Deaths on January 5

Ezra Otis Kendall, American professor, astronomer and mathematician (b. 1818)

Ezra Otis Kendall was an American professor, astronomer and mathematician. He was known for his work in uranography.Kendall was born on May 17, 1818 in Wilmington, Massachusetts to parents Ezra Kendall and Susanna Cook Walker. His mother was a descendant of Mayflower passengers Francis Cooke and Stephen Hopkins. In 1835, he moved to Philadelphia to study mathematics with Sears Cook Walker, his half-brother. In 1838, he became professor of mathematics and astronomy at Philadelphia's Central High School and director of the observatory. In 1842, he was elected a member of the American Philosophical Society and later served as a vice-president. In 1855, he became professor of mathematics and astronomy at the University of Pennsylvania, and in 1883 became vice-provost and dean of the college faculty. He received a Doctor of Laws, LL.D., honorary degree from the university in 1888 for his scientific work. He died on January 5, 1899 in Philadelphia and is buried in the Saint Luke's Episcopal Churchyard.