American Anthropometric Society

The society was founded in 1889 in Philadelphia by Harrison Allen, Francis Xavier Dercum, Joseph Leidy,[3] Silas Weir Mitchell,[4] William Pepper, Edward Charles Spitzka[3] and Isaac J.

however, the pathologist Henry Ware Cattel was hired in 1892 to remove the brains and properly preserve them.

[5] At one point, the society possessed approximately 50 brains of non-eminent persons, most likely prisoners and asylum patients.

[6] In 1907, Edward Anthony Spitzka published a paper on his study of six brains bequeathed to the society.

[8] Spitzka's publication caused a minor sensation due to his mention of the status of Walt Whitman's brain.

"[10] However, in his personal diary sometime between 1891 and 1893, Henry Ware Cattell confessed to accidentally allowing Whitman's brain to decompose during the preservation process by "not having the jar properly covered".

[12] Osler's brain was returned to Philadelphia; however, some of the histological samples were obtained by a rare book collector and sold on eBay.