When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
RICHARDS, Ellen H. Letter to Marcus Benjamin about Robert Hallowell Richards. N.p., 1888. SIGNED.
Signed letter (5" x 8"), Single page signed letter with black ink writing only on the front with the verso left blank. Page has been folded into thirds horizontally. Very Good condition, the leaf exhibiting very minor browning along the edges, with limited soiling. Corners are lightly crinkled. The left-hand side has been torn from a larger sheet of paper, though the ink remains very clear.
Written in 1888 by Ellen Swallow Richards, the first woman to graduate from MIT and a foundational pioneer in sanitary chemistry and home economics, this letter to editor Marcus Benjamin argues that her husband Robert’s historical legacy should rest on his pedagogical innovation rather than his physical inventions. Richards, who broke significant gender barriers in 19th-century science and established the first water-quality standards in the United States, emphasizes that Robert's introduction of laboratory-based instruction for mining and metallurgy was his "life work," carrying more significance than his creation of the jet pump. This insistence on valuing systemic methodology over tangible hardware is historically atypical; for example, Thomas Edison is predominantly remembered for the incandescent light bulb (the invention) rather than his pioneering of the modern industrial research laboratory (the methodology), which fundamentally changed how technology is developed.
"...that Professor Richards' special work, the work which he is most identified with is the introduction of Laboratory methods into the teaching of mining & metallurgy. This is really his life work and of infinitely more consequence than the invention of jet pumps."Thank you for viewing this Listing. Please reach out directly with any questions you may have. We ship the package in protective bubble wrap. Comes from a smoke-free home.
Note that we offer free, no-questions-asked returns for up to 30 days after purchase. If you're not happy with the item for any reason after purchasing, simply open a return, send it back for free, and we will refund your money in full.
Thanks, and have a great day!
