Otto Hilgard Tittmann
American geodesist, geographer and astronomer
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Otto Hilgard Tittmann (August 20, 1850 – August 21,[1] 1938) was an American geodesist, geographer, and astronomer of German descent.
Otto Hilgard Tittmann | |
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| Superintendent of the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey | |
| In office December 1, 1900 – April 24, 1914 | |
| Preceded by | Henry Smith Pritchett |
| Succeeded by | Ernest Lester Jones |
| Personal details | |
| Born | August 20, 1850 |
| Died | February 14, 1938 (aged 87) |
| Parent(s) | Edward Tittmann, Rosa Hilgard |
| Occupation | Geodesist |
Known for | Co-founder of the National Geographic Society |
Biography
Tittmann was born in 1850, in Belleville, Illinois[2] to revolutionary parents fleeing the aftermath of the 1848 revolutions.[3] He attended school in St. Louis, and in 1867 joined the United States Coast Survey.[2] In 1874 he was assistant astronomer in Japan to view the Transit of Venus and from 1889 until 1893 he was in charge of weights and measures. In 1888 he co-founded the National Geographic Society. In 1899, Tittmann served as president of the Philosophical Society of Washington.[4] And, from 1895 until 1900 he was assistant in charge of the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey. He was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 1906.[5] From 1900 until 1915 he was Superintendent of the Survey, and from 1915 until 1919 he was president of the National Geographic Society. He died in Leesburg, Virginia, in 1938.
