Evening star., 1925-03-01
FORECAST SERVICE
WAS BEGUN IN 1870.
U. S. Started Present Sys-
tenn of Weather Bulletins
After Long Study.

Citizens who prepared to attend in
auguration ceremonies during the
early history of our country did not
have the aid of an official Government
forecasting service in advising them
what sort of a day the morrow would
bring forth.
1t is a peculiar circumstance, how
ever, that most of the early inaug-
urations took place beneath propi-
tious skies. Yet, on several occasions,
the advice of an expert weather prog
nosticator would have been found
very valuable, as, for example. when
Polk was inaugurated in 1S45. Elab-
crate arrangements had been made
for a parade that would eclipse all in
the past. but March dawned cold.
rainy and muddy, and the plans con-
sequently suffered materially.
1t was just about that time that
scientists began to give serious
thought to weather predicting as an
official necessity.
Started in 1870.
While some knowledge of the
weather began in a crude way a. the
origin of civilization. il remained to
the day of Prof. Joseph Henry and
Lieut.. NJ. r. Maury, L. S. n, to an
swer the questions. With the Spleu-
scientists in the 40s and SOS and
under the eminent services of Gen.
Myer L. S. A., in the organization of
the United States Signal Service,
1870, directed by an eminent meteo-
rologist, Prof. Cleveland Able began
the daily synopsis of the weather and
deducIng thereform the weather
probabilities" now broadcast by
radio.
The idea OF making use of the tele-
graph for conveying information in
regard to the weather with the view
of anticipating changes at any point,
1t seems, occurred to Prof. Henry,
secretary of the Smithsonian Insti-
tuition in 1S47, as in It's report to Con-
gress on January 6, 1848, the follow
ing paragraph is found and noted in
Harper's Monthly in 1870 on the
Telegraph and Storm and the United
States Signal Service:
The present time appears to be
peculiarly auspicious. says Prof.
Henry. for commencing an enterprise
OF the proposed kind. The citizens of
the United States are now scattered
over every part of the southern and
western portion of North America
and the extended lines of graph
will furnish a ready means of warn
ing the more Northern and Eastern
observers to be on the lookout for
the first appearance of an advancing
storm"
Additional references to this sub
ject were made in the reports of
1844-49, in the latter of which it is
stated that successful applications
were made to the presidents of a
number of telegraph lines to allow, at
a certain period of the day, the use
of their wires for the smission
of meteorological intelligence. Al
though subsequent reports referred to
the intention of the institution to
organize a telegraph department for
its meteorological observations, it
was not until 1856 that observations
were actually collected and posted.
In the report of 1857 the editor of
Harpers says: I'VE find that the in
Stitution (Smithsonian) is indebted
to the national telegraph lines for a
series of observations from New Or
leans to New York and as far West
as Cincinnati, which were published
in the Washington Evening Star.
The report of 1858 announced that
an object of much interest at the
Smithsonian Building is the daily eN-
hibition of a large map of the con-
ditfon of the weather over a conSid-
erable portion of the United States.
In the Smithsonian reports of 1859
and 1860 a list of 80 and 40 stations,
respectively, are noted, from which
daily weather dispatches are re-
ceived. Prior TO 1860 Lieut.. NJ. F..
Maury, then superintendent of the
United States Naval Observatory then
on the Potomac River in Washing
ton, appealed to the public and Con-
gress through the press, urging the
establishment of a storm and weather
bureau, and at the same time made
an extensive tour through the
Northwest, addressing the people
with a view of rousing public atten-
tion to the vast Importance of this
meteorological system.
The value of the magnetic tele-
graph as a meteorological implement
in the forecast of the coming storms
for the benefit of farmers, the ship
ping in our ports and the industrial
pursuits of the country generally, is
now well recognized.