Page:The Biographical Dictionary of America, vol. 10.djvu/353

 WATSON

AVATSON

education, being graduated from the University of Micliigan, A.B.. 1857, A.M., 1859. He was as- sistant observer in the universit}', 1858-59; pro- fessor of astronomy and instructor in mathe- matics, 1859-60: professor of physics and instruc- tor in mathematics, 1860-63; professor of astron- omy, and director of the observatory, 1863-79, and held a similar position in the University of Wisconsin, 1879-80. He was married in 1860, to Annette Waite of Dexter, Mich. He discovered 23 new planetoids, 1858-79, and the planet Vulcan, July 29, 1878; was employed by the U.S. govern- ment to observe solar eclipses at Mt. Pleasant, Iowa; Carlantini, Sicily; and Separation, Wy. Ter., and also the transit of Venus, at Pekin, China, 1874. The honorary degree of Ph.D. was conferred upon him by the University of Leipzig, 1870, and by Yale, 1871, and that of LL.D. by Columbia, 1877. In 1870 he received the Lalande gold medal of the French Academy of Sciences for his discoveries, and was also made Knight Commander of the Imperial Order of the Medjidie of Turkey and Egypt in 1875. He was a member of the National and the Royal Academy of Sciences (bequeathing $16,000 to the former) and of the American Philosophical society. He is the author of: Popular Treatise on Comets (1860): Theoretical Astronomy (ISQS); Tables for Calculation of Simple and Compound Interest and Discount (1879), and valuable contributions to many scientific journals. He died in Madison, Wis., Nov. 23, 1880.

WATSON, John Crittenden, naval officer, was born- in Frankfort, Ky., Aug. 24, 1842; son of Dr. Edward Howe and Sarah Lee (Crittenden) Watson; grandson of Dr. John and Ann B. (Howe) Watson, and of Gov. John Jordan (q.v.) and Sarah (Lee) Crit- tenden, and a de- scendant of Maj. John and Judith (Harris) Crittenden and of Captain Howe, all of Woodford county, Ky.; also of Richard Lee, secretary of the colony of Virginia. He was appointed midshipman at the U.S. Naval academy, Sept. 29, 1856, from which he was grad- uated in 1860; was advanced to master, Aug. 31, 1861, and commissioned lieutenant, July 16, 1862. During the civil war, he was attached as navigator to the steam-sloop Hart- ford, Flag-Officer Farragiit, West Gulf blockading squadron, and took part in the bombardment and

passage of Forts Jackson and St. Philip and the Chalmette batteries, April, 1862; in the passage of the Vicksburg batteries, June and July. 1862; of Port Hudson, March 14, 1863; of Grand Gulf, March 19 and 20, 1863; of Warrenton, March 20-21, 1863, and as flag-lieutenant in the battle of Mobile Bay, Aug. 5, 1864, where he lashed Ad- miral Farragut to the port mizzen rigging. He was detached from the Hartford, December, 1864; served in the Colorado, European station, 1866-67, being promoted lieutenant-commander, July, 1866; in Farragut's flag-ship Franklin, 1867-68, and as executive officer in the Canan- daigua, 1868-69. He was on special duty at the Philadelphia navy yard, 1870; was executive of- ficer of the Alaska, Asiatic squadron, 1871; was in command of the store ship Idaho, Yokohama, Japan, 1872-73, and subsequently on duty in the Brooklyn navy yard, being promoted commander, Jan. 23, 1874. He was married. May 29. 1874, to Elizabeth, daughter of Judge James Dabney and Sarah Frances (Thornton) Thornton of San Fran- cisco, Cal. He served as ordnance officer at the Mare Island navy yard, Cal., 1875-77; com- manded the Wyoming. European squadron, 1877- 80; was light-house inspector on the lakes, 1880- 83; stationed at the Brooklyn navy yard, 1883-86, and was in charge of the Iroquois, South Pacific station, 1886-87, being promoted captain, March 6, 1887. He was on special duty at San Fran- cisco, Cal., 1887-90; at the Mare Island navy yard, 1890-92, commanded the San Francisco, 1892-95, and participated in the naval review of the Columbian celebration in April, 1893. He was governor of the U.S. Naval home, Philadel- phia, Pa., 1895-98, being promoted commodore, Nov. 7, 1897; commanded the north Cuban block- ading squadron dm-ing the Spanish war, May 6- Juue 21, 1898; was appointed commander-in- chief of the Eastern squadron, June 27, 1898; transferred his *' broad pennant " from the Neicark to the Oregon, July 4, 1898, and was ordered to attack the Spanish coast and to destroy Camara's fleet, but upon the return of the latter from its threatened move against Admiral Dewey, the Eastern squadron was disbanded. He commanded the Mare Island navy yard, Oct. 8, 1898-May 15, 1899; was advanced to the rank of rear-admiral. March 3, 1899; succeeded Ad- miral Dewey as commander-in-chief of the Asiatic squadron, serving June 15. 1899-April 19. 1900; was appointed president of the naval ex- amining board at the Washington navy yard, Oct. 15, 1900, which position he still held in 1903, as well as the presidency of the U.S. Naval re- tiring board. His eldest son, Edward Howe Watson, was an ensign in the U.S. navy on board the Detroit during the Spanish war, being .sub- sequently commissioned lieutenant, and his