Il8 NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES 



Entering the Academy in 1829, probably the youngest pupil 

 ever admitted there, Barnard was graduated second in a class 

 of 43. Passing from brevet second lieutenant through all the 

 grades, he became colonel on December 28, 1865, and later 

 major-general in both the regular army and the volunteers. 



As a civil engineer General Barnard's activities extended 

 over all the United States, and also included surveys around 

 the city of Mexico and on the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. Twice 

 he was sent to Europe to collect information desired by the 

 Government. During the Civil War, General Barnard took 

 an active part in many battles, but his most important work was 

 as chief engineer of the defences of Washington, where he 

 built field-works which, while having some elements of perma- 

 nency, did not require so long a time for construction as to 

 defeat the purposes for which they were erected, and were of 

 great value to the Government in more than one emergency. 

 At the close of the war, General Barnard became president of 

 the permanent Board of Engineers for Fortifications and River 

 and Harbor Improvements. This position he held until his 

 retirement in January, 1 88 1. The increased size of heavy guns 

 and the advances in naval construction having rendered the coast 

 defences inadequate, a series of new experiments in fortification 

 was commenced at Fortress Monroe and Fort Delaware by the 

 engineer department. General Barnard, with a corps of 

 assistants, visited Europe and by the study of the latest develop- 

 ments in the art was enabled to make most satisfactory recom- 

 mendations to the board of which he was so long the president. 



His writings on technical engineering were numerous. He 

 wrote also on mathematical and other subjects, and was one of the 

 associate editors of Johnson's Universal Cyclopedia, to which 

 he contributed more than 90 articles. General Barnard had many 

 intellectual interests besides his profession, among them a fond- 

 ness for music. He was the author of a number of compositions, 

 including a Te Deum. His death occurred on May 14, 1882, at 

 Detroit, Michigan. 



(From HENRY L. ABBOT, in Biographical Memoirs of the National Academy 

 of Sciences, vol. 5, 1905, pp. 219-229.) 



