Chester Dewey was born on a farm in Sheffield, in southwestern Massachusetts, on October 25, 1784. He attended Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts, graduating in 1806.
He became a minister for the next several years, before returning to Williams as a tutor in 1808 and then becoming a professor in 1810. He taught a range of subjects, including mathematics, physics, chemistry, geology, and botany.
He left Williams to become the principal of the Berkshire Gymnasium (a boys' school) in Pittsfield, Massachusetts where he served from 1827 to 1836. Beginning in the 1820s and continuing for two decades he also lectured at two western New England medical schools.
In 1836 he moved west to Rochester, New York to become head of the high school, later known as the Rochester Collegiate Institute.
In 1850, at the age of 66, Dewey was a founding faculty member of the University of Rochester. For the next eleven years, he taught chemistry and natural sciences, retiring in 1861 at the age of 76.
During his long career, he published a number of articles. One of his special interests was botany. Another was meteorology. For three decades, 1837-1867, he kept daily records of Rochester weather.
He died in Rochester on December 15, 1867 and was buried in Mt. Hope Cemetery, Rochester.
Both the Dictionary of American Biography (v. 5, 1930) and the American National Biography (v. 6, 1999) have biographical sketches on Dewey with helpful bibliographies. He is noted as being one of the 56 most important American scientists of his time as studied in the book, American Science in the Age of Jackson (1968).
The Chester Dewey papers contain his daily meteorological records for Rochester, 1837-1867. Dr. Dewey's notebooks of Meteorological Observations also contain newspaper clippings, including a weather series by Dr. Dewey and miscellaneous articles, and notes added by others. The correspondence section of his papers contains 95 letters from various correspondents, including William Boott, James Dwight Dana, Ebenezer Emmons, Joseph Henry, Benjamin Silliman, Joseph Torrey, and Edward Tuckerman. The letters have been indexed in the card index for letters in the Department, and each folder of correspondence in his papers has a cover sheet listing the letters in the folder.
The Department also has a collection of 227 pamphlets gathered by Chester Dewey that he had bound in 11 volumes. (Call number:
Among the museum pieces in the University Archives is a walking stick owned by Chester Dewey. It is inscribed on its head: Dr. C. Dewey From the Geology Class Curtis Sem'y 1861. (The Curtis Seminary for Girls in Rochester later became the Livingston Park Seminary, which closed in 1934.)
The Chester Dewey Papers is open for research use. Researchers are advised to contact the Rare Books Special Collections & Preservation Department prior to visiting. Upon arrival, researchers will also be asked to fill out a registration form and provide photo identification.
In consultation with a curator, reproductions may be made upon request. Permission to publish materials from the collection must be requested from a curator. Researchers are responsible for determining any copyright questions.
[Item title, item date], Chester Dewey Papers, A.D518, Rare Books, Special Collections, and Preservation, River Campus Libraries, University of Rochester
Seely, J.C. and Clark, I.C., Meteorological observations taken at the University of Rochester, 1858. (11 items. Lacks November)
Clark, I.C. and Filmer, T.T., Meteorological Observations taken at the University of Rochester, 1859. (10 items. Lacks February and June)
Filler, T.T. and Fenner, F.D., Meteorological observations taken at the University of Rochester, 1860. (12 items)
(5 items)
(Note: These have been arranged chronologically with the letters owned by the University; see above.)
Bought by Chester Dewey, December 18, 1800.
A newspaper series comprised of 146 articles appearing in The Sun from December 6, 1832-June 2, 1836. The scrapbook contains several other newspaper articles and Dewey's handwritten notes on theories of light.
Belonged to Chester Dewey and Charles A. Dewey. Book published in 1839, contents written by the Deweys dated anywhere from 1840's - 1860s.
Accounts of both Chester Dewey and Charles A. Dewey, 1855-1877.
Includes a record of the marriages performed by him, 1854-1866.