Dorothy A. Bennett Explained

Dorothy Agnes Bennett
Birth Date:31 August 1909
Birth Place:Minneapolis, Minnesota, US
Death Place:Taos, New Mexico, US
Alma Mater:University of Minnesota
Occupation:anthropologist, astronomer, author, curator, publisher
Employer:American Museum of Natural History, Little Golden Books, Simon and Schuster

Dorothy Agnes Bennett (August 31, 1909 – February 9, 1999) was an American anthropologist, astronomer, curator, publisher, and author. She was the first assistant curator of the Hayden Planetarium, and co-created the Little Golden Books franchise.

Early life and education

Born in Minneapolis, Dorothy Bennett was the only child of architect Daniel Bennett (born 1869) and wife Marion (born 1879).[1] Bennett studied astronomy and anthropology at the University of Minnesota, where she also participated in the Women's Athletic Association.[2] Upon graduating with a B.A. in English in 1930, she moved to New York, having been denied the chance to study in Africa with an anthropology professor on account of her gender.[3]

Career

The American Museum of Natural History

Having been given a timeframe of 30 days to find a job in New York by her mother, Bennett was hired as an assistant by the American Museum of Natural History's Department of Public Education.[4] Within a year, she was promoted to Assistant Curator, and she organized high-attending programs for the Evening Elementary School Students' Association (which consisted of international adult students),[5] as well as for the Museum's Junior Astronomy Club.[6] Nobel Prize winner Roy J. Glauber was a member of the club and credited it for inspiring his passion in science.[7] In the evenings, Bennett attended anthropology classes at Columbia University, taught by Margaret Mead, Ruth Benedict, and Alfred Radcliffe-Brown. Bennett substitute-taught one of Mead's courses in 1931.

Upon the opening of the Hayden Planetarium in 1935, Bennett was promoted to assistant curator of astronomy and the Hayden Planetarium, where she delivered over 1,000 lectures between 1935 and 1939.[8] In 1937, she created and spearheaded the Hayden Planetarium-Grace Peruvian Eclipse Expedition to Cerro de Pasco, Peru to view a particularly long solar eclipse on June 8.[9] [10]

Publishing

Bennett's success in the Museum's education department led her to writing books for children and adolescents, with her first co-authored book on astronomy being published in 1935, staying in print for 60 years.[11] In 1939, she left the Museum for a position as sales and promotion manager at University of Minnesota Press, publishing a bestselling biography of the Mayo brothers.[12] [13]

Bennett returned to New York in 1941, where she worked with Georges Duplaix to develop the Little Golden Books. Under Duplaix, Bennett became the editor of the Golden Books franchise, producing books by such authors and illustrators as Margaret Wise Brown, Clement Hurd, Edith Thacher Hurd, and Garth Williams.[14] [15] Bennett authored several Golden Books,[16] as well as introducing some of the first recorded books for children with Little Golden Records in 1948.[17] She was also involved with the production of the Golden Nature Guides and regional guides in 1949.

Leaving publishing

After leaving Simon & Schuster in 1954, Bennett enrolled in a Foreign Service Institute Course on the Middle East at the American University of Beirut and then in V. Gordon Childe's archaeology courses at UCL Institute of Archaeology. Bennett then moved to University of California, Berkeley to become senior anthropologist at the Lowie Museum of Anthropology, where she managed collections.[18]

In the 1960s, Bennett worked with the Berkeley Unified School District to create an interdisciplinary multimedia course called Educational Programming of Cultural Heritage (EPOCH), which lasted until 1969.[19] [20]

Retirement

After the end of EPOCH, Bennett and her companion, child psychologist Rosamund Gardner, moved to Taos, New Mexico where they built an adobe home. They associated with artists and painters like Erik Bauersfeld, Dorothy Brett, and others. Bennett died in Taos in 1999.[21]

Selected publications

Notes and References

  1. Web site: United States Census, 1910. 1910. FamilySearch. National Archives and Records Administration. April 9, 2016.
  2. Web site: Bennett's Feast. Brady. Tim. University of Minnesota Alumni. 2016-04-09. https://web.archive.org/web/20161017221535/http://www.minnesotaalumni.org/s/1118/social.aspx?sid=1118&gid=1&pgid=3685&cid=5996&ecid=5996&crid=0&calpgid=3654&calcid=5955. October 17, 2016. dead.
  3. Web site: The Star-Studded Life of Ms. Dorothy Bennett. Sohn. Amy Daily. April 6, 2016 . en-US. 2016-04-10.
  4. Book: 62nd annual report of the trustees for the year 1930. The American Museum of Natural History. 1931. New York. 97. April 10, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161017221723/http://lbry-web-003.amnh.org/museum/annual_reports/source/R1930.pdf. October 17, 2016. dead.
  5. Book: 63rd annual report of the trustees for the year 1931. The American Museum of Natural History. 1932. New York. 50, 102. April 10, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161017221641/http://lbry-web-003.amnh.org/museum/annual_reports/source/R1931.pdf. October 17, 2016. dead.
  6. News: NAVY SETS UP BASE TO OBSERVE ECLIPSE. July 31, 1932. The New York Times. 24. ProQuest Historical Newspapers.
  7. Web site: Roy J. Glauber - Biographical. Glauber. Roy. Roy J. Glauber. 2006. Grandin. Karl. Nobel Prize. Nobel Foundation. Stockholm. 2016-04-10.
  8. Book: 68th Annual Report for the year 1936. American Museum of Natural History. 1937. New York. 106. April 10, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161017221618/http://lbry-web-003.amnh.org/museum/annual_reports/source/R1936.pdf. October 17, 2016. dead.
  9. K.. C. P.. 1937-01-01. The Hayden Planetarium-Grace Peruvian Eclipse Expedition. 16486. The Scientific Monthly. 45. 2. 186–189. 1937SciMo..45..186K.
  10. Book: 69th Annual Report for the Year 1937. The American Museum of Natural History. 1938. New York. 57–58. April 10, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161017221709/http://lbry-web-003.amnh.org/museum/annual_reports/source/R1937.pdf. October 17, 2016. dead.
  11. 1941-01-01. First Glances at New Books. 3918053. The Science News-Letter. 39. 19. 304.
  12. Book: 71st Annual Report for the year 1939. The American Museum of Natural History. 1940. New York. 37. April 10, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20161017221630/http://lbry-web-003.amnh.org/museum/annual_reports/source/R1939.pdf. October 17, 2016. dead.
  13. News: 150 Years of Memories. Smetanka. Mary Jane. October 22, 2000. Star Tribune. Minneapolis, MN. 01E. ProQuest Newspapers.
  14. Book: Santi, Steve. Warman's Little Golden Books Field Guide: Values and Identification. 2005-08-05. Krause Publications. 0896892654. 19. en.
  15. Stanton. Joseph. 1993-01-01. Review of Margaret Wise Brown: Awakened by the Moon. 23539995. Biography. 16. 3. 276–278. 10.1353/bio.2010.0391. 161677858.
  16. Web site: WorldCat, author Dorothy A. Bennett. OCLC. 2016-04-09.
  17. Cunningham. Virginia. 1948-01-01. Other Publications. 891520. Notes. Music Library Association. 6. 1. 167–170. 10.2307/891519.
  18. Epstein. Jeremiah F.. 1958-01-01. Anthropological Activities in the United States 1958-1959. 40974164. Boletín Bibliográfico de Antropología Americana. 21/22. 1. 26–61.
  19. Monfort. Jay B.. Others. And. EPOCH--ESEA PROJECT FOR EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMMING OF CULTURAL HERITAGE. PLANNING PERIOD REPORT.. en. Berkeley Unified School District. 1967.
  20. 1969. Audiovisual Instruction. Department of Audiovisual Instruction. Audiovisual Instruction. National Endowment of the Arts.
  21. 2011. 1935-2014. Social Security Death Index. Social Security Administration.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Dorothy A. Bennett".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.