The New International Encyclopædia/Goessmann, Charles Anthony
GOESSMANN, gēs'mȧn, Charles Anthony (1827—). An American chemist. He was born at Naumburg, in Hesse, and was educated at Göttingen, where he became assistant in the chemical laboratory and (1855) privat-docent. In 1857 he came to America; was chemist and superintendent of a Philadelphia sugar-refinery until 1861, and then accepted a position with a Syracuse salt company. While in this position (1861-69) he spent one year (1862-63) as professor of chemistry in the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. In 1809 he became professor of chemistry in the Massachusetts Agricultural College at Amherst, and also chemist to the State Board of Agriculture. Goessmann traveled in Cuba and in Louisiana, Michigan, and Canada. His writings include: Chemical Composition of the Brines of Onondaga (1862); Brines of Michigan (1862-63); Best Mode of Manufacturing Coarse or Solar Salt from the Brines of Onondaga (1863); Mineral Springs of Onondaga (1866); Salt Deposits of Petite Anse, La. (1867); Salt Resources of Goderich, Canada (1868); Application of Caustic Magnesia for Sugar Refining (1864); Manufacture of Sugar in Cuba (1865); besides chemical articles in Liebig's Annalen der Chemie (vols. lxxxvi., lxxxix., xc, xci., xciii., xciv., xcvii., xcviii., xcix., c, ci., civ.) and in Silliman's American Journal of Science (vols. xliv. and xlix.), on chemistry of salt and of brines, and agricultural contributions to the Reports of the Massachusetts and New York Boards of Agriculture, the Transactions of the New York Agricultural Society, and the Reports of the Trustees of the Massachusetts Agricultural College.