(1848-08-18)August 18, 1848 Sycamore, Illinois, U.S.
Died
September 10, 1926(1926-09-10) (aged 78)
Mark Walrod Harrington (August 18, 1848 – September 10, 1926) was an American scientist, the first civilian head of the United States Weather Bureau, and former president of the University of Washington.[1] Considered a prominent scientist in the late 19th century, Harrington studied and published works in multiple disciplines, including botany,[2][3]astronomy,[4]meteorology,[5] and geology, and knew a half-dozen languages.[6] His academic achievements were overshadowed by his disappearance in 1899, when he left home one day and disappeared for many years. His wife and son located him in 1908 at a psychiatric hospital in New Jersey where he had been admitted as patient John Doe No. 8.[7]
Biography
Born in Sycamore, Illinois, Harrington was the son of James Harrington and Charlotte Walrod Harrington. In 1878, he married Rose Martha Smith, with whom he had a son (Mark Raymond). Mark Raymond Harrington was a well-known archaeologist.
In 1891, Harrington was appointed by President Benjamin Harrison as the first civilian chief of the United States Weather Bureau.[8] He served in this role until 1895, when he was ousted by Secretary of Agriculture Julius Morton, who convinced newly inaugurated President Grover Cleveland to let him fire Harrington.[9]
In 1895, he was elected president of the University of Washington to succeed Thomas Milton Gatch.[10] He remained in this office until 1897.
He left his home one evening in 1899 and disappeared for about 7 years. According to news accounts, Harrington had lost his memory but after several years in psychiatric institutions, developed a fondness for music.[11] He died on September 10, 1926, in Morris Plains, New Jersey.