107TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. CON. RES. 157
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Whereas Joseph Henry was born December 17, 1797, in Al-
bany, New York, the son of William and Ann Henry;
Whereas Joseph Henry served as an apprentice to John
Doty, a watchmaker and jeweler, in preparation for at-
tendance at the Albany Academy;
Whereas from 1819 to 1822, Joseph Henry attended ad-
vanced classes at the Albany Academy and, in the spring
•HCON 157 EH
of 1826, was elected to the professorship of Mathematics
and Natural Philosophy in the Albany Academy;
Whereas Joseph Henry revolutionized scientific education by
using experiment-based teaching methods at the Albany
Academy, and in 1829 was awarded an honorary Masters
degree by Union College, despite having no formal college
education;
Whereas Joseph Henry conducted many experiments with
electromagnets, which led to his successful design and
construction of an electromagnet capable of lifting 750
pounds;
Whereas Joseph Henry continued to improve upon the devel-
opment of the electromagnet, building an electromagnet
for Yale University in 1831 that was capable of lifting
2,300 pounds, and another electromagnet, known as ‘‘Big
Ben’’, that was capable of lifting 3,500 pounds, which
was, at the time that it was built in 1833, the most pow-
erful electromagnet ever built;
Whereas in January 1831, Joseph Henry helped lay the
groundwork for the development of the electromagnetic
telegraph by distinguishing between quantity and inten-
sity magnets and by publishing those findings in the
American Journal of Science;
Whereas the modern practical unit of induction is commonly
referred to as the ‘‘Henry’’ in honor of Joseph Henry’s
research and discoveries regarding self-induction;
Whereas Joseph Henry, while conducting research at the Al-
bany Academy, invented an electromagnetic motor made
of a horizontally poised bar electromagnet that would
rock back and forth as the current through it was auto-
matically reversed;
•HCON 157 EH
Whereas Joseph Henry, while serving as Professor of Natural
Philosophy in the College of New Jersey at Princeton
(currently known as ‘‘Princeton University’’), conducted
experiments from 1838 to 1842 which laid the theoretical
groundwork for modern step-up and step-down trans-
formers;
Whereas, on December 14, 1846, Joseph Henry was selected
as the first Secretary and Director of the Smithsonian
Institution;
Whereas, in his first report to the Board of Regents of the
Smithsonian Institution, Joseph Henry proclaimed that
the purpose of the Smithsonian Institution, the increase
and diffusion of knowledge among men, would be best
achieved by supporting original research and providing
for the wide distribution of the most recent findings in
the various fields of natural sciences;
Whereas in 1850 Joseph Henry, as Secretary of the Smithso-
nian Institution, established the system of receiving
weather reports by telegraph and utilizing such reports to
predict weather conditions and issue storm warnings;
Whereas in 1869 Congress established a national weather bu-
reau upon the recommendation of Joseph Henry;
Whereas Joseph Henry was appointed as a member of the
Light House Board in 1852, and served as its president
from 1871 until his death in 1878;
Whereas Joseph Henry was an original member of the Na-
tional Academy of Sciences, its vice-president in 1866,
and its president from 1868 until his death in 1878;
Whereas Joseph Henry died in the District of Columbia on
May 13, 1878;
•HCON 157 EH
Whereas a memorial service was held in honor of Joseph
Henry on January 16, 1879, in the Hall of the House
of Representatives, and was attended by the President,
Vice President, members of the President’s Cabinet, Jus-
tices of the Supreme Court, Members of Congress, and
members of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian In-
stitution; and
Whereas the memory of Joseph Henry was honored at the
opening of the Library of Congress in 1890 by including
a statue of Joseph Henry among the 16 bronze portrait
statues on display which represent human development
and civilization: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate
concurring), That Congress recognizes and honors Joseph
Henry for his significant and distinguished role in the de-
velopment and advancement of science and electricity.
Passed the House of Representatives November 27,
2001.
Attest:
Clerk.