Joseph Zentmayer

Background

Zentmayer was born on March 27, 1826 in Mannheim, Germany.

Education

After finishing school Zentmayer learned the trade of a skilled mechanic and scientific instrument-maker in some of the best establishments in his native land.

Career

Forced to leave Germany, Zentmayer emigrated in 1848 to the United States. He secured employment first in Baltimore and afterwards in Washington, and finally in 1853 he set up for himself as an instrument-maker in Philadelphia, where he lived the rest of his life. His shop at the corner of Eighth and Chestnut Streets, though it had only the most modest equipment in the beginning, came to be a landmark in Philadelphia and was for many years the rendezvous of a group of notable scientific and professional men in the city. His ingenuity and superior workmanship, above all the boldness of his scientific conceptions, attracted the attention and won the admiration of leaders of science of that day not only in Philadelphia but in other parts of the country as well. The microscopes Zentmayer made were found to be in many respects so superior to the instruments imported from abroad that they were soon in great demand all over the United States, and during the Civil War Zentmayer supplied most of those used in government hospitals. Once fully embarked on this enterprise, Zentmayer applied himself to it with an industry and a zeal that never flagged. He made a number of improvements both in the objective and in the stand of the microscope, and nearly all the microscopes in use today embody some of his inventions. In 1865 he invented his famous photographic lens. Owing to its efficiency and at the same time to its simplicity of construction and cheapness of manufacture, Zentmayer's photographic lens, which was a subject of much discussion and controversy in the optical journals of that day, enjoyed a deserved popularity. He was a member of many scientific organizations, and published a number of papers in the Journal of the Franklin Institute. He died in Philadelphia on March 28, 1888.

Achievements

• Zentmayer is best known for his invention of famous photographic lens for a microscope.

Politics

Zentmayer was an ardent lover of liberty and republican institutions, and took an active part in the political struggles that culminated in the revolution of 1848.

Personality

Zentmayer was a man of affable and engaging manners, and of great open-mindedness, sincerity, and integrity.

Interests

• Devoted as he was to science, Zentmayer was also a lover of literature and music.

Connections

In 1849 Zentmayer married Catherine Bluim in Cleveland, Ohio.

Spouse:

Catherine Bluim

References

• A Lecture On Lenses (1876)
• Theorie Und Geschichte Des Photographischen Objektivs - Primary Source Edition (German Edition)