William Lowell Putnam

Who was William Lowell Putnam?

William Lowell Putnam II was an American lawyer and banker.

Putnam graduated from Harvard in 1882, and proceeded to make a professional name for himself in legal and financial circles. Even before his marriage to Percival Lowell's sister, Elizabeth, in 1888, Putnam handled a large part of the Lowell family's finances, thus leaving Augustus Lowell and Percival free to pursue their interests in science and culture. Also a successful lawyer, Putnam eventually served as the primary lawyer for both Percival Lowell and the Lowell Observatory as well as working as a partner at the well-regarded law firm of Putnam, Putnam and Bell.

Putnam's role in Lowell Observatory's history begins when Percival Lowell succumbed to severe nervous exhaustion in 1897. At this time, Putnam stepped in as the Observatory's trustee with A.E. Douglass serving as Director. Since Putnam's understanding of astronomy was minimal, he left many of the decisions about the operation of the Observatory to Douglass and contented himself with handling the Observatory's finances. As temporary trustee, he felt that it was not his place to make any dramatic changes in the Observatory's staff or location. Thus, an Observatory expedition and possibly a permanent move to South America was postponed, effectively establishing the Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona.