463:'s death in 1885, the Wagner Free Institute of Science formed a board of trustees to find a new director. They chose Leidy to lead the institute, and he became president of the institute's faculty and curator of the museum. He held this position while remaining curator at the Academy of Natural Sciences and professor at Penn. Under Leidy's direction, the Wagner became a more professional institution for research and education. He formed the institute's professional journal "Transactions of the Wagner Free Institute of Science" and sponsored expeditions to collect specimens. One famed expedition to western Florida led by
33:
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256:. His father, Philip, was a hatter; his mother, Catharine, died during childbirth when he was young. His father then married his wife's first cousin, Christiana Mellick. Leidy also had a brother, Thomas Leidy. With the support of his stepmother and after overcoming the opposition of his father, who wanted him to be a sign painter, Leidy studied medicine at the
451:, but X-rays taken in 1987 showed that she had buttons on her body that weren't produced until the 1830s. Similarly, the body didn't have teeth, so Leidy thought the woman had died in middle or old age; however, a new set of X-rays in 2007 suggested that the woman had died in her late 20s.
518:
In 1846, Leidy became the first person ever to use a microscope to solve a murder mystery. A man accused of killing a
Philadelphia farmer had blood on his clothes and hatchet. The suspect claimed the blood was from chickens he had been slaughtering. Using his microscope, Leidy found no
263:
He married Anna Harden, a woman who took a serious interest in his work and helped him with it on occasion. Their marriage was childless, and they eventually adopted an orphaned seven-year-old girl, Alwinia, daughter of the late
Professor Franks of the University of Pennsylvania.
355:
eventually drove Leidy out of western
American vertebrate paleontology, a field that Leidy had helped to found. Marsh claimed Leidy contributed to the falling out of the two by showing Cope in the presence of Marsh that Cope had mistakenly placed the head of a fossil
405:(the group including sloths, armadillos, glyptodonts, and anteaters). The work expanded understanding of the morphology of species known to the time, including details of the skull, and documented the broad geographic range once inhabited by the common species
531:). Moreover, he found that if he let chick erythrocytes remain outside the body for hours, they did not lose their nuclei. Thus, he concluded that the blood stains could not have been chicken blood. The suspect subsequently confessed.
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691:
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in North
America. Leidy also led a large renovation to the building and dramatically reorganized the collection. The exhibition he designed opened in 1891, and displayed specimens based on taxonomy and
218:(1869) contained many species not previously described and many previously unknown on the North American continent. At the time, scientific investigation was largely the province of wealthy amateurs.
1541:
1245:"A Study of the Brains of Six Eminent Scientists and Scholars Belonging to the American Anthropometric Society, together with a Description of the Skull of Professor E. D. Cope"
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1531:
448:
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In 1855, Leidy published an influential memoir on fossil ground sloths of North
America, the first comprehensive study of North American
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476:. Today, the Victorian cases and hand-labelled specimens remain almost unaltered since Leidy's reorganization in the late 19th century.
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838:
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146:
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Proceedings of the
Academy of Natural Sciences of America, Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, 49 pp., pages
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98:
60:
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published a paper of his analysis of six brains at the
American Anthropometric Society, including Leidy's.
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780:
352:
307:
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during the latter half of the 19th century. He described and published the newly discovered species
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Leidy collected gems as well as fossils, and donated his important collection of the former to the
344:
1409:
929:"Nomenclatural history of Megalonyx Jefferson, 1799 (Mammalia, Xenarthra, Pilosa, Megalonychidae)"
488:
was caused by a parasite in undercooked meat. He was also a pioneering protozoologist, publishing
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673:
507:
310:. Leidy concluded, contrary to the view prevailing at the time, that this dinosaur could adopt a
207:
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of the North
American continent for over 10,000 years, and is a direct ancestor of the living
1035:"The Curious Case of Mrs. Ellenbogen: Saponification and Deceit in 19th-Century Philadelphia"
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Leidy died in his home on April 30, 1891. After his death, his brain was donated to the
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366:
188:
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Leidy served as a surgeon to
Satterlee Military Hospital in Philadelphia during the
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638:
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226:
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before he died. At
Swarthmore, he also taught a class on mineralogy and geology.
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524:
485:
473:
285:
108:
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817:
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Leidy was also a renowned parasitologist, and determined as early as 1846 that
237:
1175:"The Wagner Free Institute of Science of Philadelphia - Museum - Joseph Leidy"
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1429:, Berkeley, Los Angeles/London: University of California Press, p. 316
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on the tail, rather than on the neck, and then publishing a correction.
1268:
1244:
1071:"Science for All: The Wagner Free Institute of Science of Philadelphia"
677:
415:
253:
195:
132:
1224:
Hare, Hobart A. (1923). "Leidy and His Influence on Medical Science".
373:, and lobbied successfully for Darwin's election to membership in the
299:
1547:
Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania alumni
1260:
447:. Examining her, Leidy originally reported that she had died in the
664:
Chapman, Henry C. (1891). "Memoir of Joseph Leidy, M. D., LL. D.".
236:
597:
In Arctic Seas: the Voyage of the Kite with the Peary Expedition,
291:
983:"AN IDIOSYNCRATIC HISTORY OF FLORIDIAN VERTEBRATE PALEONTOLOGY"
210:
and the director of scientific and educational programs at the
1226:
Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia
1200:"'Fresh-Water Rhizopods of North America', Joseph Leidy, 1879"
666:
Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia
248:
Joseph Leidy was born on September 9, 1823, to an established
729:"Academy of Natural Sciences - Joseph Leidy - Fossil Species"
432:"The Soap Lady" redirects here. For the graphic novel, see
306:
ever recovered. The specimen was originally discovered by
1572:
University of Pennsylvania Department of Biology faculty
1427:
North American Bison: Their Classification and Evolution
1114:
1112:
298:. It was notable for being the first nearly complete
183:(September 9, 1823 – April 30, 1891) was an American
414:
Leidy dominated vertebrate paleontology research in
351:
that developed between him and rival paleontologist
570:is used to indicate this person as the author when
343:Noted American fossil collector and paleontologist
164:
142:
124:
104:
94:
84:
68:
46:
23:
1249:Transactions of the American Philosophical Society
496:in 1879 – a work that is still referenced today.
16:American anatomist and paleontologist (1823-1891)
1364:"Joseph Leidy: Biographical Timeline: 1823–1844"
1335:"Joseph Leidy: Biographical Timeline: 1823–1844"
634:"Joseph Leidy: Biographical Timeline: 1874–1891"
386:, the North American fossil bison, to the genus
260:. He graduated with his medical degree in 1844.
1542:Members of the American Anthropometric Society
1437:Joseph Leidy: the last man who knew everything
314:. He also described the holotype specimens of
8:
1411:Memoir on the extinct species of American ox
1014:. The College of Physicians of Philadelphia
439:In 1875, a woman's body was exhumed from a
1480:
31:
20:
958:
940:
890:
365:Leidy was an early American supporter of
1126:. University Archives and Records Center
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902:
595:Robert Neff Keely, Gwilym George Davis,
267:In 1848, he was elected a member of the
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449:1793 Philadelphia yellow fever epidemic
434:Renée French § Select comics works
1397:Proceedings Academy of Natural Science
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555:His bibliography includes 553 works.
7:
1434:Warren, Leonard (October 11, 1998).
1145:Belardo, Carolyn (August 27, 2018).
927:Babcock, Loren E. (March 18, 2024).
225:in northwest Greenland was named by
216:Extinct Fauna of Dakota and Nebraska
1291:Memoir of Joseph Leidy, M.D., LL.D.
841:maintained by M. J. Everhart): 9–10
1567:University of Pennsylvania faculty
443:cemetery; her body was encased in
347:was a student of Leidy's, but the
14:
1532:American people of German descent
861:"Joseph Leidy and Charles Darwin"
620:
1243:Spitzka, Edward Anthony (1907).
608:
467:led to the first discovery of a
212:Wagner Free Institute of Science
202:, later becoming a professor of
170:
155:Wagner Free Institute of Science
79:Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
1309:International Plant Names Index
1151:The Academy of Natural Sciences
541:American Anthropometric Society
349:enmity and ruthless competition
290:, which was recovered from the
1488:Works by or about Joseph Leidy
1147:"Last Man Who Knew Everything"
269:American Philosophical Society
1:
1478:Biodiversity Heritage Library
797:maintained by M. J. Everhart)
38:
1557:Scientists from Philadelphia
1517:American forensic scientists
827:Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila.
1425:McDonald, Jerry N. (1981),
1372:Academy of Natural Sciences
1343:Academy of Natural Sciences
1179:www.wagnerfreeinstitute.org
942:10.3897/zookeys.1195.117999
869:Academy of Natural Sciences
835:Academy of Natural Sciences
816:Leidy, J. (March 8, 1870).
642:Academy of Natural Sciences
375:Academy of Natural Sciences
147:Academy of Natural Sciences
1588:
1562:Swarthmore College faculty
1103:10.5215/pennlega.15.1.0012
1087:10.5215/pennlega.15.1.0012
1069:WHITE, MATTHEW A. (2015).
431:
258:University of Pennsylvania
241:Statue of Joseph Leidy by
200:University of Pennsylvania
151:University of Pennsylvania
99:University of Pennsylvania
61:Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
990:Bull. Fla. Mus. Nat. Hist
169:
160:
117:
30:
1527:American parasitologists
1522:American paleontologists
1391:Leidy, Joseph (1852a), "
981:Ray, Clayton E. (2005).
527:(human erythrocytes are
380:In 1852, Leidy referred
1552:Scientific illustrators
1408:Leidy, Joseph (1852b),
1288:Chapman Henry C. 1891.
1033:Dhody, Anna N. (2016).
480:Other scientific fields
296:Haddonfield, New Jersey
252:family of Pennsylvania
194:Leidy was professor of
1120:"Joseph Mellick Leidy"
820:Elasmosaurus platyurus
545:Edward Anthony Spitzka
340:), among many others.
245:
1474:Works by Joseph Leidy
1442:Yale University Press
1075:Pennsylvania Legacies
903:Leidy, 1852b & 11
891:Leidy & 1852a 117
455:Wagner Free Institute
408:Megalonyx jeffersonii
308:William Parker Foulke
240:
233:Early life and family
785:"Wrong End Foremost"
783:(January 19, 1890).
755:"Arctodus pristinus"
696:search.amphilsoc.org
692:"APS Member History"
181:Joseph Mellick Leidy
1537:Lyell Medal winners
735:on October 11, 2006
561:author abbreviation
421:Smilodon floridanus
1124:archives.upenn.edu
514:Forensic innovator
508:American Civil War
246:
208:Swarthmore College
1451:978-0-300-07359-1
935:(1195): 297–308.
469:saber-toothed cat
377:of Philadelphia.
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119:Scientific career
57:September 9, 1823
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1492:Internet Archive
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1455:. Retrieved
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1381:, retrieved
1377:the original
1369:Philadelphia
1367:
1352:, retrieved
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1340:Philadelphia
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1272:. Retrieved
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1204:. Retrieved
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1182:. Retrieved
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1081:(1): 12–17.
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1016:. Retrieved
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830:
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818:"Remarks on
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788:
781:Marsh, O. C.
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639:Philadelphia
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525:erythrocytes
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490:Fresh-water
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359:Elasmosaurus
357:
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322:A. pristinus
321:
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283:specimen of
278:
275:Paleontology
266:
262:
250:Philadelphia
247:
227:Robert Peary
220:
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180:
179:
143:Institutions
137:parasitology
129:paleontology
118:
74:(1891-04-30)
25:Joseph Leidy
18:
1512:1891 deaths
1507:1823 births
1314: Leidy
739:October 11,
716:Warren 1998
672:: 342–388.
599:2011 p. 373
543:. In 1907,
501:Smithsonian
486:trichinosis
474:systematics
403:xenarthrans
353:O. C. Marsh
332:), and the
286:Hadrosaurus
229:after him.
214:. His book
109:Lyell Medal
85:Nationality
1501:Categories
1326:References
1274:January 3,
1255:(4): 176.
1130:January 3,
1045:(2): 45–48
1039:Expedition
369:theory of
345:E. D. Cope
300:fossilized
53:1823-09-09
1095:1544-6360
1049:March 31,
1018:March 20,
951:1313-2970
845:August 8,
801:August 8,
701:April 14,
583:Citations
529:anucleate
523:in these
492:Rhizopods
445:adipocere
392:herbivore
371:evolution
326:dire wolf
165:Signature
1232:: 73–87.
1206:July 26,
1184:July 31,
1156:July 31,
960:10964019
871:web site
839:web site
795:web site
644:web site
367:Darwin's
317:Arctodus
304:dinosaur
294:pits of
281:holotype
89:American
1490:at the
1362:ANSPa,
1269:1005434
933:ZooKeys
678:4061730
416:Florida
324:), the
288:foulkii
254:Germans
198:at the
196:anatomy
133:anatomy
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676:
572:citing
521:nuclei
459:After
125:Fields
112:(1884)
105:Awards
63:, U.S.
37:Leidy
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1265:JSTOR
1099:JSTOR
986:(PDF)
674:JSTOR
621:ANSPa
566:Leidy
388:Bison
1459:2013
1446:ISBN
1419:2013
1385:2009
1356:2009
1298:–49.
1276:2024
1208:2014
1186:2020
1158:2020
1132:2024
1091:ISSN
1051:2022
1020:2022
947:ISSN
878:2009
847:2017
803:2017
767:2022
741:2006
703:2021
651:2009
609:ANSP
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221:The
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41:1870
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