Mitchel, Ormsby MacKnight

Life Span
to
    Full name
    Omsby MacKnight Mitchel
    Place of Birth
    Birth Date Certainty
    Exact
    Death Date Certainty
    Exact
    Gender
    Male
    Race
    White
    Sectional choice
    North
    Origins
    Slave State
    No. of Spouses
    1
    No. of Children
    6
    Family
    John Mitchel (father), Elizabeth McAllister (mother), Louisa Clark Trask (wife)
    Education
    West Point (US Military Academy)
    Occupation
    Military
    Educator
    Scientist or Inventor
    Other
    Other Occupation
    Astronomer
    Relation to Slavery
    White non-slaveholder
    Other Affiliations
    Other
    Other Affiliation
    Royal Astronomical Society
    Military
    US military (Pre-Civil War)
    Union Army

    Ormsby Macknight Mitchel (American National Biography)

    Scholarship
    Mitchel's career lasted barely two decades. His scientific contributions may seem relatively slight, but one must consider the difficulties he overcame. First, in order to validate his credentials as an astronomer he had to transform his observatory into a research institution, which eventually cost him community support despite the innovation and resiliency of the CAS. Second, the same qualities that made him a brilliant lecturer--his quick mind and powerful ego--led to conflicts with his peers that were difficult to reconcile, given the fluidity of antebellum scientific organizations. His mercurial relationships made it hard to undertake long-term research projects. His peers did, however, recognize his contributions--his election to the Royal Astronomical Society in 1850 proceeded from a solid contribution to astronomy. To view his life as reaching an apex in astronomy misses the mark: his first love was the stage, and applause motivated him more than income. His contemporaries honored him because they recognized that, despite his failings, he accomplished more than anyone had dreamed possible.
    Philip S. Shoemaker, "Mitchel, Ormsby Macknight," American National Biography Online, February 2000, http://www.anb.org/articles/13/13-01147.html.
    How to Cite This Page: "Mitchel, Ormsby MacKnight," House Divided: The Civil War Research Engine at Dickinson College, https://hd.housedivided.dickinson.edu/node/6268.