A photograph of George Green? A case study in historical misconception
George Green (1793–1841) was a miller and mathematician from Nottingham who developed revolutionary theories in mathematical physics. It is possible to find online a photograph of Green. No such picture exists. The picture being used is in fact of George Barnard Green (1822–1863) of Wisconsin, a wagon maker and US Civil War soldier. The evidence for these claims is presented, and the reasons for the spreading of historical inaccuracies are considered in relation to this case.
Authors
- Peter Rowlett (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1917-7458)
Institutions
- Sheffield Hallam University (GB)
Publication Details
- Journal
- British Journal for the History of Mathematics
- Published
- 2025-05-04
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1080/26375451.2025.2517491
- Primary Topic
- Educator Training and Historical Pedagogy
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00