Background
George Augustus Koenig was born on May 12, 1844 in Willstatt, Germany. He was the son of Johannes and Margaretha (Pfotzer) Koenig.
(Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating bac...)
Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original artwork and text.
https://www.amazon.com/Chemistry-Simplified-Non-Metals-Evolution-Primarily/dp/1408653877?SubscriptionId=AKIAJRRWTH346WSPOAFQ&tag=prabook-20&linkCode=sp1&camp=2025&creative=165953&creativeASIN=1408653877
George Augustus Koenig was born on May 12, 1844 in Willstatt, Germany. He was the son of Johannes and Margaretha (Pfotzer) Koenig.
Koenig's early education was acquired at the public schools, the progymnasium at Kork, and the School of Moravian Brothers at Lausanne, Switzerland. He studied at the polytechnikum at Karlsruhe from 1859 to 1863, receiving the degree of mechanical engineer. He was at the University of Heidelberg two years, 1863-65, and at the University of Berlin a like period, 1865-67. His degrees of Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy were conferred by Heidelberg in 1867.
In October 1868 Koenig came to America and in Philadelphia began to manufacture sodium stannate from tin scrap. This he soon abandoned to become chemist at the Tacony Chemical Works in the same city. Here he remained until 1872, except for the winter of 1870-71, which he spent in mine examinations in Mexico under trying conditions, owing to primitive transportation methods and the activity of hostile Indians.
His long college career began with his appointment in 1872 to an assistant professorship of chemistry and mineralogy in the University of Pennsylvania. In 1879 he was made professor of mineralogy and geology, which position he held until 1892, thus completing two decades of service in the university. During this period he was active in the general affairs of the institution, serving on several important investigating committees, one of which was the committee which examined the once famous Keely motor.
In 1892 Koenig resigned his chair at the University of Pennsylvania to accept the professorship of chemistry and metallurgy at the Michigan College of Mines. Later, as the college grew, a separate department was created for metallurgy, but Koenig remained at the head of the department of chemistry until his death. During the entire period of over twenty years, though he made many examinations and investigations in states other than Michigan, he was rarely absent from his classroom for a regular lecture or recitation. He relinquished active charge of his department the Sunday but one before he died. His mind was that of an investigator. He usually had one or more problems under investigation. To his colleagues or advanced students who were fortunate enough to drop into his laboratory when such investigations were in progress, his buoyant enthusiasm in the face of obstacles and negative results was inspiring.
His "New Observations in Chemistry and Mineralogy, ", dated March 21, 1912, was a part of the elaborate hundredth-anniversary volume of the Journal of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. For many years he was interested in chemical and metallurgical methods.
Two years before his death he took out a patent for separating vanadium from some of its ores. He was a member of the American Philosophical Society, the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, the Franklin Institute, the American Institute of Mining Engineers, and the Lake Superior Mining Institute.
(Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating bac...)
On October 7, 1869, he married Wilhelmina Marquart, who with two of their children survived him.