Colton Spherometer
date: label: date made
content: ca 1877
name: label: maker
content: Colton, Allen L.
notes: label: Description
content: A spherometer is a device used primarily for measuring the curvature of objects such as lenses and curved mirrors. For further information about spherometers, see object MA.315739.
label: Description
content: This spherometer was constructed by Allen L. Colton (1857-1950) while he was a student at the University of Michigan. He worked for the US Weather Bureau in the late 1800s, followed by five years as assistant astronomer at the Lick Observatory where he was a physicist, photographer, and instrument maker. Early in the 20th century, he joined the faculty at the University of Wisconsin as a physics instructor. This item was donated to the Smithsonian in Colton's memory by his cousin.
label: Description
content: To improve accuracy, a magnifying lever is mounted on the top of the micrometer disc. The two small arms would have pointed to a secondary scale that arched over the top of the device, but is now missing.
label: Description
content: Barton, Albert (ed.), <i>The Wisconsin Alumni Magazine</i> 5, no. 3 (December 1903): 82. http://www.digicoll.library.wisc.edu
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: place made
content: United States: Michigan, Ann Arbor
topic: label: Subject
content: Mathematics
label: Subject
content: Astronomy
setName: label: See more items in
content: Medicine and Science: Mathematics
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content: Science & Mathematics
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content: Spherometers
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Martha Taylor
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: MA.313630
label: accession number
content: 189444
label: catalog number
content: 313630
objectType: label: Object Name
content: spherometer
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: wood (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: glass (overall material)
label: Physical Description
content: brass (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 14.5 cm x 14.5 cm x 14.5 cm; 5 23/32 in x 5 23/32 in x 5 23/32 in