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THE SCIENTIFIC CAREER OF A. E. DOUGLASS, 1894-1962 Item Type text; Dissertation-Reproduction (electronic) Authors Webb, George Ernest Publisher The University of Arizona. Rights Copyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author. Download date 08/10/2021 22:49:32 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10150/298834 INFORMATION TO USERS This material was produced from a microfilm copy of the original document. While the most advanced technological means to photograph and reproduce this document have been used, the quality is heavily dependent upon the quality of the original submitted. 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It is customary to begin photoing at the upper left hand corner of a large sheet and to continue photoing from left to right in equal sections with a small overlap. If necessary, sectioning is continued again — beginning below the first row and continuing on until complete. 4. The majority of users indicate that the textual content is of greatest value, however, a somewhat higher quality reproduction could be made from "photographs" if essential to the understanding of the dissertation. Silver prints of "photographs" may be ordered at additional charge by writing the Order Department, giving the catalog number, title, author and specific pages you wish reproduced. 5. PLEASE NOTE: Some pages may have indistinct print. Filmed as received. University Microfilms International 300 North Zeeb Road Ann Arbor, Michigan 48106 USA St. John's Road, Tyler's Green High Wycombe, Bucks, England HP10 8HR 7818612 WEBB# 0EORGE ERME8T THE SCIENTIFIC CAREER OF A. E. DOUGLASS, {894-1963, THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA; PH,Dt# 1978 University Microfilms International 300 n. zeeb road, ann arbor, mi 48ioe 0 1978 GEORGE ERNEST WEBB ALL RIGHTS RESERVED THE SCIENTIFIC CAREER OF A. E. DOUGLASS 1894-1962 by George Ernest Webb A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY In the Graduate College THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA 19 7 8 Copyright 1978 George Ernest Webb THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA GRADUATE COLLEGE I hereby recommend that this dissertation prepared under my direction by GGorgG ErnGst V/Gfofo entitled THE SCIENTIFIC CAREER OF A. E. DOUGLASS 1894-1962 be accepted as fulfilling the dissertation requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosopy S-/HM [ssertation Director Date As members of the Final Examination Committee, we certify that we have read this dissertation and agree that it may be presented for final defense. -S/V7? a. Cc-^r2>- nyr Final approval and acceptance of this dissertation is contingent on the candidate's adequate performance and defense thereof at the final oral examination. STATEMENT BY AUTHOR This dissertation has been submitted in partial fulfillment of requirements for an advanced degree at The University of Arizona and is deposited in the University Library to be made available to borrowers under rules of the Library. Brief quotations from this dissertation are allowable without special permission, provided that accurate acknowledgment of source is made. Requests for permission for extended quotation from or reproduction of this manuscript in whole or in part may be granted by the copyright holder. PREFACE Andrew Ellicott Douglass (1867-1962) devoted his life to the advance of scientific knowledge. From training and early experience as an astronomer, this prominent scholar shifted his interest to the study of tree rings, ultimately originating the science of dendrochronology and applying it to dating the ancient ruins of the American Southwest. Paralleling his endeavors in science was an extensive career at The University of Arizona, Tucson, from 1906 to 1937. At the time of his death, A. E. Douglass could look back on distinguished and enduring contributions in American science. After an undergraduate career at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, Douglass joined the Harvard College Observatory in the fall of 1889. He quickly impressed his superiors and was chosen as principal assistant of the Boyden Expedition to establish an observatory in the Peruvian Andes. After two years in Peru, the young astronomer returned to Boston, where he soon became associated with the proposed Lowell Observatory. He selected the Flagstaff, Arizona, site for the facility and served for seven years as Percival Lowell's chief assistant. Douglass contributed much data which Lowell used to support his imaginative theories concerning a canal-building civilization on Mars. At the same time, however, he also became increasingly disturbed at Lowell's selective use of data to support his belief in Martian life. Disagreement over the proper use of scientific information led to his dismissal in late 1901. iii iv Douglass remained in Flagstaff until 1906, serving as assayer, Spanish instructor, and probate judge. During these years, his warm, outgoing personality and gentlemanly manner made him one of the leading citizens of the northern Arizona town. Popular in social and intel­ lectual circles, Douglass formed lasting ties with Flagstaff which con­ tinued throughout his life. Leaving Flagstaff in 1906, he joined the faculty of The University of Arizona, where he quickly became head of the physics department and later served briefly as acting president. While teaching and performing his administrative duties, Douglass also worked diligently to obtain a major observatory for southern Arizona, long recognized for its superior climate. Despite several determined campaigns, he was unable to interest government or business in this project. After a decade of concerted effort, he finally achieved success in 1916 when a private gift of $60,000 passed to the university for the establishment of an observatory. The Steward Observatory, delayed by World War I and a host of other problems, was finally com­ pleted in 1922, with Douglass serving as director until 1937. While pursuing his interest in astronomy, Douglass also created the new science of dendrochronology. In an attempt to trace sunspot and climatic cycles in the annual growth of trees, he painstakingly con­ structed over a twenty year period a chronology beginning at 11 A.D. The most dramatic application of the new science was in the dating of the ancient pueblos of the American Southwest. By 1929, Douglass had dated the Pueblo Bonito ruin, for example, in the tenth century, the Mesa Verde dwellings in the twelfth, and Oraibi, still inhabited by the Hopi Indians, in the fourteenth century. He was convinced, however, V that his most important contribution would be the foundation of long- range weather forecasting through the study of the cycles shown in tree rings. Douglass spent the last years of his long life in that pursuit. Although displaying great diversity, Douglass's work was united by a number of themes. The environment of the Southwest early impressed itself on the Vermont native (who never lost his New England accent), when he surveyed the area for the Lowell Observatory in 1894. In addi­ tion to providing the clear atmosphere necessary for astronomical work, the arid climate d'f the region also suggested to Douglass an important modification to the interpretation of tree growth. When developing the first attempts at dendrochronology, Douglass recognized that the Arizona trees responded chiefly to precipitation in their growth patterns. This characteristic led the trees to record past rainfall variations in terms of tree-ring widths. Douglass used the resulting patterns to establish the long chronologies which were eventually responsible for dating the pueblo ruins of the Southwest. Douglass was dedicated to the collection and analysis of data. In this, he differed from more famous scientists whose contributions stemmed from a singularly brilliant flash of interpretation which led to a new theory or a more accurate view of the cosmos. Douglass, in short, was an incredibly hard worker, but was not the traditional scientific "genius." If he lacked the inspired imagination of Einstein, however, he possessed in abundance the dogged determination of Darwin. Further, while sharing in the modern growth of American science, Douglass remained very much the solitary scientific investigator of earlier centuries. In a period of growing institutionalization, he was primarily an individualist. Although financially assisted by several large institutions, his ideas and the application of those ideas were primarily those of a single man. Indeed, in his most famous work of dendrochronology, Douglass was the only active researcher in the field for more than a decade, until be began training others to carry on his work. His perception of the proper scientific method also provides insight into his career. He viewed his research as similar to thei/work of Johannes Kepler, collecting vast amounts of data and then attempting to describe the operation of natural phenomena. Cnly in this way could the scientist be sure of avoiding the slipshod investigations of Percival Lowell, who attenpted to use selected data to "prove" the existence of intelligent life on Mars.

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