Matthew Fountaine Maury (1806-1873)
U.S. Naval officer and oceanographer who was the founder of the U.S. Naval Observatory;
Confederate Head of Coast, harbour and river defences; Inventor of a torpedo;
pioneer of wind and current charts.
The American Matthew F. Maury, who was born in 1806, joined the U.S. Navy in
1825 where he soon developed an interest for hydrography. As a result of this
interest wrote a report entitled On the Navigation of Cape Horn which
was published In 1834.
Maury was appointed superintendent of the U.S. Navy's Hydrographical Office
in Washington after having injured a leg in 1839 and two years later of the
Naval Obeservatory.
His analysis of thousands of log books and reports enabled him to
publish recommendations for
the most effective sea route to take advantage of winds and currents.
Bibliography:
- On the Navigation of Cape Horn, 1834.
- A New Theoretical and Practical Treatise on Navigation: ...
Key and Biddle, Philadelphia, 1836. 21,5 cm, viii, 216, 174 pp, 9 plates.
- Explanation and Sailing Directions to Accompany Wind and Current
Charts, 1847. 2 vols.
1858 (5th). 2 vols, 874 pp & plates.
- The Physical Geography of the Sea, and its Meteorology.
Harper & Brothers, New York, 1855 (1st). 8vo, xxiv, 274 pp, ill., 8 engraved plates.
Harper & Brothers, New York, [1860] (8th). 23 cm, xxxii, 474 pp, ill., 9 plates.
London, 1860.
Facsimile reprint 1963 of the 1855 edition.
Updated 1996-10-29 by
Lars Bruzelius
Sjöhistoriska Samfundet |
The Maritime History Virtual Archives.
Copyright © 1996 Lars Bruzelius.