John William Draper

Profession: Scientist

Nationality:

Biography: John William Draper was an English-American scientist, photographer, and historian. He is best known for taking some of the earliest photographic portraits as well as the first detailed photograph of the moon in 1840.

Draper was born in England in 1811 and emigrated to Virginia in 1832. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania medical school in 1836 and moved to New York in 1839 to teach at New York University, where he helped found its medical school.

In 1839-1840, Draper took some of the earliest photographic portraits, including the iconic image of his sister Dorothy ("Dorothy Catherine Draper Daguerreotype"). In March of 1840, he produced the first detailed photographs of the moon ("Moon" Daguerreotype).

Draper continued his pioneering work in photography, photochemistry, and spectroscopy through the 1840s. He published several influential textbooks, including "Human Physiology" (1856), and gave a noteworthy lecture applying the concepts of Darwinian evolution to society at the 1860 Oxford evolution debate.

In 1874, Draper published his highly influential book "History of the Conflict between Religion and Science", which popularized the idea of a conflict between religion and science. He served as the first president of the American Chemical Society from 1876 to 1877 and was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 1877.

Draper had several accomplished children, including astronomer Henry Draper, as well as granddaughters who also pursued science.

Born: May 5, 1811
Birthplace: Lancashire, England
Star Sign: Taurus

Died: January 4, 1882 (aged 70)