Jared Mansfield
| Jared Mansfield | |
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Sketch by Henry Howe
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| 2nd Surveyor General of the Northwest Territory | |
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In office November 3, 1803 – November 24, 1812 |
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| Preceded by | Rufus Putnam |
| Succeeded by | Josiah Meigs |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
May 23, 1759 New Haven, Connecticut |
| Died | February 3, 1830 (aged 70) New Haven Connecticut |
| Spouse(s) | Elizabeth Phipps |
| Alma mater | Yale University |
Jared Mansfield (1759 – February 3, 1830) was an American mathematician and surveyor. His career was shaped by two interventions by President Thomas Jefferson. In 1801 Jefferson appointed Mansfield as Professor at the newly founded United States Military Academy at West Point. Again at Jefferson's appointment, Mansfield served as the Surveyor General of the United States from 1803 to 1812, charged with extending the survey of United States land in the Northwest Territory.
Mansfield was born in New Haven, Connecticut, son of a sea captain, Stephen Mansfield. He graduated from Yale in 1777, and taught in New Haven and Philadelphia. In 1800 he married Elizabeth Phipps, daughter of an American Naval Officer. In 1801 he had printed some scientific papers titled Essays Mathematical and Physical, which were brought to Jefferson's attention by Senator Abraham Baldwin. Jefferson appointed Mansfield captain of engineers, so he might become a professor at West Point. After moving to West Point, Mansfield was appointed Surveyor General in Summer of 1803. Jefferson was dissatisfied with the performance of Rufus Putnam, whose surveys in the Congress Lands of Ohio were poorly executed. Putnam was also a Federalist. In 1801, the position had been offered to Andrew Ellicott by Jefferson, but he refused, because he was upset at slow pay for work he had done for the Federal Government. Mansfield's Essays included sections on determining longitude and latitude, which would be useful in improving precision in surveying. Jefferson made a recess appointment, which was confirmed by the Senate November 15, 1803. He was told to "survey Ohio and lands north of the Ohio River", with later extensions to Indiana Territory and Illinois Territory.
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