174 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XIV. No. 344. 



to which another deparfcmeut has recently 

 been added of still larger dimension." This 

 museum was on the ground now occupied 

 by the St. Paul Building, opposite St. Paul's 

 Church, Broadway. Fitz Green Halleck 

 describes it as : 



" Once the almshouse, now a school of wisdom, 

 Sacred to Scndder's shells and Dr. Griscora." 



Peale's Museum and Gallery of Fine Arts 

 stood on Broadway opposite to City Hall 

 Park. It was founded in 1825. It is im- 

 possible to withhold at least a partial quota- 



New York Institution. ' The Old Almshouse.' Western end 

 facing Broadway. 



tion depicting its attractions as given by the 

 veracious Disturnell.* " It contains four 

 spacious apartments, which are arranged in 

 the following order : The 1st contains speci- 

 mens of natural history in all its branches, and for 

 beauty of arrangement, and the exquisite 



* ' New York as it is in 1837 containing a general 

 description of the City of New York, list of officers, 

 public institutions, and other useful information. In- 

 cluding the public officers, etc., of the city of Brook- 

 lyn, accompanied by a correct map — jjublished by J. 

 Disturn ell, 1837.' 



style in which the articles are mounted, 

 render it one of the most interesting places 

 of public amusement in the country. The 

 2d is a large and valuable collection of 

 paintings, by eminent artists, amongst 

 which may be particularly mentioned a por- 

 trait of Napoleon by Le Fevre ; a Magdalen 

 by Le Brun, together with portraits of at 

 least 150 celebrated citizens and foreigners. 

 The 3d contains a very superior Cosmo- 

 rana, several wax figures of good workman- 

 ship, fossil shells, minerals and miscella- 

 neous curiosities." 



As early as 1801 botany at 

 ^ least achieved in New York a 



^g notable recognition. It was then 



that Dr. David Hosack pur- 

 chased the Elgin domain and 

 created there a botanical garden. 

 This property of twenty acres 

 was between 5th and 6th ave- 

 nues on 47th and 51st streets. 

 Here, to quote the elegant Dr. 

 Francis, " were associated in 

 appropriate soil, exposed to the 

 native elements or protected by 

 the conservatory and hothouse, 

 examples of vegetable life, and 

 of vaiiety of development — a 

 collection that might have cap- 

 tivated ,a Linnseus or a Jussieu : 

 and here indeed a Michaux and 

 a Barton, a Mitchill, a Doughty, 

 a Pursh, a Wilson or a Le Comte 

 often repaired to solve the doubts of the 

 cryptogamist or to confirm the nuptial 

 theory of Valliant." 



This efibrt of Dr. Hosack' s was a natural, 

 though distant, precursor of a scientific 

 museum. 



Associated with Gardiner Baker in the 

 organization of the American Museum was 

 John Pintard, who laid the foundation of 

 the N. Y. Historical Society. This institu- 

 tion gathered strength rapidly, as might 

 have been expected, and its museum of his- 



