Rufus Porter was inventor, painter, and founder of "Scientific American" magazine.
Created by museumhistory on Aug 5, 2011
Last updated: 08/28/11 at 03:24 PM
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Sharing Rufus Porter's accomplishments, travels, inventions and artistic endeavors.
Today, Scientific American is the oldest continuously published magazine in the U.S. and read in print by 3.5 million worldwide consumers.
Scientific American is published in 14 local language editions worldwide, including the U.S. edition of "Scientific American", read in more than 30 countries, and has a worldwide audience of more than 5 million people.
A third of Scientific American readers hold postgraduate degrees. 144 Nobel Prize Scientists have contributed 234 articles to Scientific American.
Scientific American won the 2011 National Magazine Award for General Excellence.
-- Please refer to link below for further information on Scientific American.
http://www.scientificamerican.com
Rufus Porter Museum was published on the cover page of the Boston Globe. Museum announced the gift of Jonathan D. Poor murals to the museum. Poor was Rufus Porter's nephew, and while each artist had his own trademarks, stylistically, they are similar.
For the full article on "Removing Walls for Art's Sake / Historic Murals Going to Museum," please see link below.
http://articles.boston.com/2011-06-28/ae/29713579_1_murals-folk-artist-walls
Bridgton News reports:
"The Rufus Porter Museum’s Board of Directors has purchased the Webb/Gallinari house at the corner of Main and Church Street in the heart of downtown — and they have some very ambitious plans. [...]"
For more information on Webb-Gallinari House and the ambitious projects of the Rufus Porter Museum, including major moves of Porter school murals, please refer to the link below for the full article.
Further details: please visit Rufus Porter Museum in Bridgton, Maine, visit our website, or contact the museum by phone, (207) 647 - 2828.
http://www.bridgton.com/rufus-porter-museum-purchases-new-home/
Celebrating 165 years in 2010, Scientific American Editor-in-Chief Mariette DiChristina introduces the founder: "the painter and inventor Rufus Porter [who] introduced the first issue of a broadsheet called The Scientific American on August 28, 1845."
-- For the full article written by the Editor-in-Chief, please see link below.
Photo: From Scientific American website, "A Visual History of Science, from the Pages of Scientific American [Slide Show]."
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=celebrating-science
PRESS RELEASE:
"Scientific American, the leading science magazine, today announces Mariette DiChristina as its new Editor-in-Chief. DiChristina becomes the eighth Editor-in-Chief in the 164-year history of the magazine, and the first woman to assume the role.
In her role, DiChristina oversees the print and online editions of Scientific American and Scientific American Mind, as well as all newsstand special editions."
-- Please see link below for full article.
http://www.scientificamerican.com/pressroom/pr/release.cfm?site=sciam&date=2009-12-03
Our Mission is to teach and preserve New England folk art for all, through the life of Rufus Porter that will provide a valuable link to our heritage.
*Museum and Gift Shop Hours: *
12pm - 4pm, Wednesday through Saturday
67 North High Street
Bridgton, Maine
04009
Find us on Facebook: www.facebook.com/RufusPorterMuseum
Contact us:
rufusportermuseum@gmail.com
Website:
www.rufusportermuseum.org/
Telephone: 207-647-2828
http://www.facebook.com/RufusPorterMuseum
Porter visits son, Frank Rufus, in West Haven, Connecticut. Rufus Porter dies August 13th, 1884.
Porter applied for and received pension as veteran of War of 1812. Porter was living on Water Street, West Haven, Connecticut.
Porter solicited shares for his airship.
Porter resided in Plantsville, Connecticut. He wrote on religious subjects. Porter also invented and sold a cam lever vise. Photo: This image of Rufus Porter is on view at Rufus Porter Museum. It was taken when he was living in Plantsville. The photo is originally from the Smithsonian Institution.
Porter resided in New York City. Porter made plans for construction of an improved airship.
Porter patented an air pump. Photo: Taken from informal Rufus Porter Museum publication, "the Chronology of Rufus Porter's Life." This is provided to museum visitors to understand the accomplishments of Rufus Porter.
Porter's son Frank Rufus was born. About this time, Porter patented a blind fastener.
About 1858, Porter patented a steam engine. Photo: Taken from informal Rufus Porter Museum publication, "the Chronology of Rufus Porter's Life." This is provided to museum visitors to understand the accomplishments of Rufus Porter.
Porter patented a punching machine, and a fog whistle.
Porter patented a cord-making machine, and a chair-cane. Photo: from informal publication given to visitors at Rufus Porter Museum, titled "The Chronology of Rufus Porter's Life."
Porter exhibited a twenty-two foot working model of his airship at Carusi's Hall in Washington. Photo: Image of Porter's "flying ship" is from one of the galleries in the Rufus Porter Museum.
"Countless disasters, however, interfered with its successful completion. A severe storm damaged the framework when it was almost finished, vandals slashed the balloon, the varnish used caused disintegration of the canvas, and the funds available proved inadequate to the needs" in Rufus Porter Rediscovered by Jean Lipman.
Porter petitioned Senate, 31st Congress, 2nd session, for appropriation to extend experiments in practical aviation. Porter organized a stock company, the Aerial Navigation Company, to promote his airship, and shortly thereafter began construction of a full-sized machine, which was never successfully completed.
The Scientific American founded the first branch of the U.S. patent agency in 1850; more than 100,000 patented inventions by 1900. From Jean Lipman's Rufus Porter Rediscovered: "[Porter] also was engaged in writing patent specifications for inventors, a business which he continued all during the latter part of his life, and which was developed by the next owners of the "Scientific American" into a highly lucrative patent department, with a branch office in Washington. Porter was also on call as an expert consultant to examine and give opinions on new inventions."
A decorated desk in New Hampshire (now on view at Rufus Porter Museum), includes signed receipt by Porter for his decorative furniture work.
Porter published "Aerial Navigation" in New York. Photo: The mustard yellow colored book is Porter's "Aerial Navigation". This copy is accompanied by a Porter portrait and his book, Curious Arts. All objects are currently on view at Rufus Porter Museum.
During California Gold Rush, Porter wanted to fly his passengers on his Aerial Locomotive from New York to California, and back.
Unfortunately, the flying ship never took off, but Porter's early attempt at aerial navigation is appreciated. On the website of Rufus Porter Museum, we share: "In 1936, an article in the Boston Globe states that Rufus Porter 'knew more about aerial dynamics than any other man of his time.' "
For further information, including an image of an advertisement of Porter's aerial plans, please see link below.
http://www.flyingmachines.org/prtr.html
Porter patented method of working the valves of auxiliary engines for feeding boilers.
Porter resided in New York. He married Emma Tallman Edgar of Roxbury, Massachusetts, in Brooklyn, New York City.
Eunice Twombly Porter died in Billerica where she had resided since 1823.
Porter founded and edited Scientific Mechanic. Photo: Photograph of original publication, Scientific Mechanic. This object is on view at Rufus Porter Museum.
Porter constructed and publicly exhibited a small working model of his airship in New York. The small model was again exhibited in New York in 1849, and a larger and improved model was shown in Boston and New York in 1850.
In March, Scientific American published Porter's plans of a vehicle as seen in "Traveling on Ice." Photo: Taken from Jean Lipman's Rufus Porter Rediscovered.
Publishing and editing the Scientific American in New York and Washington. In this journal, Porter published his plans for the elevated railroad, and "Steam-Carriage for Common Roads". In Jean Lipman's Rufus Porter Rediscovered: "As an editor, Rufus Porter was a militant crusader for the rights of his fellows; as an inventor he worked for the economic improvement of the people; and as an artist he painted down-to-earth landscapes on the walls of rural houses and taverns for the enjoyment of the so-called 'common man' ". Photo: original publication currently on view at Rufus Porter Museum.
Rufus Porter and his nephew, Jonathan D. Poor, painted murals together.
For more information on murals painted by nephew Poor, please see recently published article from AFA News titled "Rediscovering the Murals of Jonathan D. Poor." The link to AFA News is provided below.
Photo: Poor often painted men in sailboats in his murals. The image on the left is from interior walls in the Rufus Porter Museum building. It is unclear if these unsigned murals are indeed work by Poor.
http://www.afanews.com/articles/articles/education/rediscovering-the-murals-of-jonathan-d-poor
Rufus Porter founded the Scientific American, also continued to edit and publish the Scientific American in New York. On the website for Rufus Porter Museum, we share about Porter's hopes for the publication: "[Porter] founded Scientific American magazine in 1845, to encourage innovation in American arts and sciences. This pioneering attempt at progressive journalism often included clarion calls to clear the way for a bright and promising future." What kind of content appeared in Porter's publication? Author Jean Lipman wrote in Rufus Porter Rediscovered: "In one issue an essay by Longfellow on 'Rain in Summer' is printed next to an item on 'A New Material for Roofing.' " Today, Scientific American is the oldest continuously published magazine in the United States. Photo: Cover of the first Scientific American, from Jean Lipman's book, Rufus Porter Rediscovered.
Porter invented revolving mechanism and, then sold invention to Samuel Colt. Earning one hundred dollars, Porter pocketed a profit short-term, but Colt tweaked it, to create his own pistol, earning the fame. In Jean Lipman's Rufus Porter Rediscovered, she discussed illiterate son's comments on Porter idea: "His son Frank Rufus Porter, in a letter written in 1940 to the Scientific American, talks about the Colt revolver [...]: 'Then there was the six hole revolving cilinder or barell which preceded the revolving cilinder of Colt's revolver that idear was sold to Colt before it was patented.' Porter was considered an important inventor in his time, and had he not so inadequately promoted his innovations and so casually disposed of them he would surely have gone down in history as one of the greatest American inventors. [...] Rufus Porter, according to his son Frank, was 'very improvident' but his 'prolific brain or inventive mind' always managed to save the day. In one of Frank Porter's vivid, illiterate letters (which he wrote over a period of years to the editorial department of the Scientific American) he writes, in a fashion reminiscent of a Victorian melodrama [...] Frank Rufus Porter (1859-1942) was born in his father's sixty-eighth year and was in a sense twentieth-century projection of his father's life and work and ideas. Frank, who signed himself 'F. Rufus Porter,' was extremely proud of his father, was fundamentally much like him and was obviously influenced by him. Like Rufus Porter he had little formal education but was bursting with vigorous and original ideas, and his career as a sign painter, artist and amateur scientist in his own right in the Porter tradition. Judging from his letters he was, though quite illiterate, very much of a philosopher, and his comments on some of the articles in twentieth century volumes of the Scientific American we have a significant sequel to Rufus Porter's pioneer experiments." Photo: Samuel Colt's pocket pistol on view at Rufus Porter Museum.
Joined the militia at the outbreak of the Mexican War.
Porter learned and practiced electroplating in Boston, and it is thought Porter also painted murals in Boston.
TODAY IN BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS:
While the works are not works in situ, some of Porter's mural work remains on view to the public in Boston. Art by Rufus Porter is on view in the new wing, "Art of the Americas", at Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
On view at the MFA, Porter's works include: two watercolor portraits, a letterpress document advertising Porter's portrait painting business, and a painted box labeled "P. Porter."
The MFA also exhibits one of Rufus Porter's murals; the mural is a watercolor-on-plaster, likely depicting the Harbor of Portland, Maine.
For more information about MFA Boston, please refer to the link provided below.
http://www.mfa.org/
Porter published his plans for the construction of an aeroport in Mechanics' Magazine. Porter also patented a boat improvement.
Porter was publishing and editing the New York Mechanic in New York (changed to the American Mechanic in 1842 and was published in Boston). In this journal, Porter published his plans for the rotary plow, hot air ventilation system, "American Telegraph", and advertised his general patent agency run in connection with the paper.
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