When a fiery meteor crash in 1807 lit up the dark early-morning sky in Weston, Connecticut, it did more than startle the few farmers in the sleepy village. More importantly, it sparked the curiosity of Benjamin Silliman, a young chemistry professor at nearby Yale College. His rigorous investigation of the incident started a chain of events that eventually brought the once-low standing of American science to sudden international prominence. And, by coincidence, the event also embroiled Silliman in politics, pitting him against no less an adversary than President Thomas Jefferson. Based on a wealth of original source documents and interiews with current experts in history, astronomy, and geology, this journalist tells the remarkable story of Benjamin Silliman, arguably America's first bonafide scientist. In a lively narrative rich with fascinating historical detail, the author documents the primitive state of American science at the time; Silliman's careful analysis of the meteor samples; and the publication of his conclusions, which contradicted both popular superstitions regarding meteors as ominous portents and a common belief that meteors come from volcanic eruptions on the moon. She also describes Silliman's struggles to build a chemistry department at Yale with rudimentary material; new insights into geology that resulted from his analysis of the meteor; and his report to the prestigious French Academy, which raised the prestige of American science. Finally, she discusses the political turbulence of the time, which Silliman could not escape, and how the meteor event was used to drive a wedge between New England and Jefferson. This is a fascinating vignette of Federal Period America when science on this continent was still in its infancy, but was just beginning to make its mark. ""[A] tour-de-force look at early American science.” – Booklist “A captivating tale of America’s entry into the world of science, told with such graceful prose and fascinating detail that at times you feel you are there.” – Richard Z. Chesnoff, The Huffington Post Cathryn J. Prince (Weston, CT) is the author of Burn the Town and Sack the Banks: Confederates Attack Vermont! and Shot from the Sky: American POWs in Switzerland. She is an adjunct professor of journalism at Quinnipiac University, a reporter for Wilton Patch, and a freelance reporter for the Christian Science Monitor and Weston Magazine. A PROFESSOR, A PRESIDENT, AND A METEOR THE BIRTH OF AMERICAN SCIENCE By CATHRYN J. PRINCE Prometheus Books Copyright © 2011 Cathryn J. Prince All right reserved. ISBN: 978-1-61614-224-7 Contents Introduction.............................................................111. Everything Is Illuminated.............................................132. The Professors Investigate............................................293. The Man behind the Meteor.............................................454. The State of Science..................................................735. President Jefferson and New England Argue.............................876. Whereby Silliman and Kingsley Convince the Public.....................1017. Thunderstones.........................................................1178. The Misquote Heard Round the World....................................1299. Romancing the Stones..................................................14310. Silliman's School....................................................15911. Where We Are Today...................................................177Epilogue.................................................................191Acknowledgments..........................................................195Timeline.................................................................197Notes....................................................................201Bibliography.............................................................221Index....................................................................233 Chapter One EVERYTHING IS ILLUMINATED Darkness clung to the early morning sky of December 14, 1807, as Judge Nathan Wheeler set about on his morning stroll. He walked his land every day, finding refuge in the quiet of his Weston, Connecticut, farm. Suddenly the heavens above Wheeler's farm exploded as a fireball raced across the onyx sky. Everything lit up—his home, his barns, the trees, the blue stone walls. Looking up toward the northern part of the sky, Judge Wheeler watched the fiery sphere pass behind a cloud, partly obscuring it. Ever observant, the judge thought its edges seemed similar to the sun when covered by the sheerest of mists. The ball rose up from the north and moved in a direction parallel to the horizon. As it traveled, the object slowly climbed toward the west. Judge Wheeler saw it flash with intensity as it passed through clear spots of sky. A shadow of pale light attended the great circle like a train on a wedding dress. Less than a minute later, Wh