Records relating to the philosophical apparatus of the Hollis Professorship of Mathematics and Natural Philosophy, 1765-1826 and undated, 1765-1826 and undated Digital

The inventories, invoices, letters, and bills of lading in this series document the acquisition and maintenance of the philosophical apparatus by Harvard College from 1765 to 1826. The records supply information about those items purchased by Harvard, including the item's purchase price, and in some cases, names of craftsmen. The records illustrate the growth of the philosophical apparatus at Harvard and its use in classroom instruction and experimentation. The earliest record, Philosphical apparatus by Invoices (page 2), notes the purchase of instruments from 1765 to 1767, to replace those destroyed in the fire of 1764 in Harvard Hall. Items listed in the invoices include an orrery, a planetarium, globes, clocks, optical glasses, and a large book camera obscura. Inventories in this series provide snapshots of the philosophical apparatus at Harvard at the end of the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. An Inventory of Apparatus (pages 4-5) made at the time of John Winthrop's (1714-1779) death provides a glimpse of the apparatus in 1779. The entries are subdivided into "Classes" and "Altitudes", denoting the location where which each item was stored. The inventory lists small parts, machines, working models, and in some cases describes the kinds of experiments in which the scientific instruments were used. A Schedule of Instruments (pages 13-16), prepared when John Farrar (1779-1853) assumed the Hollis professorship in 1807, includes an inventory of over 300 items, including a sky optic ball, dicas hydrometer, solar microscope, and Pope's orrery.

Invoices and letters from eighteenth and nineteenth century instrument makers underscore the new subjects that were added to the scientific curriculum at Harvard. Salem clergyman, John Prince's (1751-1836) invoices report on the purchase and repair of astronomical and electrical scientific instruments (pages 9, 10). In addition, a letter from Prince (page 8) to the Harvard Corporation includes comparisons of a Harvard electrical machine with one made by Edward Nairne (1726-1806), a London instrument maker for the Duke of Tuscany; contrasts the use of old and new batteries at Harvard; and provides a detailed description of the most modern improvements made on a Brooks Electrometer sent to Harvard. An invoice from London instrument maker, Champion and Dickason (page 6), notes the first significant chemical apparatus acquired by Harvard in 1785 and lists the purchase of a portable furnace, thermometer, glass tubes, and filtering paper. Invoices from William Jones (1784-1838) note the purchase of chemical, electrical, astronomical, mathematical, and physical equipment, tools, and supplies by Harvard. Jones's invoices (pages 21, 22) sent to Harvard in 1817 detail the repairs made to Harvard's James Short Telescope and Sisson Astronomical Quadrant and highlight the craft practices and workshop organization of early nineteenth century London instrument makers. A July 1815 invoice (page 18) from Frederick Accum (1769-1838) includes an engraving on the billhead illustrating the type of chemical apparatus then in use. The engraving shows pieces of glass, an alcohol lamp and blowpipe, several electrodes, and three bottles joined together, then commonly known as a Woulfe's distillation apparatus. The invoice also lists a variety of chemical agents and pieces of apparatus purchased for the scientific collection. Other British instrument makers mentioned in the records include clock maker William Hardy (fl. 1800-1830) and cut-glass manufacturer William Parker (fl. 1762-1789).

An index to the documents in this series can be found at the end of the volume.