Joseph Henry

Joseph Henry was an American scientist who served as the first secretary of the Smithsonian Institution. He was the secretary for the National Institute for the Promotion of Science, a precursor of the Smithsonian Institution. He also served as president of the National Academy of Sciences from 1868 to 1878.

17 December 1797

Born on the same birth day (17 December): Cal Ripken Sr. • Dorothy Rowe • Fernando Abad • Galina Malchugina • Jack L. Chalker • James Booker • Jim Bonfanti • Katheryn Winnick • Kerry Packer • Kujō Yoritsugu • Muhammadu Buhari • Nikki McCray-Penson • Patrick Müller (footballer)

Born in the same month (December 1797): Antoine Louis Dugès • Carl Georg von Wächter • Charles Hodge • Ghalib • Heinrich Heine