Fact Sheets

Joseph Henry (32-year term: 1846-1878)
As the first Secretary of the Smithsonian, Joseph Henry, a scientist known for his discoveries in the field of electromagnetism, organized the Smithsonian’s first scientific research projects. Henry spurred the development of many branches of science in the nation by enlisting the government’s support of research. Under Henry, the Smithsonian became the leading supporter of anthropological research in the United States.

During the first Secretary’s term, the Smithsonian opened the “Castle,” the first Smithsonian building on the National Mall. Henry also initiated an important series of publications called “Contributions to Knowledge.”

Spencer Fullerton Baird (nine-year term: 1878-1887)
Baird, a naturalist and avid collector, presided over the Smithsonian during the years of exploration in the West. The territorial surveys and expeditions of the time resulted in outstanding natural history collections for the Smithsonian. Baird also developed an international publications exchange, and he helped establish the U.S. Fish Commission.

Baird’s own collections of specimens were donated to the Smithsonian and formed the nucleus of what was later to be the National Museum of Natural History collections.

Samuel Pierpont Langley (19-year term: 1887-1906)
Langley was best known for his studies in aerodynamics and astronomy. As Secretary, he established the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. His interest in the preservation of near-extinct animals, such as the American bison, led to the beginnings of the Smithsonian’s National Zoological Park.

Charles Doolittle Walcott (20-year term: 1907-1927)
Walcott was a geologist who had extensive influence in the development of forestry services in this country. At the Smithsonian, he presided over the opening of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History (1911) and the Freer Gallery of Art (1923). During his tenure, the National Collection of Fine Arts (now the Smithsonian American Art Museum) became a separate museum at the Smithsonian.

Charles Greeley Abbot (16-year term: 1928-1944)
Abbot was known for his solar research and for his theory that the world’s weather is correlated with cyclical variations in the sun’s energy output. One of the early believers in solar energy, he established the Smithsonian’s Radiation Biology Laboratory to study the effects of sunlight on living organisms.

Abbot was one of the first people to have a moon crater named for him, and he was present when the Apollo 11 astronauts brought the first moon rocks to the Smithsonian. He died in 1974, at the age of 101.

Alexander Wetmore (seven-year term: 1945-1952)
Wetmore was an ornithologist who served as head of the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and as Assistant Secretary before becoming Secretary. During his career at the Smithsonian, Wetmore oversaw the growth of the collections (from about 10 million to more than 18 million specimens), the opening of the National Air Museum (then located in the Arts and Industries Building, now the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum in its own building on the National Mall) and the Canal Zone Biological Area (now the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute) in Panama.

Leonard Carmichael (11-year term: 1953-1964)
Carmichael, a distinguished scientist and professor, was responsible for saving the Patent Office Building that now houses two Smithsonian museums (the National Portrait Gallery and the Smithsonian American Art Museum). He planned the National Museum of History and Technology (now the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History), which opened to the public in 1964. The expansion of the east wing of the Natural History museum was completed during his tenure.

By the time Carmichael left office, more than 10 million visitors were coming to the Smithsonian museums every year.

S. Dillon Ripley (20-year term: 1964-1984)
It was Ripley’s vision of museums as places of education and fun that led to a blossoming of special exhibitions and live events, such as the annual Smithsonian Folklife Festival. During his tenure, the Smithsonian opened eight new museums, including the Cooper-Hewitt museum in New York City, as well as the Museum Support Center in Suitland, Md., a storage and conservation facility. The Museum of African Art (now the National Museum of African Art) became part of the Smithsonian during the Ripley years.

Ripley developed the concept for the underground museum complex that houses the National Museum of African Art, the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery and an exhibit and classroom area that later was named the S. Dillon Ripley Center.

Robert McCormick Adams (10-year term: 1984-1994)
Adams, an anthropologist known for his extensive research into ancient civilization, began his term as Secretary Sept. 17, 1984. As Secretary, he placed great emphasis on broader representation and involvement of many diverse cultural and ethnic communities in the Smithsonian and its programs. Adams placed a high priority on Native American concerns involving museum collections of Native American artifacts and human remains.

He focused on cultural and biological diversity, enhancing research at the Institution, improving the quality of the Institution’s exhibitions and activities and expanding the Smithsonian’s educational programs.

The Smithsonian continued to expand under Adams’ tenure. The Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian was established as a new Smithsonian museum in 1989; the George Gustav Heye Center—a branch of the museum—opened in New York City in 1994. The Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum opened near Union Station in Washington in 1993. Also during Adams’ tenure, Congress authorized an extension of the National Air and Space Museum, which later became the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, near the Dulles International Airport in Virginia. (It opened in December 2003.)

I. Michael Heyman (five-year term: 1994-1999)
I. Michael Heyman, a law professor and former chancellor of the University of California at Berkeley (1980-1990), had served as counselor to the Secretary of the Interior before becoming the 10th Secretary of the Smithsonian.

During his tenure, Heyman began an ambitious program of reaching out to Americans who cannot visit Washington, extending the reach of the Smithsonian beyond the beltway. His initiatives included a first-ever traveling exhibit of treasures for the Institution’s 150th anniversary in 1996, a Smithsonian Institution site on the World Wide Web and a new affiliations program for the long-term loan of collections.

Tourism at the Smithsonian in Washington increased during Heyman’s tenure, with more than 31 million visits to the museums and the National Zoo recorded in 1999. Ground was broken for the National Museum of the American Indian on the Mall, major renovations of several Smithsonian museums were set in motion and research facilities were expanded.

Philanthropic giving rose from $52 million in fiscal year 1995 to $146 million in fiscal year 1999 and included a $60 million contribution for the National Air and Space Museum’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. Heyman transformed the Institution’s approach to its for-profit activities by establishing Smithsonian Business Ventures (now known as Smithsonian Enterprises).

Lawrence M. Small (seven-year term: 2000-2007)
Lawrence M. Small was installed as the 11th Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution Jan. 24, 2000. He was named to the position in September 1999, succeeding I. Michael Heyman, who retired after serving for five years. Small resigned March 26, 2007.

Before coming to the Smithsonian, Small served as president and chief operating officer of Fannie Mae, the world’s largest housing finance company, since 1991.

Under Small’s leadership, the Smithsonian opened the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, a companion facility of the National Air and Space Museum on the National Mall, in December 2003. In September 2004, the Smithsonian opened its new National Museum of the American Indian on the National Mall, the only museum dedicated exclusively to Native cultures. During this same time, the Smithsonian established the National Museum of African American History and Culture as its 19th museum.

During his tenure, Small also committed to renovating and modernizing the Smithsonian’s aging buildings. The massive renovation of the Patent Office Building, the Smithsonian’s oldest building, culminated in July 2006 with the establishment and grand opening of the Donald W. Reynolds Center for American Art and Portraiture, which houses the National Portrait Gallery and Smithsonian American Art Museum.

Cristián Samper (Acting March 2007-June 2008)
Cristián Samper, a biologist and international authority on environmental policy, was appointed Acting Secretary of the Smithsonian March 26, 2007. Samper guided the Institution during a year of transition, working with the Board of Regents on comprehensive governance review and reform, as well as enhanced communications.

Samper worked with Congress to address the $2.5 billion need for facilities while emphasizing the importance of investing in the programs at the core of the Smithsonian’s mission—research and training, collections, exhibitions and Web outreach. Samper restructured and refocused Smithsonian Enterprises (formerly Smithsonian Business Ventures) and oversaw the infusion of new leadership, hiring museum directors for the National Museum of the American Indian and the National Portrait Gallery.

Before he was named Acting Secretary, Samper served as director of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History, since 2003. He resumed his role as director of the museum after serving as the Institution’s Acting Secretary for more than a year.

Wayne Clough (July 2008-Present)
Wayne Clough was elected the 12th Secretary of the Smithsonian by the Board of Regents March 15, 2008, and officially assumed the office July 1, 2008.

He has overseen several major openings at the Smithsonian, including the David H. Koch Hall of Human Origins, the Sant Ocean Hall at the National Museum of Natural History and the reopening of the National Museum of American History, as well as the selection of the architect for the new National Museum of African American History and Culture; construction will begin on the museum in 2012 on the National Mall, and it is set to open in 2015.

Clough is expanding the Smithsonian’s global relevance through research, education and scientific discovery. He has initiated the digitalization of much of the Smithsonian’s collection of 137 million objects to ensure that the Institution’s vast collection is accessible and available to everyone, and he has set in motion long-range strategic planning for the Smithsonian that will define the Institution’s focus for the future.

Before his appointment to the Smithsonian, Clough served as president of the Georgia Institute of Technology for 14 years.

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