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Osborn, Henry Fairfield, 1857-1935

 Person

Dates

  • Existence: 1857-08-08 - 1935-11-06

Abstract

Henry Fairfield Osborn was a paleontologist, museum curator and administrator at the American Museum of Natural History. His 45-year career at the museum established it as a leading institution of research and scholarship in the fields of paleontology and evolution. Osborn's interest in paleontology, atypically for his time, derived as much from biology as from geology; in his undergraduate and graduate studies, he concentrated on biology, anatomy, embryology and neurology. In 1891, Osborn began his tenure at the AMNH by organizing and heading the new department of mammalian paleontology, while simultaneously accepting a similar position in biology at Columbia University. The AMNH department, which was eventually renamed vertebrate paleontology, was definitive in the museum's research and mission: the study and teaching of evolution. Osborn began his administrative work in 1899, becoming president in 1908, a position he held for twenty-five years. His strength was in leadership and education rather than empirical science; under his guidance, the museum expanded greatly in physical space and endowment, scientific staff, research and public education. Like his predecessor Albert S. Bickmore, Osborn recognized the need to combine information with entertainment. He popularized paleontology by ensuring that the museum's exhibits did not merely display the researchers' work, but also explained it in an attractive and accessible manner. Osborn, like so many of his contemporaries, was a prolific writer. His attempt to research and publish a definitive record of all the fossil mammals of North America was wildly overambitious, but by the time of his death he had completed substantial works on Equidae, titanotheres, rhinoceroses and Proboscidea, as well as on sauropod dinosaurs; his total publications number 940 (books, monographs, articles and papers), about half devoted to vertebrate paleontology.

Citation:
From biographical note for Osborn's archive collection at the AMNH Library, Mss .O835, written by Ann Herendeen.

Topics

Found in 55 Collections and/or Records:

Letters: [microform]

 Collection
Identifier: Archives Microfilm #36

Library Tools and Materials

 Collection
Identifier: Mem 300
Scope and Contents These materials have been loosely grouped based on their nature and function. Their description ma be further refined in the future as more is learned about them. The American Museum of Natural History's Library, established in 1869, aims to foster intellectual growth and support the research, teaching, and educational activities of the Museum. The tools and materials in this grouping were used in the Library's day to day functions that carried this activitie from aproximately...
Dates: Usage: Circa1897-1999

William J. Morden papers

 Collection
Identifier: Mss .M671-.M674
Scope and Contents This collection is concerned with Morden’s expeditions to Alaska, Central Asia, and Southwest Africa and contains detailed field notes written by both William and Irene. The field notes include details of their travels, supply lists, budgets, and descriptions of artifacts and specimens gathered. There are also a number of drafts of articles and books written by both Morden and Irene about their experiences abroad. The William J. Morden papers also include correspondences which are...
Dates: 1922-1957

Museum matters, 1910-1915

 File — Box: 1, Folder: 1
Identifier: Mss .H682
Scope and Contents

Primarily correspondence between E. O. Hovey and museum administrators or staff. Also contains quarterly and annual departmental reports, meeting minutes, and "Index to Letters."

Dates: 1910-1915

Museum matters, 1909-1913

 File — Box: 1, Folder: 3
Identifier: Mss .H682
Scope and Contents

Primarily correspondence between E. O. Hovey and museum administrators or staff. Also contains sketches of museum floor plans, meeting minutes, departmental reports, financial statements, photographs of geological formations, and "Index to Letters."

Dates: Majority of material found within 1909-1913

Museum matters, 1916-1925

 File — Box: 1, Folder: 4
Identifier: Mss .H682
Scope and Contents

Primarily correspondence between E. O. Hovey and museum administrators or staff. Also contains departmental reports, memoranda, and photographs of exhibits and geological formations.

Dates: 1916-1925

Museum matters, 1911-1912

 File — Box: 1, Folder: 15
Identifier: Mss .H682
Scope and Contents

Primarily correspondence between E. O. Hovey and museum administrators on various museum matters, including Hovey's acceptance of the position of Acting Director of the museum. Contains "Index to Letters" (1 p.).

Dates: 1911-1912

Museum matters, 1911

 File — Box: 1, Folder: 18
Identifier: Mss .H682
Scope and Contents

Primarily correspondence between E. O. Hovey and museum administrators. Contains "Index to Letters" (1 p.)

Dates: 1911

Museum matters, 1913-1914

 File — Box: 1, Folder: 19
Identifier: Mss .H682
Scope and Contents

Primarily correspondence between E. O. Hovey and museum administrators. Also contains minutes of Sub-Committee on Publications and statements of Department of Geology receipts and expenditures. Contains "Index to Letters" (1 p.)

Dates: 1913-1914

Henry Fairfield Osborn papers

 Collection
Identifier: VPA 125
Scope and Contents Series 1 (Boxes 1 to 6) contain Osborn’s correspondence, both general and relating to specific publications including “Age of Mammals” 2nd edition, “Ape Man,” and “Men of the Old Stone Age.” This series also contains accession information for the entire Henry Fairfield Osborn Papers collection. It is arranged alphabetically and thematically, then chronologically.Series 2 (Boxes 6 to 21) contains materials related to Osborn’s published papers, articles, and unpublished...
Dates: 1870-1949