[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 161 (Tuesday, November 27, 2001)]
[House]
[Pages H8356-H8358]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  RECOGNIZING JOSEPH HENRY FOR HIS ROLE IN DEVELOPMENT OF SCIENCE AND 
                              ELECTRICITY

  Mrs. MORELLA. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to 
the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 157) recognizing and honoring 
Joseph Henry for his significant and distinguished role in the 
development and advancement of science and electricity.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                            H. Con. Res. 157

       Whereas Joseph Henry was born December 17, 1797, in Albany, 
     New York, the son of William and Ann Henry;
       Whereas Joseph Henry served as an apprentice to John Doty, 
     a watchmaker and jeweler, in preparation for attendance at 
     the Albany Academy;
       Whereas from 1819 to 1822, Joseph Henry attended advanced 
     classes at the Albany Academy and, in the spring of 1826, was 
     elected to the professorship of Mathematics and Natural 
     Philosophy in the Albany Academy;
       Whereas Joseph Henry revolutionized scientific education by 
     using experiment-based teaching methods at the Albany 
     Academy, and in 1829 was awarded an honorary Masters degree 
     by Union College, despite having no formal college education;
       Whereas Joseph Henry conducted many experiments with 
     electromagnets, which led to his successful design and 
     construction of an electromagnet capable of lifting 750 
     pounds;
       Whereas Joseph Henry continued to improve upon the 
     development of the electromagnet, building an electromagnet 
     for Yale University in 1831 that was capable of lifting 2,300 
     pounds, and another electromagnet, known as ``Big Ben'', that 
     was capable of lifting 3,500 pounds, which was, at the time 
     that it was built in 1833, the most powerful electromagnet 
     ever built;
       Whereas in January 1831, Joseph Henry helped lay the 
     groundwork for the development of the electromagnetic 
     telegraph by distinguishing between quantity and intensity 
     magnets and by publishing those findings in the American 
     Journal of Science;
       Whereas the modern practical unit of induction is commonly 
     referred to as the ``Henry'' in honor of Joseph Henry's 
     research and discoveries regarding self-induction;
       Whereas Joseph Henry, while conducting research at the 
     Albany Academy, invented an electromagnetic motor made of a 
     horizontally poised bar electromagnet that would rock back 
     and forth as the current through it was automatically 
     reversed;
       Whereas Joseph Henry, while serving as Professor of Natural 
     Philosophy in the College of New Jersey at Princeton 
     (currently known as ``Princeton University''), conducted 
     experiments from 1838 to 1842 which laid the theoretical 
     groundwork for modern step-up and step-down transformers;
       Whereas, on December 14, 1846, Joseph Henry was selected as 
     the first Secretary and Director of the Smithsonian 
     Institution;
       Whereas, in his first report to the Board of Regents of the 
     Smithsonian Institution, Joseph Henry proclaimed that the 
     purpose of the Smithsonian Institution, the increase and 
     diffusion of knowledge among men, would be best achieved by 
     supporting original research and providing for the wide 
     distribution of the most recent findings in the various 
     fields of natural sciences;
       Whereas in 1850 Joseph Henry, as Secretary of the 
     Smithsonian Institution, established the system of receiving 
     weather reports by telegraph and utilizing such reports to 
     predict weather conditions and issue storm warnings;
       Whereas in 1869 Congress established a national weather 
     bureau upon the recommendation of Joseph Henry;
       Whereas Joseph Henry was appointed as a member of the Light 
     House Board in 1852, and served as its president from 1871 
     until his death in 1878;
       Whereas Joseph Henry was an original member of the National 
     Academy of Sciences, its vice-president in 1866, and its 
     president from 1868 until his death in 1878;
       Whereas Joseph Henry died in the District of Columbia on 
     May 13, 1878;
       Whereas a memorial service was held in honor of Joseph 
     Henry on January 16, 1879, in the Hall of the House of 
     Representatives, and was attended by the President, Vice 
     President, members of the President's Cabinet, Justices of 
     the Supreme Court, Members of Congress, and members of the 
     Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution; and
       Whereas the memory of Joseph Henry was honored at the 
     opening of the Library of Congress in 1890 by including a 
     statue of Joseph Henry among the 16 bronze portrait statues 
     on display which represent human development and 
     civilization: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
     concurring), That Congress recognizes and honors Joseph Henry 
     for his significant and distinguished role in the development 
     and advancement of science and electricity.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
Maryland (Mrs. Morella) and the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Hall) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Maryland (Mrs. Morella).


                             General Leave

  Mrs. MORELLA. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their 
remarks and include extraneous material on the concurrent resolution 
now under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Maryland?
  There was no objection.
  Mrs. MORELLA. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume. I rise in support of House Concurrent Resolution 157. I 
commend my

[[Page H8357]]

distinguished colleague, the gentleman from New York (Mr. McNulty), for 
introducing this resolution and for working so hard to bring it to the 
floor.
  This resolution honors Joseph Henry for his significant and 
distinguished role in the development and advancement of science and 
electricity. Joseph Henry, considered by many the foremost American 
scientist of the 19th century, was born on December 17, 1797. Although 
he was largely self-educated, Henry studied at the Albany, New York, 
academy from 1819 to 1822. Henry began teaching at the academy in 
Albany in 1826 where he remained until 1832 when he accepted a position 
at the College of New Jersey, now Princeton University.
  His experimental work in chemistry, electricity, and magnetism 
reflected only a small portion of his broad scientific interest. Henry 
is known primarily for his discovery of electromagnetic induction and 
self-induction. He is also credited with the invention of the electric 
motor.
  In 1846, Henry became the first secretary of the newly organized 
Smithsonian Institution where he established a continuing tradition of 
research. Under his leadership, weather reporting stations were 
connected by telegraph in the United States. These weather reporting 
stations were organized and maintained by the U.S. Army Signal Corps. 
This organization would become, in 1891, the U.S. Weather Bureau, which 
is now the U.S. Weather Service. Henry also directed the resources of 
the Smithsonian Institution to encourage research in the areas of 
astronomy, botany, and Native American anthropology.
  In the spring of 1863, Mr. Henry became one of the founding members 
of the National Academy of Science. He served as academy president 
beginning in 1867 and served both as the National Academy of Science 
president and secretary of the Smithsonian Institution until his death 
in 1878. In 1893 his name was given to the standard electrical unit of 
inductive resistance, the henry. When the statue of Joseph Henry was 
placed in front of the Smithsonian Castle in 1883, it was hailed as a 
symbol of rising American science, a rise that continues to this day 
and will continue well into the future.
  Madam Speaker, again I commend the gentleman from New York (Mr. 
McNulty) for introducing this resolution. I urge my colleagues to 
support it.
  Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. HALL of Texas. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume. I rise, of course, in strong support of this resolution that 
recognizes and honors Joseph Henry for his significant and 
distinguished role in the development and advancement of science and 
electricity in another century and in another day and time. I think it 
is great that my friend, the gentleman from New York (Mr. McNulty), has 
pursued this and to bring up again today the efforts of those of the 
past. He has been a dogged advocate for it. He is the reason we are 
here today. I surely do appreciate that. The gentlewoman from Maryland 
has given us some of the background on Joseph Henry. I am sure the 
gentleman from New York (Mr. McNulty) and the gentleman from New Jersey 
(Mr. Holt) will go a little bit further for us a little later.
  I just wanted to emphasize that Joseph Henry was known for being a 
great educator and an advocate of basic research. Those are words we 
hear a lot still today. As the first secretary of the Smithsonian, he 
did an excellent job of ensuring that the Smithsonian supported both of 
these areas and both of these thrusts.
  Joseph Henry was a very special man. It is rare for the Federal 
Government to shut down for the funeral of a citizen. I have read that 
not only did the government close in the case of Henry's death but also 
shut down 5 years later for the unveiling of his statue which currently 
sits on the mall.
  According to Marc Rothenberg, editor of the Joseph Henry Papers 
Project, such was the reputation of Mr. Henry that one Secretary of the 
Interior had assured Henry that if a request was backed by him, that 
was sufficient. I guess most Members of Congress would kill for that 
kind of deal and that kind of recognition.

                              {time}  1515

  But it is my understanding that a group of school children in New 
York are very interested in this legislation, and I look forward to 
hearing more about it and about their involvement in it from the 
gentleman from New York.
  Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman 
from New York (Mr. McNulty), who represents the district that Mr. Henry 
came from and is the author of this bill.
  Mr. McNULTY. Madam Speaker, I thank my good friend from Texas for 
yielding me this time.
  Madam Speaker, this afternoon we honor the ``Father of American 
Science,'' Joseph Henry, a true pioneer in the field of electricity and 
electromagnetics, the man responsible for laying the foundation for 
government-sponsored scientific research in this country, and a native, 
I am proud to say, of the capital region of the State of New York.
  Joseph Henry was born in Albany, New York, in 1797. He attended local 
schools and quickly distinguished himself as a superior student with a 
curious mind. Despite having no formal college education, Mr. Henry 
earned an honorary master's degree from Union College in Schenectady, 
New York, and, in 1826, a professorship in mathematics and natural 
philosophy at the Albany Academy.
  It was in this position that Mr. Henry found his interest and his 
gift and promptly revolutionized the field of electromagnetics. The 
most powerful electromagnet at the time sustained a weight of just a 
few pounds. After just 7 years of research and experimentation, Henry 
devised Big Ben, at that time the most powerful electromagnet ever 
built, sustaining 3,500 pounds.
  Henry invented the first electromagnetic motor. His research is 
credited for laying the foundation for the development of the 
electromagnetic telegraph and the modern day transformer; and, in fact, 
the practical unit of inductance, the generation of force within a 
circuit, is called, quite simply, the Henry.
  He distinguished himself not just as a preeminent scientific 
investigator but also as a man possessing good judgment, leadership 
ability and superior character. He reluctantly surrendered his pursuits 
in pure science to answer what he believed to be a call of duty.
  In December of 1846, Mr. Henry was selected as the first Secretary 
and Director of the Smithsonian Institution. He proclaimed that the 
purpose of the Smithsonian Institution, the increase and diffusion of 
knowledge among men, was best achieved by supporting original research 
and providing for the wide distribution of the most recent findings in 
the various natural sciences. We all know that this is precisely the 
mission and the accomplishment of the Smithsonian Institution as we 
know it today.
  In his later years, Mr. Henry continued to achieve and lead. At his 
recommendation, Congress established the National Weather Bureau in 
1869. He served as a member of the Light House Board for 26 years, the 
final seven as its chairman; and he was named an original member of the 
National Academy of Sciences and served as its president for the last 
10 years of his life.
  Joseph Henry died here in Washington in May of 1878. On January 16, 
1879, a memorial service was held in his honor in the Hall of the House 
of Representatives. It was attended by the President, the Vice 
President, members of the Cabinet, Justices of the Supreme Court and 
Members of Congress, a rare and very well-deserved honor.
  At the opening of the Library of Congress in 1890, Mr. Henry was 
featured among the 16 bronze portrait statues chosen to represent the 
whole of human development and civilization.
  It is my hope that in recognizing Joseph Henry's numerous 
accomplishments and his distinguished role in the history of our 
Nation, we will encourage today's young people to pursue careers in 
science and technology.
  Madam Speaker, I ask all Members to join with me in supporting the 
passage of House Concurrent Resolution 157 honoring the Father of 
American Science, Joseph Henry, a native, I am proud to say, of my 
Congressional District.
  Mr. HALL of Texas. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume 
to

[[Page H8358]]

the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Holt), a professor at Princeton 
where Joseph Henry taught. As a physicist I would have trouble getting 
in Princeton, much less getting out, or all the more of teaching there, 
but the gentleman has the distinction of probably being one of the few 
Members in Congress that fully understands the work of Mr. Henry and 
his scientific research.
  Mr. HOLT. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend, the ranking member of the 
Committee on Science, for yielding me time, and I also thank my friend 
from New York for carrying this forward.
  As a representative of Central New Jersey, including Princeton 
University, and as a physicist, I could not let this opportunity go by 
to speak of one of the great Americans. New York likes to claim Joseph 
Henry. Washington, D.C., likes to claim Joseph Henry. In New Jersey, we 
really have a soft spot for someone who did much of his scientific 
research at what was then called the College of New Jersey, Princeton 
University.
  Outside of the Princeton Physics Building there are really two 
statues now; on one side, Joseph Henry; on the other side, Benjamin 
Franklin.
  Joseph Henry is a remarkable American story, a self-made scientist, a 
country boy who made good. He was self-taught. When he was appointed to 
a professorship at Princeton, he asked whether they knew that he had 
had no formal education. But they were happy to have him because of his 
careful mind, and, most important, his careful experimental work. That 
is what I want to say a word about.
  He is known for his work with induction. On one side of the Atlantic, 
Michael Faraday was doing work; on this side of the Atlantic, it was 
Joseph Henry. Now, induction may sound like an academic fine point of 
narrow interest, but, in fact, every motor, every transformer, every 
telephone, every TV broadcast, in fact, all of modern electronics is 
built on this work on induction.
  Joseph Henry was the leading American proponent of experimental 
science. He not only developed the principle on which Morse developed 
the telegraph; he actually had a wire strung from the basement of 
Nassau Hall to his home where he could signal by telegraphy to his wife 
and family, I suppose, when he would be coming home for dinner.
  He also in inventing electromagnets improvised and at one point 
realized he needed to insulate the wires so he could have multiple 
windings around the electromagnet, and he unraveled one of his wife's 
silk garments so he could braid silk around the wire to provide 
insulation and make stronger, far stronger, electromagnets than anyone 
in the world had ever done.
  But always he was looking at the use of science for the national 
service, for the national good. He came to national attention and to 
the attention of Congress when in 1844 he was appointed to a commission 
to investigate an explosion of a gun on the new USS Princeton on the 
Potomac River. This was, I guess, the Challenger accident of the day, 
because a gun exploded and the Secretaries of State and Navy and 
several Members of Congress were killed.
  Henry's careful investigation of the cause of that and his efforts to 
prevent anything like that explosion from ever occurring again brought 
him to the attention of Congress. So when the word went out to find a 
director for this new, well-endowed institution where Joseph Smithson 
had sent a shipload of money to form an institution for the increase 
and diffusion of knowledge, they looked for the best person in America 
to head it, and Congress hit on Joseph Henry.
  Madam Speaker, the reason that we want to recognize Joseph Henry is 
because of what he did not just in his laboratory but to apply science 
to the public good in this investigation of the explosion, but then in 
the creation of the National Academy of Sciences, which went on and has 
continued to this day to use science in the national interest, and for 
what he did in empirical science.
  With all the talk that we have nowadays of the need for science 
education in the schools, it is not so much that students can do 
calculations with Henrys and Farads and units of force and voltage and 
so forth but, rather, so that they learn the idea of empirical science, 
a way of thinking that is built on evidence, where evidence rules.
  Joseph Henry was the leading American in developing this kind of 
empirical thinking that serves us so well today. That is why I commend 
the students in the district of the gentleman from New York (Mr. 
McNulty) for bringing Joseph Henry to the attention of Americans today, 
and I am delighted to join my friend in elevating the name of Joseph 
Henry through this legislation.
  Mr. HALL of Texas. Madam Speaker, I have no further requests for 
time, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mrs. MORELLA. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Madam Speaker, I ask for support of this resolution. I think that it 
is important that young people look to the work that has been done by 
this pioneer in electromagnetism in the mid-19th century.
  Again, I commend the gentleman from New York (Mr. McNulty) for 
recognizing Joseph Henry, and I ask the body to agree to House 
Concurrent Resolution 157.
  Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mrs. Biggert). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentlewoman from Maryland (Mrs. Morella) that the House 
suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution, H. Con. Res. 
157.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the concurrent resolution was 
agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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