Edward L. Youmans

Edward L. Youmans
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Edward Livingston Youmans (June 3, 1821 in Coeymans, New York – January 18, 1887 in New York City) was an American scientific writer, editor, and lecturer and founder of Popular Science magazine.

He was the son of Vincent Youmans and Catherine (Scofield) Youmans. He grew up in Saratoga County where his parents had moved during his early years. His father was a mechanic and a farmer; his mother was a teacher. He attended the common school there. At 13 years old, he was afflicted with ophthalmia from which he suffered during the remainder of his life. When he was 17, he became practically blind, and remained so until he was about 30. He very rarely had vision enough to read ordinary type. Despite this handicap, however, he managed to acquire a good education.

He went to New York City in 1840 for treatment of his eye problem. After some time in an infirmary, he boarded with printers who read to him from the latest works. Finally he found a home with a Quaker family, where he resided for many years. In New York, he got to know Horace Greeley, Walt Whitman and William Henry Appleton.

In 1845 his sister, Eliza Ann Youmans, became his reader and amanuensis, and with her aid he undertook the study of chemistry and physics. In 1851, while studying agricultural chemistry, he prepared a Chemical Chart which won such favor that the next year he published a Class-Book of Chemistry. From that time on, he devoted himself to popularizing science. He studied medicine during this period and received the degree of M.D. from the University of Vermont.

On November 4, 1861, in Saratoga, New York, he married Catherine Newton "Kate" Lee (c. 1819–1894), widow of William Little Lee, the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Kingdom of Hawaii. They didn't have any children. Her literary abilities were put to use in Youmans' editorial and promotional activities.

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