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During his time at sea Bowditch took on increasingly more important jobs, and on his fifth voyage he was both master and part owner of the ship. After this trip he returned to Salem, where he continued his mathematical studies and entered the insurance business. Bowditch became president of the Essex Fire and Marine Insurance Company and in 1811 bought a three-story, Federal style clapboard house at 312 Essex Street for his growing family. During the years he lived in the house, Bowditch began work translating Pierre Laplace's Traité de mécanique céleste, the great work on mathematics and theoretical astronomy. Bowditch's study in the fields of science and mathematics earned him widespread recognition. He was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1799 and to the Edinburgh and London Royal Societies in 1818. In addition, Bowditch was offered positions at several prominent colleges including Harvard, West Point and the University of Virginia, all of which he turned down. In 1823, Bowditch left the Essex Fire and Marine Insurance Company and Salem to become an actuary for the Massachusetts Hospital Life Insurance Company. He died in Boston in 1838. To save the house in Salem that Bowditch had occupied for more than a decade, it was moved to North Street when Essex Street was widened in the 1940s. In 1965, the house was designated a National Historic Landmark, further recognizing Nathanial Bowditch's contributions to both academia and navigation. The Nathaniel Bowditch House, a National Historic Landmark, is located at 9 North St. in Salem. It is owned by Historic Salem Inc., which completed an exterior restoration in 2003. Interior renovations are currently underway. A walking tour entitled "Bowditch's Salem, A Walking Tour of the Great Age of Sail" was published by the Salem Maritime National Historic Site in partnership with Historic Salem Inc. and The House of Seven Gables. The brochure can be accessed online through the Essex National Heritage Area's website. |
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