900, when he retired and was succeeded b}' his nephew, Andrew P. Wiswell of Ellsworth, Maine. Judge Peters was elected a member of the Maine Historical society in 1866, and of the New England Historic Gene- alogical society in 1896, and a trustee of Bowdoin college in 1891. He received the degree LL.D. from Colby in 1884, from Bowdoin in 1885, and from Yale in 1893.

PETERS, John F>unnett, clergyman and au- thor, was born in New York city, Dec. 16, 1853 ; son of Thomas McClure and Alice Clarissa (Rich- mond) Peters ; grandson of Edward Dyer and Lucretia (McClure) Peters, and a descendant of Andrew Peters, who appeared in Boston, Nov. 18, 1659. He was graduated from Yale, A.B., 1873, Ph.D., 1876; was tutor at Yale, 1876-79, and studied at tlie Universities of Berlin and Leipzig, 1879-83. He was married, Aug. 13, 1881, to Ga- briella Brooke, daughter of Thomas March and Helen (Brooke) Forman of Savanah, Ga. He was ordered deacon in the Protestant Episcopal church, Dec. 34, 1876, and advanced to the priest- hood, Dec. 33, 1877. He was professor of Old Testament languages and literature at the Prot- estant Episcopal divinity school, Philadelphia, 1884-91 ; professor of Hebrew at the University of Pennsylvania, 1886-93, and was in charge of the expedition of the University- of Pennsylvania to Babylonia, conducting excavations at Nippur, 1888-91, and retaining general direction of the work until 1895. In 1893 he became rector of St. Michael's chun-h. New York citj-, of which he had been an assistant minister since 1883. He receiv- ed the honorarj' degree of D.D. from Yale and that of Sc.D. from the University of Pennsylvania in 1896. His published works include : Scriptures,