Draper sitting with a plant experiment at NYU

1839

John William Draper was an English-born American scientist, philosopher, physician, chemist, historian and photographer. He was the first to take a portrait photograph (1839-40) and the first to produce a detailed photograph of the moon (1840). He was also the first president of the American Chemical Society (1876-77) and a founder of the New York University School of Medicine. He wrote several books on the history and philosophy of science, such as the History of the Conflict between Religion and Science, which popularized the idea of an inherent clash between the two domains. He died in 1882 at the age of 70