Verrill, A. E. (Addison Emery) 1839-1926

Exist Dates

February 9, 1839 - December 10, 1926

Biographical or Historical Note

Zoologist

Addison Emery Verrill was a zoologist and taxonomist who specialized in marine invertebrates. Verrill studied at Harvard under Louis Agassiz, and in 1864 was appointed to the the newly-created chair of zoology at Yale, where he spent the rest of his career until his retirement in 1910. He also started the zoological collections of the Peabody Museum of Natural History and served as curator. From 1871 until 1887, Verrill was in charge of the the scientific investigations of the U.S. Commission of Fish and Fisheries, studying the specimens and participating in a number of expeditions: to the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of North America; and to Hawaii, Bermuda and Central America. He discovered and described hundreds of new marine species and published over 300 scientific papers. Verrill intended to write a series of monographs on all the major groups of marine invertebrates, but was unable to complete such an ambitious project. His son, Alpheus Hyatt Verrill, assisted in the completion of some of the illustrations.

Sources

Library of Congress Name Authority File

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Related Corporate, Personal, and Family Names

American Museum of Natural History

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