Scope and Content Note
The papers of Alexander Dallas Bache (1806-1867) span the years 1828-1863 and include six series: General Correspondence, Special Correspondence, Journal, Scrapbook, Miscellany, and Addition. The bulk of the material is concentrated in the years 1836-1838 and 1857-1863.
The General Correspondence series relates mainly to the United States Coast Survey when Bache served as superintendent, 1843-1867. During his administration the Coast Survey published detailed maps of the East Coast of the United States. Its navigation charts of the Carolina and Georgia coasts were used during the Civil War to assist in enforcing the blockade of Southern ports.
Bache devised new instruments and methods to improve the work of the Coast Survey. While with the Survey, he also served on the Light-House Board and was superintendent of weights and measures, coordinating these activities to produce detailed navigation charts. Correspondents include John Jordan Crittenden, John A. Dahlgren, Charles H. Davis, Benjamin A. Gould, Joseph Henry, Benjamin Peirce, Benjamin Silliman (1816-1885), and George E. Waring.
The Dudley Observatory in Albany, New York, was established in 1856 for the advancement of astronomy. Bache was a member of the Scientific Council which directed the Observatory’s research and controlled daily operations; other council members were Benjamin Gould, Joseph Henry, and Benjamin Peirce. A conflict of interest between the Scientific Council and the Board of Trustees, which almost destroyed the Observatory, is detailed in the Special Correspondence series. Principal correspondents were Blandina Dudley, main financial supporter of the Observatory, and Benjamin Gould, Joseph Henry, Thomas Olcott, Benjamin Peirce, and C. H. F. Peters.
A scrapbook of newspaper clippings reflects Bache's interest in scientific developments of the period. The Miscellany series consists of a partial index of correspondents between 1857 and 1860, and the Addition contains photocopies of letters from George W. Dean to Bache, 1860-1861.