Mitchill, Samuel

Mitchill, Samuel (Latham)

(1764–1831) U.S. representative/senator, physician; born in North Hempstead, N.Y. He earned his M.D. in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1786, then returned to New York to study law. In 1792 he was named to a chair at Columbia University, first in natural history, chemistry, and agriculture, then in botany. He edited the Medical Repository (1797–1820), wrote many books including the Explanation of the Synopsis of Chemical Nomenclature and Arrangement (1801), and made contributions to the study of sanitary and industrial chemistry. He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives (Rep., N.Y.; 1801–04), leaving midterm for the U.S. Senate (1804–09), then returning to the House (1809–13). He taught at the College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York (1807–26) and in 1826 helped found Rutgers Medical College.