Description: Joseph Henry,the first Smithsonian Secretary, served from 1846 to 1878 and was a physicist who conducted pioneering research in electromagnetism.
Description: During debates about the Smithsonian’s founding, the idea of using James Smithson’s bequest for a botanic garden was included in several drafts of the bill considered by Congress. In 1850, President Millard Fillmore commissioned America’s preeminent landscape designer Andrew Jackson Downing to design plans for the National Mall, including grounds around the Smithsonian Castle,
Description: In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the Smithsonian participated in numerous international world’s fairs and expositions. The Panama-Pacific Exposition of 1915 held in San Francisco, California, was intended celebrate the completion of the Panama Canal, as well as to illustrate the function and administrative faculty of the Government of the United States, and to