William Temple Hornaday
Encyclopedia
William Temple Hornaday, Sc.D.
(December 1, 1854 – March 6, 1937) was an American
zoologist, realtor, conservationist, author, poet and songwriter. He revolutionized museum exhibits by displaying wildlife in their natural settings, and is credited with discovering the American crocodile
, saving the American bison
and the Alaskan fur seal
from extinction.
, and educated at Oskaloosa College
, the Iowa State Agricultural College (now Iowa State University
) and in Europe
.
He spent 1.5 years, 1877-1878 in India and Ceylon collecting specimens. In May 1878 he reached southeast Asia and traveled in Malaya
and Sarawak
in Borneo. He served as chief taxidermist of the United States National Museum
in 1882–1890. He helped found the Smithsonian National Zoological Park
in Washington, D.C.
The Musselshell River
region of Montana
is where the last surviving herds of wild American buffalo
lived. Hornaday, working for the Smithsonian Institution, harvested specimens from the region in 1886 so that future generations would know what the buffalo looked like.
He was appointed director of the New York Zoological Park (now the Bronx Zoo
) in 1896 and became president of the Permanent Wild Life Protective Association. He co-founded (with Theodore Roosevelt
) the American Bison Society
in 1905 and served as its president from 1907 to 1910. He was able to exert some influence which led to the passage of legislation which extended protection to wild birds, game, bison, seals, and wild life in general. Hornaday wrote many magazine articles and books.
, a pygmy
native of the Congo, was placed on display in the monkey house. Benga shot targets with a bow and arrow, wove twine, and wrestled with an orangutan. Although, according to the New York Times, "few expressed audible objection to the sight of a human being in a cage with monkeys as companions,” controversy erupted as black clergymen in the city took great offense. “Our race, we think, is depressed enough, without exhibiting one of us with the apes,” said the Reverend James H. Gordon, superintendent of the Howard Colored Orphan Asylum in Brooklyn. “We think we are worthy of being considered human beings, with souls.” And again in a letter to the zoo, Reverend Gordon remarked, "You people are on top. We have got to rise. Why not let us and not impede us? Why shut up a boy in a cage with chimpanzees to show Negroes akin to apes?"
New York Mayor George B. McClellan, Jr.
refused to meet with the clergymen, drawing the praise of Dr. Hornaday, who wrote to him, “When the history of the Zoological Park is written, this incident will form its most amusing passage.”
As the controversy continued, Hornaday remained unapologetic, insisting that his only intention was to put on an “ethnological exhibit.” In another letter, he said that he and Madison Grant
, the secretary of the New York Zoological Society, who ten years later would publish the racist tract “The Passing of the Great Race
,” considered it “imperative that the society should not even seem to be dictated to” by the black clergymen.
Still, Hornaday decided to close the exhibit after just two days, and on Monday, September 8, Benga could be found walking the zoo grounds, often followed by a crowd “howling, jeering and yelling." Benga committed suicide in 1916 when his return trip to the Congo was delayed by World War I
.
movement and especially the Boy Scouts of America
(BSA). Not only is there is a series of conservation
awards named after him, but his beliefs and writings are a major reason conservation and ecology
have long been an important part of the BSA's program. This awards program was created in 1915 by Dr. Hornaday. He named the award the Wildlife Protection Medal. Its purpose was to challenge Americans to work constructively for wildlife conservation and habitat protection. After his death in 1938, the award was renamed in Dr. Hornaday's honor and became a BSA award.
was the grandson of William Temple Hornaday.
In 1938, the National Park Service
named a peak, Mount Hornaday
, in the Absaroka Range
in Yellowstone National Park
for him.
Doctor of Science
Doctor of Science , usually abbreviated Sc.D., D.Sc., S.D. or Dr.Sc., is an academic research degree awarded in a number of countries throughout the world. In some countries Doctor of Science is the name used for the standard doctorate in the sciences, elsewhere the Sc.D...
(December 1, 1854 – March 6, 1937) was an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
zoologist, realtor, conservationist, author, poet and songwriter. He revolutionized museum exhibits by displaying wildlife in their natural settings, and is credited with discovering the American crocodile
American Crocodile
The American crocodile is a species of crocodilian found in the Neotropics. It is the most widespread of the four extant species of crocodiles from the Americas. Populations occur from the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of southern Mexico to South America as far as Peru and Venezuela. It also lives...
, saving the American bison
American Bison
The American bison , also commonly known as the American buffalo, is a North American species of bison that once roamed the grasslands of North America in massive herds...
and the Alaskan fur seal
Northern Fur Seal
The Northern fur seal is an eared seal found along the north Pacific Ocean, the Bering Sea and the Sea of Okhotsk. It is the largest member of the fur seal subfamily and the only species in the genus Callorhinus.-Physical description:Northern fur seals have extreme sexual dimorphism, with males...
from extinction.
Biography
Hornaday was born in Plainfield, IndianaPlainfield, Indiana
As of the census of 2000, there were 18,396 people, 7,051 households, and 4,914 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,023.1 people per square mile . There were 7,449 housing units at an average density of 414.3 per square mile...
, and educated at Oskaloosa College
Oskaloosa College
Oskaloosa College was a liberal arts college based out of Oskaloosa, Iowa. The college was founded in 1857, and was affiliated with the Christian Church . It operated until the first part of the 20th century...
, the Iowa State Agricultural College (now Iowa State University
Iowa State University
Iowa State University of Science and Technology, more commonly known as Iowa State University , is a public land-grant and space-grant research university located in Ames, Iowa, United States. Iowa State has produced astronauts, scientists, and Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winners, along with a host of...
) and in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
.
He spent 1.5 years, 1877-1878 in India and Ceylon collecting specimens. In May 1878 he reached southeast Asia and traveled in Malaya
Malay Peninsula
The Malay Peninsula or Thai-Malay Peninsula is a peninsula in Southeast Asia. The land mass runs approximately north-south and, at its terminus, is the southern-most point of the Asian mainland...
and Sarawak
Sarawak
Sarawak is one of two Malaysian states on the island of Borneo. Known as Bumi Kenyalang , Sarawak is situated on the north-west of the island. It is the largest state in Malaysia followed by Sabah, the second largest state located to the North- East.The administrative capital is Kuching, which...
in Borneo. He served as chief taxidermist of the United States National Museum
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...
in 1882–1890. He helped found the Smithsonian National Zoological Park
Smithsonian National Zoological Park
The Smithsonian National Zoological Park, commonly known as the National Zoo, is one of the oldest zoos in the United States, and as part of the Smithsonian Institution, does not charge admission. Founded in 1889, its mission is to provide leadership in animal care, science, education,...
in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
The Musselshell River
Musselshell River
The Musselshell River is a tributary of the Missouri River, long from its origins at the confluence of its North and South Forks near Martinsdale, Montana to its mouth on the Missouri River. It is located east of the Continental divide entirely within Montana in the United States...
region of Montana
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
is where the last surviving herds of wild American buffalo
American Bison
The American bison , also commonly known as the American buffalo, is a North American species of bison that once roamed the grasslands of North America in massive herds...
lived. Hornaday, working for the Smithsonian Institution, harvested specimens from the region in 1886 so that future generations would know what the buffalo looked like.
He was appointed director of the New York Zoological Park (now the Bronx Zoo
Bronx Zoo
The Bronx Zoo is located in the Bronx borough of New York City, within Bronx Park. It is the largest metropolitan zoo in the United States, comprising of park lands and naturalistic habitats, through which the Bronx River flows....
) in 1896 and became president of the Permanent Wild Life Protective Association. He co-founded (with Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore "Teddy" Roosevelt was the 26th President of the United States . He is noted for his exuberant personality, range of interests and achievements, and his leadership of the Progressive Movement, as well as his "cowboy" persona and robust masculinity...
) the American Bison Society
American Bison Society
The American Bison Society was founded in 1905 by pioneering conservationists and sportsmen including William T. Hornaday and Theodore Roosevelt to help save the bison from extinction and raise public awareness about the species....
in 1905 and served as its president from 1907 to 1910. He was able to exert some influence which led to the passage of legislation which extended protection to wild birds, game, bison, seals, and wild life in general. Hornaday wrote many magazine articles and books.
Scandal at the Zoo
Dr. Hornaday's tenure as director of the zoo met some controversy in September 1906, when Ota BengaOta Benga
Ota Benga was a Congolese Mbuti pygmy known for being featured in a controversial human zoo exhibit at New York City's Bronx Zoo in 1906. Benga came to the United States through the action of businessman and missionary Samuel Phillips Verner...
, a pygmy
Pygmy
Pygmy is a term used for various ethnic groups worldwide whose average height is unusually short; anthropologists define pygmy as any group whose adult men grow to less than 150 cm in average height. A member of a slightly taller group is termed "pygmoid." The best known pygmies are the Aka,...
native of the Congo, was placed on display in the monkey house. Benga shot targets with a bow and arrow, wove twine, and wrestled with an orangutan. Although, according to the New York Times, "few expressed audible objection to the sight of a human being in a cage with monkeys as companions,” controversy erupted as black clergymen in the city took great offense. “Our race, we think, is depressed enough, without exhibiting one of us with the apes,” said the Reverend James H. Gordon, superintendent of the Howard Colored Orphan Asylum in Brooklyn. “We think we are worthy of being considered human beings, with souls.” And again in a letter to the zoo, Reverend Gordon remarked, "You people are on top. We have got to rise. Why not let us and not impede us? Why shut up a boy in a cage with chimpanzees to show Negroes akin to apes?"
New York Mayor George B. McClellan, Jr.
George B. McClellan, Jr.
George Brinton McClellan, Jr., was an American politician, statesman, and educator. The son of American Civil War general and presidential candidate George B...
refused to meet with the clergymen, drawing the praise of Dr. Hornaday, who wrote to him, “When the history of the Zoological Park is written, this incident will form its most amusing passage.”
As the controversy continued, Hornaday remained unapologetic, insisting that his only intention was to put on an “ethnological exhibit.” In another letter, he said that he and Madison Grant
Madison Grant
Madison Grant was an American lawyer, historian and physical anthropologist, known primarily for his work as a eugenicist and conservationist...
, the secretary of the New York Zoological Society, who ten years later would publish the racist tract “The Passing of the Great Race
The Passing of the Great Race
The Passing of The Great Race; or, The racial basis of European history was an influential book of scientific racism written by the American eugenicist, lawyer, and amateur anthropologist Madison Grant in 1916. The book was largely ignored when it first appeared but went through several revisions...
,” considered it “imperative that the society should not even seem to be dictated to” by the black clergymen.
Still, Hornaday decided to close the exhibit after just two days, and on Monday, September 8, Benga could be found walking the zoo grounds, often followed by a crowd “howling, jeering and yelling." Benga committed suicide in 1916 when his return trip to the Congo was delayed by World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
Influence on Scouting
Hornaday had a large impact on the ScoutingScouting
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development, that they may play constructive roles in society....
movement and especially the Boy Scouts of America
Boy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 4.5 million youth members in its age-related divisions...
(BSA). Not only is there is a series of conservation
Conservation biology
Conservation biology is the scientific study of the nature and status of Earth's biodiversity with the aim of protecting species, their habitats, and ecosystems from excessive rates of extinction...
awards named after him, but his beliefs and writings are a major reason conservation and ecology
Ecology
Ecology is the scientific study of the relations that living organisms have with respect to each other and their natural environment. Variables of interest to ecologists include the composition, distribution, amount , number, and changing states of organisms within and among ecosystems...
have long been an important part of the BSA's program. This awards program was created in 1915 by Dr. Hornaday. He named the award the Wildlife Protection Medal. Its purpose was to challenge Americans to work constructively for wildlife conservation and habitat protection. After his death in 1938, the award was renamed in Dr. Hornaday's honor and became a BSA award.
Relatives
Travel writer Temple FieldingTemple Fielding
Temple Harndon Fielding was a noted travel writer who was also a former psyop operative in Europe in World War II under OSS Moral Operations Unit, 2677th Regiment OSS . MO Rome was headed by Eugene P...
was the grandson of William Temple Hornaday.
In 1938, the National Park Service
National Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
named a peak, Mount Hornaday
Mount Hornaday
Mount Hornaday el. is a mountain peak in the northeast section of Yellowstone National Park in the Absaroka Range, Wyoming. The peak was named in 1938 for naturalist William Temple Hornaday, a former director of the New York Zoological Gardens who championed the cause of saving the American Bison...
, in the Absaroka Range
Absaroka Range
The Absaroka Range is a sub-range of the Rocky Mountains in the United States. The range stretches about 150 mi across the Montana-Wyoming border, forming the eastern boundary of Yellowstone National Park and the western side of the Bighorn Basin. The range borders the Beartooth Mountains...
in Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park
Yellowstone National Park, established by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant on March 1, 1872, is a national park located primarily in the U.S. state of Wyoming, although it also extends into Montana and Idaho...
for him.
Selected books
- Two Years in the Jungle (1885; seventh edition, 1901)
- Free Run on the Congo (1887)
- The Extermination of the American Bison (1887)
- Taxidermy and Zoölogical Collecting (1891)
- The Man who Became a Savage (1896)
- Guide to the New York Zoölogical Park (1899)
- The American Natural History (1904; revised edition, four volumes, 1914)
- Campfires in the Canadian Rockies (1906)
- Campfires on Desert and Lava (1908)
- Popular official guide to the New York Zoological Park (1909)
- Our Vanishing Wild Life (1913)
- Wild Life Conservation in Theory and Practice (1914)