Cleveland Abbe (1838 - 1916)

Born 3 Dec 1838 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States

Ancestors

Husband of Frances Martha (Neal) Abbe — married 10 May 1870 in Cincinnati, Ohio

Died 28 Oct 1916 at age 77 in Chevy Chase, Montgomery, Maryland, United States

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Cleveland Abbe is Notable.

Biography

Abbe was appointed chief meteorologist at the National Weather Service in 1871, which at the time was part of the Signal Corps.[5] One of the first things that he addressed was the forecasting dimension of meteorology. He recognized that predicting the weather required a widespread, yet coordinated team. And so with short-term funding granted from the Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce, he enlisted twenty volunteer weather observers to help report conditions. Western Union agreed to permit the observers to communicate without charge, and Abbe and his team went to work. He selected data-collecting instruments that would be critical to the success of weather predicting, and he trained Army observer sergeants in their use. Field data was transmitted using code designed to minimize word count, and at the designated times, information flooded the transmission stations. Clerks would then decode and record the messages and manually enter data onto weather maps, which were then used to predict the weather.

On February 19, 1871, Abbe personally gave the first official weather report. He continued to forecast alone for the next six months, while simultaneously training others. He was joined in mid-1871 by two Army lieutenants and a civilian professor in giving reports, and the team was then able to rotate the heavy workload.

Abbe demanded precise language in the forecasts and ensured that every forecast covered four key meteorological elements: weather (clouds and precipitation), temperature, wind direction, and barometric pressure. By the end of the first year of reporting, over 60 copies of weather charts had been sent to Congress, the press, and various scientific institutions. By 1872, Abbe regularly sent over 500 sets of daily maps and bulletins overseas in exchange for European meteorological data. Abbe also insisted on verifying predictions. During the first year of operation, in 1871, Abbe and his staff verified 69 percent of their predications; the annual report apologized for the other 31 percent, citing the time constraints as the cause.

In order to compile his information, Abbe required a time-keeping system that was consistent among the stations. To accomplish this he divided the United States into four standard time zones. In 1883, he convinced North American railroad companies to adopt his time-zone system. In 1884, Britain, which had already adopted its own standard time system for England, Scotland, and Wales, helped gather international consent for global time.

Abbe required that the weather service stay at the forefront of technology. Over time, the instrument division at the headquarters tested and calibrated thousands of devices and even began to design and build their own instruments. By the end of the century, self-registering equipment came into use, and the United States led the meteorological world with 114 Class I (automatic recording) observation stations. Anticipating an increase in international cooperation, Abbe began to seek quality instruments calibrated to international standards. He enlisted Oliver Wolcott Gibbs of Harvard and Arthur Wright of Yale to design improved equipment. For comparison purposes, Abbe ordered a barometer from Heinrich Wild (director of the Nicholas Central Observatory in Russia), as well as an anemometer and several types of hygrometers from Germany. Abbe then invented an anemobarometer to test the effect of chimney and window drafts on barometers in enclosed spaces.

Abbe was elected Associate Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1884.[6] In 1912 the Royal Meteorological Society presented him with the Symons Memorial Gold Medal, citing his contribution "to instrumental, statistical, dynamical, and thermo dynamical meteorology and forecasting." In 1916 he was awarded the Public Welfare Medal from the National Academy of Sciences.[7]

Abbe died the same year after more than 45 years of outstanding scientific achievement.[1][5] He was buried in Rock Creek Cemetery in Washington, DC.

Wikipedia

• Fact: Alt. Birth (30 December 1838) , Madison County, New York, United States
• Fact: Residence (1850) Mohawk, Herkimer, New York, United States
• Fact: Residence (1850) New York City, ward 18, New York, New York, United States
• Fact: Residence (1855) E.D. 1, Ward 18, New York City, New York, New York, United States
• Fact: Residence (1860) Washtenaw, Michigan, United States
• Fact: Residence (1870) Ohio, United States
• Fact: Residence (1880) Washington, Washington, District of Columbia, United States
• Fact: Passport Application (1891) New York, United States
• Fact: Residence (1900) ED 34 Washington city, Washington, District of Columbia, United States
• Fact: Passport Application (1911) Washington D.C., United States
• Fact: Passport Application (1911) Washington City, District of Columbia, United States
• Fact: Burial (1916) Rock Creek Cemetery, Washington, District of Columbia, United States
• Fact: http://familysearch.org/v1/LifeSketch Astronomer, meteorologist

Listed in Who's Who in the world Given Name: Cleveland (Prof.) Surname: Abbe Birth: 3 Dec 1838 Marriage: 1870, Frances Martha, daughter of David Neal and Calista Lane. Notes: Has three sons. Professor of Meteorology. Son of George Waldo Abbe and Charlotte Colgate. Ancestry.com

Sources

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cleveland_Abbe

• "District of Columbia Births and Christenings, 1830-1955," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F75N-FMH : 10 March 2018), Cleveland Abbe in entry for Abbe, 27 Jun 1877; citing Washington, District of Columbia, reference cn 11598; FHL microfilm 2,114,646.

• "District of Columbia Deaths, 1874-1961," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X228-XZZ : accessed 23 October 2019), Cleveland Abbe, 28 Oct 1916, Chevy Chase, , Maryland, United States; citing reference ID , District Records Center, Washington D.C.; FHL microfilm 2,116,479.

• "District of Columbia Deaths and Burials, 1840-1964," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F7YW-BYD : 10 March 2018), Cleveland Abbe, 28 Oct 1916; citing Chevy Chase, Maryland, reference 13785; FHL microfilm 2,078,999.

• Find A Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com : accessed 23 October 2019), memorial page for Cleveland Abbe (3 Dec 1838–28 Oct 1916), Find A Grave: Memorial #1 citing Rock Creek Cemetery, Washington, District of Columbia, District of Columbia, USA ; Maintained by Robert Hodsdon (contributor 47094022) .

• "New York State Census, 1855," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K67X-FR2 : 13 March 2018), Cleaveland Abbe in household of Geo W Abbe, E.D. 1, Ward 18, New York City, New York, New York, United States; citing p. , line #30, family #235, county clerk offices, New York; FHL microfilm 1,018,662.

• “Pennsylvania and New Jersey, Church and Town Records, 1669-2013 for Cleveland Abbe.” https://www.ancestry.com/interactive/2451/40162_261502-00393?indiv=try&h&db. Accessed 1 Mar. 2019.

• "United States Census, 1850," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V5PX-W4Y : 12 April 2016), Cleaveland Abbe in household of George W Abbe, New York City, ward 18, New York, New York, United States; citing family 276, NARA microfilm publication M432 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

• "United States Census, 1860", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MWDD-KJT : 14 December 2017), Cleveland Abbe in entry for James R Boise, 1860.

• "United States Census, 1870", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M62H-THW : 14 June 2019), Cleveland Abbe, 1870.

• "United States Census, 1880," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M6CW-DZF : 24 August 2017), Cleveland Abbe, Washington, Washington, District of Columbia, United States; citing enumeration district ED 37, sheet 300A, NARA microfilm publication T9 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), FHL microfilm 1,254,122.

• "United States Census, 1900," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MMFM-KW9 : accessed 23 October 2019), Cleveland Abbe, Washington city, Washington, District of Columbia, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 34, sheet 14A, family 245, NARA microfilm publication T623 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1972.); FHL microfilm 1,240,159.

• "United States Passport Applications, 1795-1925," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QKNT-NM3N : 16 March 2018), Cleveland Abbe, 1911; citing Passport Application, Washington D.C., United States, source certificate #64243, Passport Applications, January 2, 1906 - March 31, 1925, 150, NARA microfilm publications M1490 and M1372 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

• "United States Passport Applications, 1795-1925," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q24F-8L8M : 16 March 2018), Cleveland Abbe, 1891; citing Passport Application, New York, United States, source certificate #, Passport Applications, 1795-1905., 378, NARA microfilm publications M1490 and M1372 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).