James Bowdoin and the Patriot Philosophers : Memoirs, American Philosophical Society (vol. 247) (Memoirs of the American Philosophical Society)

The American husband-and-wife historian team explore the 1780 establishment of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the vicissitudes of its first decade, by focusing on Bowdoin (1726-90), its first president. They preserve the tone of its quaint provincial origins in Cambridge/Boston and the intrigues and extravagant projects of the first years, and focus on the interplay of patriotism and love of knowledge among the founders. Annotation 2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)