Jan
10

Today in Smithsonian History: January 10, 1928

Dr. Charles G. Abbot, Fifth Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 1928-1944. Photographer Unknown

Dr. Charles G. Abbot, Fifth Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 1928-1944. Photographer Unknown

January 10, 1928 Charles Greeley Abbot is elected the fifth Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution by the Board of Regents. He first came to the Institution in 1895 as an aide at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory after receiving his master’s degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Upon Secretary Samuel P. Langley’s death in 1908, Abbot succeeded him as  director of the Astrophysical Observatory and in 1918, was named Assistant Secretary. He served 16 years as Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution.

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Posted: 10 January 2020
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