William J. Humphreys
N 37° 34.055 W 080° 24.916
17S E 551638 N 4157999
This historic marker is located on Route 3, near the community of Gap Mills, West Virginia
Waymark Code: WM1QNA
Location: West Virginia, United States
Date Posted: 06/25/2007
Views: 32
William Jackson Humphreys was born on February 3, 1862 in Gap Mills, West Virginia and went on to study physics at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia. He furthered his studies at Johns Hopkins University where he received his Ph.D in 1897. He worked in the fields of spectroscopy, atmospheric physics and meteorology. In the field of spectroscopy he found the shift of spectral lines under pressure. In atmospheric physics he found a very good model for the stratosphere in 1909. He wrote numerous books and had some teaching positions at universities. From 1905 to 1935 he worked for the U.S. Weather Bureau. Mr. Humphreys died on November 14, 1949 in Washington, D. C. Source/Credit: Wikipedia
The text of the historic marker reads:
WILLIAM J. HUMPHREYS
"Nearby noted meteorological physicist born 2/3/1862; died 11/10/1949. Johns Hopkins U. Ph.D., 1897; Dir., Mt. Weather Observatory, 1905; famous 1909 research on stratosphere; retired, Weather Service, 1935. Prof., George Washington Univ. Winds of Peters Mountain auth."
Marker Title: William J. Humphreys
Marker Location: Route 3 .1-mile east of County Road 8
County or Independent City: Monroe County
Marker Program Sponsor: West Virginia Celebration 2000/Archives and History, West Virginia Department of Archives and History 2002
Marker Number: Not listed
Web Site: Not listed
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