James Graham Cooper
Encyclopedia
James Graham Cooper was an American
surgeon
and naturalist
.
Cooper was born in New York. He worked for the California Geological Survey
(1860–1874) with Josiah Dwight Whitney, William Henry Brewer
and Henry Nicholas Bolander
. He was primarily a zoologist, but he also made significant botanical
collections from San Diego to Fort Mohave, Arizona
in 1861. Cooper was active in the California Academy of Sciences
, eventually becoming Director of the Museum.
He obtained his medical degree in 1851 and practiced in New York City until 1853. Spencer F. Baird, the Assistant Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution at that time, helped Cooper work with the Pacific railroad survey parties working in the Washington Territory. He joined this survey under Captain George McClellan as a surgeon until 1854. In 1855 he visited San Francisco and the Panama Isthmus. He collected many birds during this expedition.
In 1860, her returned west and joined the Blake Expedition that went from St. Louis up to the Missouri River and into Idaho and Washington. He worked as a contract surgeon for brief periods with the US Army and Josiah Whitney, the chief of the California Geological Survey. Along with Baird he wrote a book on the birds of California "Ornithology, Volume I, Land Birds" in 1870.
His marriage in 1866 made it difficult for him to balance his interest in natural history. He worked in San Mateo, Oakland, San Francisco and finally settled in 1875 in Hayward
. He wrote on his difficulties in a letter in 1870
His father William Cooper
was also a naturalist.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
surgeon
Surgery
Surgery is an ancient medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a patient to investigate and/or treat a pathological condition such as disease or injury, or to help improve bodily function or appearance.An act of performing surgery may be called a surgical...
and naturalist
Natural history
Natural history is the scientific research of plants or animals, leaning more towards observational rather than experimental methods of study, and encompasses more research published in magazines than in academic journals. Grouped among the natural sciences, natural history is the systematic study...
.
Cooper was born in New York. He worked for the California Geological Survey
California Geological Survey
Although it was not until 1880 that the California State Mining Bureau, predecessor to the California Geological Survey, was established, the "roots" of California's state geological survey date to an earlier time...
(1860–1874) with Josiah Dwight Whitney, William Henry Brewer
William Henry Brewer
William Henry Brewer was an American botanist. He worked on the first California Geological Survey and was the first Chair of Agriculture at Yale University's Sheffield Scientific School....
and Henry Nicholas Bolander
Henry Nicholas Bolander
Henry Nicholas Bolander was a German-American botanist and educator.Bolander was born in Schlüchtern, Germany and emigrated to the United States in 1846. He joined his uncle in Columbus, Ohio and enrolled in the Columbus Lutheran Seminary. He graduated from the seminary and was ordained a...
. He was primarily a zoologist, but he also made significant botanical
Botany
Botany, plant science, or plant biology is a branch of biology that involves the scientific study of plant life. Traditionally, botany also included the study of fungi, algae and viruses...
collections from San Diego to Fort Mohave, Arizona
Fort Mohave, Arizona
Fort Mohave is a CDP in Mohave County, Arizona. It is named for a nearby fort that was used during the Mohave War. As of the census of 2010, the population of Fort Mohave was 14,364. This was up from 8,919 in 2000. It is a micro-suburb of Bullhead City...
in 1861. Cooper was active in 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...
, eventually becoming Director of the Museum.
He obtained his medical degree in 1851 and practiced in New York City until 1853. Spencer F. Baird, the Assistant Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution at that time, helped Cooper work with the Pacific railroad survey parties working in the Washington Territory. He joined this survey under Captain George McClellan as a surgeon until 1854. In 1855 he visited San Francisco and the Panama Isthmus. He collected many birds during this expedition.
In 1860, her returned west and joined the Blake Expedition that went from St. Louis up to the Missouri River and into Idaho and Washington. He worked as a contract surgeon for brief periods with the US Army and Josiah Whitney, the chief of the California Geological Survey. Along with Baird he wrote a book on the birds of California "Ornithology, Volume I, Land Birds" in 1870.
His marriage in 1866 made it difficult for him to balance his interest in natural history. He worked in San Mateo, Oakland, San Francisco and finally settled in 1875 in Hayward
Haywards
Haywards is the location in Wellington, New Zealand, where the North Island's static inverter plant of the HVDC Inter-Island transmission line is located. Suburbs and towns near Haywards include Belmont, Judgeford, Silverstream, Trentham and Taita....
. He wrote on his difficulties in a letter in 1870
His father William Cooper
William Cooper (conchologist)
William Cooper was an American conchologist and collector.Cooper studied zoology in Europe from 1821 to 1824, and afterwards travelled to Nova Scotia, Kentucky and the Bahamas collecting specimens. Although he was not an author himself his specimens were of great help to others, such as John James...
was also a naturalist.