Overview

In this engagingly written biography, Tamara Plakins Thornton delves into the life and work of Nathaniel Bowditch (1773-1838), a man Thomas Jefferson once called a ""meteor in the hemisphere."" Bowditch was a mathematician, astronomer, navigator, seafarer, and business executive whose Enlightenment-inspired perspectives shaped nineteenth-century capitalism while transforming American life more broadly. Enthralled with the precision and certainty of numbers and the unerring regularity of the physical universe, Bowditch operated and represented some of New England's most powerful institutions-from financial corporations to Harvard College-as clockwork mechanisms. By examining Bowditch's pathbreaking approaches to institutions, as well as the political and social controversies they provoked, Thornton's biography sheds new light on the rise of capitalism, American science, and social elites in the early republic. Fleshing out the multiple careers of Nathaniel Bowditch, this book is at once a lively biography, a window into the birth of bureaucracy, and a portrait of patrician life, giving us a broader, more-nuanced understanding of how powerful capitalists operated during this era and how the emerging quantitative sciences shaped the modern experience.

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9781469663937

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Reviews

"An excellent survey of Bodwitch's life, including his family background, childhood, marriage, and children, as well as the opportunities and choices that defined his career."" - Journal of Interdisciplinary History ""Strongly recommended [for] anyone with an interest in the history of early America and the history of navigation and science in the early nineteenth century. . . . An excellent biography."" - NavList ""Sheds a striking light on the science and activities of the early United States, and therefore is an important contribution to our historical understanding."" -Nautical Numbers ""This is an outstanding book, and the author's research and writing are excellent."" - Diary of an Autodidact ""Thornton's biography of Bowditch is remarkably fluid and her rich narrative profiles the social, economic and cultural issues that surrounded this extremely complicated man. . . . Give[s] the reader a probing, thoughtful, descriptive work about an unorthodox, quasi-genius Yankee."" - The Northern Mariner/Le marin du nord ""[Thornton] leads the reader ably through labyrinthine mathematical, astronomical, business, social and nautical concepts in a clear, concise fashion, and leaves us with an outstanding portrayal of post-revolutionary Massachusetts and the complex man who was Nathaniel Bowditch."" - The Northern Mariner ""The work is insightful in the manner in which it connects Bowditch's life and work to the rise of bureaucracy and capitalism in the US. . . . It deserves a presence in all libraries. Recommended."" - Choice ""A real pleasure to read. . . . Thornton writes beautifully and uncomplicatedly about subjects that are neither beautiful nor uncomplicated. She breathes life and excitement into ledger books, forms, and actuarial tables and paints vivid portraits of corporate board meetings."" - American Historical Review ""This recommended biography rediscovers an eccentric who was key in improving several emerging industries. Readers of early American history will find a rich story that moves between New England high society and the founding of the natural sciences."" - Library Journal ""[Thornton] describes in an enjoyable way the lifestyle and society of Salem, at that time a wealthy port town, second only to Boston in New England."" - International Journal of Maritime History ""An intelligent and reliable source of accurate information and an often charming account of a remarkably gifted mathematician/bureaucrat who rebuilt American corporate practice on strict mathematical principals."" - Isis Journal ""A far more sophisticated account of a diverse career than has been available previously, offering a more plausible account of a man driven by number and showing how this played out in different spheres."" - Mariner's Mirror ""Shows Nathaniel Bowditch as [a] business innovator. . . . [and] is a portrait of Salem during its golden age."" - Salem News"

An excellent survey of Bodwitch's life, including his family background, childhood, marriage, and children, as well as the opportunities and choices that defined his career. - Journal of Interdisciplinary History Strongly recommended [for] anyone with an interest in the history of early America and the history of navigation and science in the early nineteenth century. . . . An excellent biography. - NavList Sheds a striking light on the science and activities of the early United States, and therefore is an important contribution to our historical understanding. -Nautical Numbers This is an outstanding book, and the author's research and writing are excellent. - Diary of an Autodidact Thornton's biography of Bowditch is remarkably fluid and her rich narrative profiles the social, economic and cultural issues that surrounded this extremely complicated man. . . . Give[s] the reader a probing, thoughtful, descriptive work about an unorthodox, quasi-genius Yankee. - The Northern Mariner/Le marin du nord [Thornton] leads the reader ably through labyrinthine mathematical, astronomical, business, social and nautical concepts in a clear, concise fashion, and leaves us with an outstanding portrayal of post-revolutionary Massachusetts and the complex man who was Nathaniel Bowditch. - The Northern Mariner The work is insightful in the manner in which it connects Bowditch's life and work to the rise of bureaucracy and capitalism in the US. . . . It deserves a presence in all libraries. Recommended. - Choice A real pleasure to read. . . . Thornton writes beautifully and uncomplicatedly about subjects that are neither beautiful nor uncomplicated. She breathes life and excitement into ledger books, forms, and actuarial tables and paints vivid portraits of corporate board meetings. - American Historical Review This recommended biography rediscovers an eccentric who was key in improving several emerging industries. Readers of early American history will find a rich story that moves between New England high society and the founding of the natural sciences. - Library Journal [Thornton] describes in an enjoyable way the lifestyle and society of Salem, at that time a wealthy port town, second only to Boston in New England. - International Journal of Maritime History An intelligent and reliable source of accurate information and an often charming account of a remarkably gifted mathematician/bureaucrat who rebuilt American corporate practice on strict mathematical principals. - Isis Journal A far more sophisticated account of a diverse career than has been available previously, offering a more plausible account of a man driven by number and showing how this played out in different spheres. - Mariner's Mirror Shows Nathaniel Bowditch as [a] business innovator. . . . [and] is a portrait of Salem during its golden age. - Salem News

Thornton's biography of Bowditch is remarkably fluid and her rich narrative profiles the social, economic and cultural issues that surrounded this extremely complicated man. . . . Give[s] the reader a probing, thoughtful, descriptive work about an unorthodox, quasi-genius Yankee.--The Northern Mariner/Le marin du nord This recommended biography rediscovers an eccentric who was key in improving several emerging industries. Readers of early American history will find a rich story that moves between New England high society and the founding of the natural sciences.--Library Journal This is an outstanding book, and the author's research and writing are excellent.--Diary of an Autodidact The work is insightful in the manner in which it connects Bowditch's life and work to the rise of bureaucracy and capitalism in the US. . . . It deserves a presence in all libraries. Recommended.--Choice Strongly recommended [for] anyone with an interest in the history of early America and the history of navigation and science in the early nineteenth century. . . . An excellent biography.--NavList Shows Nathaniel Bowditch as [a] business innovator. . . . [and] is a portrait of Salem during its golden age.--Salem News Sheds a striking light on the science and activities of the early United States, and therefore is an important contribution to our historical understanding.--Nautical Numbers An excellent survey of Bodwitch's life, including his family background, childhood, marriage, and children, as well as the opportunities and choices that defined his career.--Journal of Interdisciplinary History A far more sophisticated account of a diverse career than has been available previously, offering a more plausible account of a man driven by number and showing how this played out in different spheres.--Mariner's Mirror An intelligent and reliable source of accurate information and an often charming account of a remarkably gifted mathematician/bureaucrat who rebuilt American corporate practice on strict mathematical principals.--Isis Journal A real pleasure to read. . . . Thornton writes beautifully and uncomplicatedly about subjects that are neither beautiful nor uncomplicated. She breathes life and excitement into ledger books, forms, and actuarial tables and paints vivid portraits of corporate board meetings.--American Historical Review [Thornton] describes in an enjoyable way the lifestyle and society of Salem, at that time a wealthy port town, second only to Boston in New England.--International Journal of Maritime History [Thornton] leads the reader ably through labyrinthine mathematical, astronomical, business, social and nautical concepts in a clear, concise fashion, and leaves us with an outstanding portrayal of post-revolutionary Massachusetts and the complex man who was Nathaniel Bowditch.--The Northern Mariner

Author Information

Tamara Plakins Thornton is professor of history at the State University of New York, Buffalo.

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