James Lewis Smithson was a Briton who died in Italy in 1829, at the age of 75. Six years later, the primary beneficiary of Smithson’s will died, and urgent letters were sent Washington, D.C. It emerged that Smithson’s estate, worth an estimated £100,000, had devolved “to the United States of America, to found at Washington, under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an Establishment for the increase & diffusion of knowledge among men.” It was the first time a private individual had made such a gift to the new nation. It helped establish the contours of public-private partnerships in American philanthropy.
It is not entirely clear how Smithson acquired his fortune. It seems to have been inherited, although biographers split on whether it resulted from a combination of inheritances from several relatives, or if it was Smithson’s own careful investment of his mother’s estate. Nevertheless, by the time Smithson wrote his will in 1826, he was a wealthy man.
Why America remains a mystery. Smithson was born around 1765 in Paris, and despite his world travels, he had never once visited the United States. He is not known to have been in regular communication with any Americans, and his papers—other than his will—never mention the United States. The question of why Smithson chose to deed his estate to the citizens of a nation he seemingly had no connection to may never be satisfactorily answered. Heather Ewing, author of the most recent and comprehensive biography of Smithson, suggests that his donation reflected the late-eighteenth century’s interest in a “culture of improvement,” and a widespread belief that the United States would play an important role in advancing the arts and sciences.
A handwritten note later discovered among Smithson’s papers suggests his decision was partly motivated by the search for legitimacy, perhaps immortality, taken on by a bastard son. “The best blood of England flows in my veins,” Smithson lamented, “but this avails me not. My name shall live in the memory of man when the titles of the Northumberlands and the Percys are extinct and forgotten.”
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British scientist James Smithson the one who donated his entire fortune to the United States | Dailymorning.net
It is not entirely clear how Smithson acquired his fortune. It seems to have been inherited, although biographers split on whether it resulted from a combination of inheritances from several relatives, or if it was Smithson’s own careful investment of his mother’s estate. Nevertheless, by the time Smithson wrote his will in 1826, he was a wealthy man.
Why America remains a mystery. Smithson was born around 1765 in Paris, and despite his world travels, he had never once visited the United States. He is not known to have been in regular communication with any Americans, and his papers—other than his will—never mention the United States. The question of why Smithson chose to deed his estate to the citizens of a nation he seemingly had no connection to may never be satisfactorily answered. Heather Ewing, author of the most recent and comprehensive biography of Smithson, suggests that his donation reflected the late-eighteenth century’s interest in a “culture of improvement,” and a widespread belief that the United States would play an important role in advancing the arts and sciences.
A handwritten note later discovered among Smithson’s papers suggests his decision was partly motivated by the search for legitimacy, perhaps immortality, taken on by a bastard son. “The best blood of England flows in my veins,” Smithson lamented, “but this avails me not. My name shall live in the memory of man when the titles of the Northumberlands and the Percys are extinct and forgotten.”
more
British scientist James Smithson the one who donated his entire fortune to the United States | Dailymorning.net
