Chapman Grant
Encyclopedia
Chapman Grant was an American herpetologist, historian
, and publisher. He was the last living grandson of United States President Ulysses S. Grant
He was married and had two children, one of whom survived him, his only son Ulysses S. Grant V.
, the youngest son of the 18th President of the United States
Ulysses S. Grant
. In 1892 he moved to San Diego with his parents. As a child, he spent time at the California Academy of Sciences
, where he developed his interest in science. He graduated from Williams College
in 1910. He became the assistant curator of entomology at the Children's Museum of the Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences in September 1913. In November 1913, he left the museum for a military career beginning on the Mexican border. He was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in the 14th U.S. Cavalry. He married Mabel Lillian Pennebacker in December 1913. He continued his scientific studies while in the Army. When he was assigned as commandant of the Reserve Officers' Training Corps
at the University of Wichita
in the 1930s, he wrote scientific papers on herpetology and was curator at the Arkansas Valley Museum and Historical Society. He retired with a rank of major
.
In the 1930s and 1950s several expeditions for the San Diego Museum of Natural History and the University of Illinois Museum of Natural History led him to the study of the Caribbean
herpetofauna where he discovered and described fifteen new species, including Blue Iguana
, Cotton Ginner Gecko, Gaige's Dwarf Gecko, Klauber's Dwarf Gecko, Nichols' Dwarf Gecko, Roosevelt's Dwarf Gecko, Townsend's Dwarf Gecko, Cook's Anole, Culebra Island Giant Anole
, Cochran's Croaking Gecko
, Web-footed Coqui
, Cook's Robber Frog and the Whistling Coqui
.
In 1932 he established the magazine Herpetologica, the quarterly journal of the Herpetologists' League, an association of several notable herpetologists in the USA, which he co-founded in 1936. He was also the publisher of a second magazine - Scientists Forum.
In 1982 the Major Chapman Grant Hall of Ecology in the Museum of Natural History in San Diego was named in honor of him. In 1983 he died at the age of 95 in a nursing home. He left one son, Ulysses S. Grant V (September 21, 1920 - March 7, 2011)..
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
, and publisher. He was the last living grandson of United States President Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
He was married and had two children, one of whom survived him, his only son Ulysses S. Grant V.
Biography
Chapman Grant was the son of Jesse Root GrantJesse Root Grant
Jesse Root Grant was the youngest son of President Ulysses S. Grant. He joined the Democratic Party and sought the party nomination for president, running against William Jennings Bryan in 1908.In 1925, he wrote a biography of his father.-Biography:Jesse Root Grant was born near St. Louis,...
, the youngest son of the 18th President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
. In 1892 he moved to San Diego with his parents. As a child, he spent time at the California Academy of Sciences
California Academy of Sciences
The California Academy of Sciences is among the largest museums of natural history in the world. The academy began in 1853 as a learned society and still carries out a large amount of original research, with exhibits and education becoming significant endeavors of the museum during the twentieth...
, where he developed his interest in science. He graduated from Williams College
Williams College
Williams College is a private liberal arts college located in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams. Originally a men's college, Williams became co-educational in 1970. Fraternities were also phased out during this...
in 1910. He became the assistant curator of entomology at the Children's Museum of the Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences in September 1913. In November 1913, he left the museum for a military career beginning on the Mexican border. He was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in the 14th U.S. Cavalry. He married Mabel Lillian Pennebacker in December 1913. He continued his scientific studies while in the Army. When he was assigned as commandant of the Reserve Officers' Training Corps
Reserve Officers' Training Corps
The Reserve Officers' Training Corps is a college-based, officer commissioning program, predominantly in the United States. It is designed as a college elective that focuses on leadership development, problem solving, strategic planning, and professional ethics.The U.S...
at the University of Wichita
Wichita State University
Wichita State University is a NCAA Division I public university in Wichita, Kansas with selective admissions. WSU is one of six state universities governed by the Kansas Board of Regents. The current president is Dr. Donald Beggs....
in the 1930s, he wrote scientific papers on herpetology and was curator at the Arkansas Valley Museum and Historical Society. He retired with a rank of major
Major (United States)
In the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, major is a field grade military officer rank just above the rank of captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel...
.
In the 1930s and 1950s several expeditions for the San Diego Museum of Natural History and the University of Illinois Museum of Natural History led him to the study of the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
herpetofauna where he discovered and described fifteen new species, including Blue Iguana
Blue Iguana
The Blue Iguana or Grand Cayman Iguana is a critically endangered species of lizard of the genus Cyclura endemic to the island of Grand Cayman. Previously listed as a subspecies of the Cuban Iguana, it was reclassified as a separate species in 2004 because of genetic differences discovered four...
, Cotton Ginner Gecko, Gaige's Dwarf Gecko, Klauber's Dwarf Gecko, Nichols' Dwarf Gecko, Roosevelt's Dwarf Gecko, Townsend's Dwarf Gecko, Cook's Anole, Culebra Island Giant Anole
Culebra Island Giant Anole
The Culebra Island Giant Anole or is an extremely rare or possibly extinct lizard of the genus Anolis in the family Polychrotidae.-Taxonomy:...
, Cochran's Croaking Gecko
Cochran's Croaking Gecko
The Cochran's croaking gecko , also known as Navassa gecko, was first described in 1931 by Chapman Grant and named after notable herpetologist and artist Doris Mable Cochran...
, Web-footed Coqui
Web-footed Coqui
The Web-footed Coqui also known as Karl's Robber Frog is a possible extinct Puerto Rican frog species from the coquí genus.-Description:...
, Cook's Robber Frog and the Whistling Coqui
Whistling Coqui
The Whistling Coquí is a species of frog native to Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the British Virgin Islands belonging to the Eleutherodactylus genus in the Leptodactylinae family. This nocturnal insectivore is also referred to as the Coquí Pitito in Puerto Rico...
.
In 1932 he established the magazine Herpetologica, the quarterly journal of the Herpetologists' League, an association of several notable herpetologists in the USA, which he co-founded in 1936. He was also the publisher of a second magazine - Scientists Forum.
In 1982 the Major Chapman Grant Hall of Ecology in the Museum of Natural History in San Diego was named in honor of him. In 1983 he died at the age of 95 in a nursing home. He left one son, Ulysses S. Grant V (September 21, 1920 - March 7, 2011)..
Works
- Secondary sexual differences and notes on the mud turtle Kinosternon subrubrum in northern Indiana. American Midland Naturalist (1935) 16(5) pp. 798–800.
- Natrix sipedon sipedon in central Indiana, its individual and sexual variation. American Midland Naturalist (1935) 16(6) pp. 921–931.
- Herpetological notes from central Kansas. American Midland Naturalist (1937) 18(3) pp. 370–372.
- The Herpetology of Jamaica (with W. Gardner Lynn), (1940) Bull. Inst. Jamaica Sci. Ser. 1: 1-148.
- Differentiation of the two southwestern tortoises (genus Gopherus), with notes on their habits. Trans. San Diego Nat. Hist. Soc. (1960) 12(27) pp. 441–448.