// Workers AI · dad joke modeWho's Henry Shimer? Shimer to the occasion?
Henry Shimer (September 21, 1828 – July 28, 1895) was a naturalist and physician in Mount Carroll, Illinois. He was also a teacher at the Mount Carroll Seminary, which later became Shimer College; he was the husband of the seminary's founder, Frances Shimer.
On July 28, 1895,[1] Shimer committed suicide, either with a revolver[2] or by hanging.[3] He had amended his will five days previously to leave his entire fortune to his wife, leaving his mother and sister destitute.[3]
Biography
[edit]
Early life
[edit]Shimer was born on September 21, 1828, in West Vincent Township, Pennsylvania.[1] He worked as a stone mason in his youth and took up teaching at the age of 18.[4]
In March 1854, Shimer left Pennsylvania and traveled west to Mount Carroll, Illinois after a failed love affair.[4][3] He may have done work on the construction or expansion of the Mount Carroll Seminary, for which the owners were unable to pay him.[5]
Marriage
[edit]On December 22, 1857, Shimer and Frances Ann Wood, the co-principal of the Mount Carroll Seminary, were married.[4] Frances "Frank" was a trans-gender woman who had earlier had a relationship with Cinderella Gregory which continued after her marriage. The marriage with Shimer was widely reputed to be a marriage of convenience.[3][5] Shortly after the marriage, Shimer went to study medicine and when he returned they had separate rooms.[6]
Vocations
[edit]Shimer subsequently left for Chicago to study medicine. He graduated from the Chicago Medical College on March 1, 1866.[4] Shimer also obtained a Master of Arts from the University of Chicago by examination.[1]
He was a prolific entomologist and published widely, describing a number of novel species and genera.[1][7] He also served for a time as the assistant State Entomologist of Illinois.[1] In addition, he was an expert taxidermist, and had a collection of over 1000 mounted birds.[4] His collections were provided to the seminary for educational purposes.[4]
In the 1880s, Shimer became wealthy by speculating on real estate in Iowa, allegedly inspired by a dream.[3] At the time of his death his estate was worth approximately $200,000.[3]
Travels
[edit]Shimer traveled widely within the United States, stopping along the way to work as a stone mason. He sometimes covered more than a thousand miles on foot.[4] He is said to have worn boots at all times.[3]
Death
[edit]On July 28, 1895,[1] Henry Shimer committed suicide, he was found hanging with a revolver[2] nearby with one chamber having been fired.[3] He had amended his will five days previously to leave his entire fortune to his wife, leaving his mother and sister destitute.[3] In a highly publicized trial, the will was successfully contested.[5]
Published works
[edit]- 1865, "Description of the Imago and Larva of a New Species of Chrysopa", Proceedings of the Entomological Society of Philadelphia
- 1867, "Description of a New Species of Aleyrodes", Transactions of the American Entomological Society
- 1867, "Description of a New Species of Cecidomyia", Transactions of the American Entomological Society
- 1867, "On a New Genus of Aphidae", Transactions of the American Entomological Society
- 1867, "Notes on the Apple Bark Louse (Lepidosaphes conchiformis), with a Description of a supposed new Acarus"
- 1867, "Notes on Micropus (Lygarus) leucopterus Say ('The chinch bug')", Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia
- 1867, "Additional Note on the Chinch-Bug", Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia
- 1867, "On a new genus in Homoptera (Section Monomera)", Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia
- 1868, "Descriptions of two Acarians bred from White Maple", Transactions of the American Entomological Society
- 1868, "Notes on Chermes pinicorticis (white pine louse)", Transactions of the American Entomological Society
- 1868, "A Summer's Study of the Hickory Galls, with Descriptions of supposed New Species bred therefrom", Transactions of the American Entomological Society
- 1868, "The Wavy-Striped Flea Beetle", The American Naturalist
- 1869, "Insects Injurious to the Potato", The American Naturalist
- 1872, "Additional Notes on the Striped Squash Beetle", The American Naturalist
- 1891, "Consciousness in Protoplasm", The Microscope
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Henry Shimer, A.M., M.D." Entomological News. 6 (10): 10. December 1895.
- 1 2 "Noted Entomologist Kills Himself". New York Times. 1895-07-31.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Trying to Break the Shimer Will". Chicago Daily Tribune. 1896-06-30. p. 2. Archived from the original on October 26, 2012.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Jeriah Bonham (1883). "Henry Shimer, A.M., M.D.". Fifty Years' Recollections. J. W. Franks & Sons. pp. 493 ff.
- 1 2 3 Harold Henderson (1988-06-16). "Big Ideas: Tiny Shimer College has survived for 135 years on great books, high hopes, and very little money". Chicago Reader. Archived from the original on 2010-06-03. Retrieved 2010-04-16.
- ↑ Cleves, Rachel Hope (2018). "Six Ways of Looking at a Trans Man? The Life of Frank Shimer (1826-1901)". Journal of the History of Sexuality. 27 (1): 32–62. ISSN 1043-4070.
- ↑ Shimer, Henry (1867). "Description of a New Species of Cecidomyia". Transactions of the American Entomological Society (1867-1877). 1: 281–283. doi:10.2307/25076179. ISSN 0886-1145.
External links
[edit]- 1828 births
- 1895 deaths
- 1895 suicides
- 19th-century American educators
- 19th-century American naturalists
- 19th-century American medical doctors
- 19th-century American non-fiction writers
- People from Chester County, Pennsylvania
- People from Mount Carroll, Illinois
- Shimer College faculty
- Feinberg School of Medicine alumni
- University of Chicago alumni
- American entomologists
- Writers from Chicago
- Writers from Pennsylvania
- Male suicides
- American male non-fiction writers