Nantucket Home Magazine, Vol. 13, Issue 3, Summer 2021

• • • NANTUCKET by the Numbers Maria Mitchell, America’s first female astronomer, was born on Nantucket on August 1, 1818.

She was the 3rd of 10 children.

At the age of 12 she helped her dad calculate the location of their home by viewing a solar eclipse.

With her knowledge of astronomy, math, and navigation, she helped ship captains rate their chronometers for their whaling trips by the age of 14.

On October 1, 1847, at the age of 29, Maria discovered a comet.

She became the Professor of Astronomy at Vassar College in 1865.

She was a founder of the Association for the Advancement of Woman, the 1st woman member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and one of the 1st women members of the American Philosophical Society.

She retired in 1888 and died in 1889.

Maria Mitchell Association: Founded in 1902, Incorporated in 1903 Maria Mitchell House: Acquired in 1818, gained museum status in 1903 Maria Mitchell Research Center: Built in the 1830s as her dad’s schoolhouse and became a science library in 1919. A new wing was added in 1933 for Maria’s papers and library.

It was conserved and renovated in 2018.

Vestal Street Observatory: Built in 1908, addition of astronomical study in 1922, additional in 1987 Loines Observatory: Built in 1968, refurbished in 1998