astronomy

John Hiram Lathrop

John Hiram Lathrop is a astronomy topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand John Hiram Lathrop rather than just read about it. In short: John Hiram Lathrop (January 22, 1799 – August 2, 1866) was an American educator during the early 19th century. He served as the first President of both the University of Missouri and the University of Wisconsin as well as president of Indiana University.

Key takeaways

John Hiram Lathrop belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect John Hiram Lathrop to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of John Hiram Lathrop from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

John Hiram Lathrop (January 22, 1799 – August 2, 1866) was an American educator during the early 19th century. He served as the first President of both the University of Missouri and the University of Wisconsin as well as president of Indiana University.

Early life John Lathrop was born in Sherburne, New York in 1799. He attended Yale University, graduating in 1819 and teaching for three years at Farmington, Connecticut. He later became a tutor at his alma mater from 1822 until 1826 when he was admitted to the bar and practiced at Middletown, Connecticut. He also spent some time teaching in Norwich, Vermont and Gardiner, Maine. In 1829 he became professor of mathematics and natural philosophy at Hamilton College in Clinton, New York. He was married to Frances E. Lothrop [sic] student of Sarah Pierce's Litchfield Female Academy. Her mother was a sister to Harvard University president John Thornton Kirkland and daughter of Samuel Kirkland, founder of Hamilton College. His son is Gardiner Lathrop who was founder of the Kansas City law firm Lathrop & Gage.

Academic career

First term at the University of Missouri The University of Missouri was founded in 1839 as the first public or state university west of the Mississippi River. Professor Lathrop was chosen as its first president in 1840, a position he held until 1849. He is credited with laying the foundations for the university's first century.

University of Wisconsin In 1849, Lathrop was elected the first chancellor of the University of Wisconsin–Madison. During his tenure as chancellor, he established the academic setting at the university, and he recommended the university's seal and motto, "Numen Lumen." He was nominated for the position of the first president of the restructured University of Michigan in 1852 after Henry Barnard declined the job; however, Henry Philip Tappan was elected instead. He resigned in 1858 due to problems with the regents and legislature, but remained the acting chancellor until Henry Barnard officially became the chancellor in 1859.

Indiana University Upon the death of Indiana University's first president Andrew Wylie in 1851, the Board of Trustees sought Lathrop as his replacement. Elsewhere occupied, he declined. Upon the abrupt departure of President William Mitchel Daily in 1859, the Indiana University Board of Trustees once again sought to fill the office with Lathrop. This time, he accepted, and took office on September 20, 1859. His inauguration took place July 11, 1860 and directly thereafter he submitted his resignation to the Board.

Second term at the University of Missouri After resigning the presidency of Indiana University in 1859 after only one year, he returned to the University of Missouri as a professor of English literature. He was re-elected president in 1865, the only president ever to hold two separate terms, and held that office until his death in Columbia, Missouri in 1866. He is buried in Columbia at the Columbia Cemetery

See also History of the University of Missouri List of presidents and chancellors of the University of Wisconsin–Madison

References

External links Chancellors and Presidents of the University of Wisconsin–Madison John Hiram Lathrop at Find a Grave

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with John Hiram Lathrop

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what John Hiram Lathrop claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to John Hiram Lathrop before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about John Hiram Lathrop ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of John Hiram Lathrop

In research: John Hiram Lathrop appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses John Hiram Lathrop in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: John Hiram Lathrop is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1799 births, 1866 deaths, 19th-century American lawyers, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for John Hiram Lathrop outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study John Hiram Lathrop in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what John Hiram Lathrop means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain John Hiram Lathrop out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is John Hiram Lathrop in simple terms?

Why does John Hiram Lathrop matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study John Hiram Lathrop?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on John Hiram Lathrop.