William Brydone Jack

Jack, William Brydone

William Brydone Jack, mathematician, astronomer, educator (b at Trailflatt, Scot 23 Nov 1817; d at Fredericton 23 Nov 1886). An outstanding natural scientist and educator, Jack built an astronomical observatory in Canada on the campus at King's College [later the University of New Brunswick], Fredericton, in 1851. Now named the Brydone Jack Observatory, it was marked by an official plaque in 1955 which identified the building as the "First Astronomical Observatory in Canada." In 1854 (professor 1840-85, president 1861-85), Jack introduced an engineering course there to train students in practical surveying. Two decades later he established the first "standards laboratory" in Canada for surveying instruments. He gave numerous public lectures on ASTRONOMY and related topics. Under his distinguished presidency, UNB became a centre of excellence and produced many outstanding Canadian scholars.