Williamina Paton Fleming or how to go from being a maid to changing astronomy forever

Fleming, Williamina Paton (1857–1911)

 A single mum, deserted by her husband in a time when women were second class citizens and weren’t allowed to get a higher education, Williamina Paton Fleming rose from the humble position of maid to one of the most famous astronomers in history. She supervised the cataloging of hundreds of thousands of stars, refined the star hunting method and changed the face of astronomy forever. This is the story of an immigrant woman that beat her circumstances and the system by choosing science.

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Transcript

Fleming, Williamina Paton (1857–1911)

Intro: A single mum, deserted by her husband in a time when women were second class citizens and weren’t allowed to get a higher education, Williamina Paton Fleming rose from the humble position of maid to one of the most famous astronomers in history. She supervised the cataloging of hundreds of thousands of stars, refined the star hunting method and changed the face of astronomy forever. This is the story of an immigrant woman that beat her circumstances and the system by choosing science.

Main: What makes today’s subject so special, even more so when compared to most of the people I talked on this podcast already, is that Williamina Paton Stevens (later Fleming), was not from a long line of intellectuals. Both her parents were more than respectable people, but her father an artisan and her mother a homemaker, they were both completely unacquainted with the sciences. Williamina’s start in life as well could have never predicted that she would be one of the most acclaimed astronomers in history with only a high school education under her belt. Born on May 15th 1857, Williamina, also known by her closest as Mina, saw the light of day in Dundee, Scotland. I couldn’t notice that month of May was a very busy month for her, as she celebrated her birthday, got married and died sometime in the second half of that month. I couldn’t find much about her childhood or teenage years, only that she was one in nine children, her dad passed away when she was seven and that she was remarked as very bright by her teachers. So bright and hard working in fact that at 14, between 1871 and 1876, in order to support her mother and siblings, she took the position as a student teacher. After highschool as it was very common for lower class women to do and most likely to unburden her single mother, she got married in 1877 to a Dundee bank widowed employee 16 years her senior, James Orr Fleming. A year later they emigrated to Boston, US, in November 1878 where things did not start on the right foot. Soon after they arrived she discovered she was pregnant. Her husband, for reasons that I have not found, decided that the best reaction to that event is to bounce and leave his pregnant wife in a foreign country to fend for herself. I couldn’t even find if heh had the decency to divorce her. Sometimes in life thrash decides to take itself out. It also happens that sometimes the worst thing that happened turns into the greatest opportunity.

I am saying that because due to her circumstances she had to find a job to sustain herself and so it happens that Edward Pickering, director of the Harvard College Observatory, needed a maid. She was so grateful for this job that she named her son Edward Charles Pickering Fleming, which I didn’t know you can put last names as first names, but hey, is the 19th century when you get heroin over the counter!
Now, this job was trajectory changing (yes, I made an astronomy pun, couldn’t help). That was because Prof Pickering was trying to update the methods used at the Observatory, to make them more informative, quick and reliable. He grew frustrated with the male assistants that worked under him, as they apparently made frequent mistakes. He grew so frustrated that by many accounts he exclaimed “My Scottish maid could do better!”. And apparently he really meant it because he did hire her as a computer for administrative tasks and calculations. Although he become a proponent for hiring women and encouraged other labs to do the same, I can’t help but think… how bad were those guys? It’s like that friend that just their 10th horrible breakup and tells you that they are so fed up they are turning gay and then they actually do it. I don’t know, maybe I have weird friends. That isn’t to say that Mina was eventually hired on full position by Pickering because her male colleagues were not the best at their job, but also because he recognized her great potential.  He opened jobs for women that were prior reserved only for males and Mina became one of them. 
One of the most important projects she was assigned to celestial photography. This project was founded by the Draper Memorial. Henry Draper was the first scientist to experiment with astronomical photographic plates in the world. After Draper's death, his wife entrusted with Pickering the equipment as well as funding to continue the work. And now, science intermission! What is interesting is that at that point nobody knew what stars are made of, only later in 1925 Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin proposed for the first time that stars may be made mainly of hydrogen and helium. She figured this put also thanks to the photographs produced by Mina and Pickering and their team. That is because the principle of taking these photographic plates of individual stars is to put a prism in front of the telescope which will divide wavelengths. These representations of stars basically resemble the rainbow when white light is passed through a prism, but instead of showing colors it is in shades of grey. Sort of like a barcode that is unique to each star. Why is this so cool? Because instead of mapping the sky trying to make sure each star is in the correct place which means you have to observe it at very specific time and space, with these plates it is like taking a picture that can be cataloged and analyzed anytime and also gives you information on the physical attributes of that specific celestial body. I will give you an example of how that worked by reading and excerpt from a speech she gave at the Congress of Astronomy and Astro-Physics in Chicago, 1893:
“Many interesting discoveries have been made from the study of these photographs of stellar spectra. First in importance among them, was the discovery that: Ursæ Majoris is a close binary star, the two components revolving around each other at a velocity of about a hundred miles a second, in a period of about fifty-two days. This discovery was made by Professor Edward C. Pickering, his attention being first attracted to it by the fact that in the photographs of the spectrum of this star, the lines ap pear sometimes double and at other times single. This discovery led to the finding of a second object of this same class, b Aurigæ, by Miss Antonia C. Maury. This last star has attracted public attention much more widely than ‘ Ursa? Majoris and may be considered more interesting in that the period of revolution of the two components is only 3 days 23 hours and 36.7 minutes. Ursæ Majoris and b Aurigæ are such close double stars that they could not possibly be separated visually with the most powerful instruments at present in use. A third object of this class is suspected in b Lyræ which shows a similar change, or rather it shows a reversal in the position of the bright lines with regard to the dark lines in its photographic spectrum, that is, they apparently cross and re-cross each other. This is doubtless associated with the variation in the light of this star since the period is the same for both. The examination of the photographs of the brighter stars has been made by Miss Maury who has also been engaged on their classification. The micrometric measurements of the lines in the photographic spectra of the bright stars have been made by Miss Florence Cushman.”

I had no idea that there is such a thing as double or multiple stars, so for today’s episode the question is: How many stars are single stars? When I searched that information myself I realized that my whole life is a lie and that the people making Star Wars could’ve tried a bit harder with Tatooine and instead of giving it 2 boring single stars, go with something bolder. I am writing my letter of complaint as we speak. 

Anyway, back to our subject. Mina became the head of the operation, examining with her team each fragile photographic glass plate in the collection, identifying the peculiarities of the star, indexing it and storing the information. Slowly but surely, she got to perform the intellectual side as well and although her name was not present on the Draper catalog, she left her mark through the new classification method she and Pickering established. One of her underlings, Annie Jump Cannon, who latter refined and improved the system remarked that “With a naturally clear and brilliant mind, Mrs. Fleming at once evinced special aptitude for this photographic investigation, which was so novel that precedents could not be found for its execution.” In the 1890 Draper Catalogue of Stellar Spectra, more than 10,000 stars were described according to the new Pickering-Fleming System, establishing a new foundation for astronomical classification. I have to give kudos to Pickering, because unlike other male researchers at that time he did give credit to Mina after 1890 on all the work they published. Although in the October 1891 issue of Observatory, a reviewer wrote, "The name of Mrs. Fleming is already well known to the world as that of a brilliant discoverer; but the present volume shows that she can do real hard work as well." This has the vibes of someone telling you that you are smart for a woman or when a toxic relative tells you that your haircut makes your nose look smaller. It really makes you feel appreciated!

On the bright side (I know, another astronomy pun, I am on a roll today), she did get the recognition she deserved while alive, which looking back in history is indeed an accomplishment. During a Harvard conference in 1898, Fleming's paper titled "Stars of the Fifth Type in the Magellanic Clouds" was presented by Pickering. The paper focused on stars with distinct bright line spectra and was presented to an audience predominantly composed of men. Although Fleming had not initially credited herself for the discovery of these stars, Pickering believed her accomplishments deserved recognition. As a result, a spontaneous outburst of applause compelled Fleming to step forward and address the questions generated by her paper. It was during this conference that she was acknowledged as a co-founder of the Astronomical and Astrophysical Society.

So you think classifying more than 10 thousand stars is a performance (grant it, she didn’t do it only by herself, but she supervised and checked each classification). First of all, by the time she reached retirement it was more like 200 thousand. Second of all, that is not her proudest accomplishment. In 1907 in the Annals of Harvard College Observatory, Fleming released a publication titled "A Photographic Study of Variable Stars." This study encompassed 222 celestial bodies that she had personally discovered, with each star meticulously measured for its positions and magnitudes of comparison. By providing this valuable data, Fleming's study served as a crucial reference for astronomers, aiding in the understanding and placement of these stars within the universe. I hope that I will make 222 episodes f this podcast, let alone discover 222 of anything. And this feeling is shared by the British astronomer H.H. Turner, who said "Many astronomers are deservedly proud to have discovered one variable, and content to leave the arrangements for its observation to others; the discovery of 222, and the care of their future on this scale, is an achievement bordering on the marvelous."  She also successfully employed photography, being the first astronomer to do so, in capturing images of nine gaseous planetary nebulae. Additionally, she identified and documented ten novae, representing the majority of newly discovered stars throughout her career. Not only that, but in 1910 she also discovered the famous (or infamous? Idk) extremely high density stars known as “white dwarfs”. These people shamelessly discover everything and leave the rest of us to fight for the scraps… Really unfair! Or that’s what I like to tell myself when I go to sleep at night.

And what is even crazier is that her organizational duties actually interfered with her scientific investigations to the point she wrote in her diary that she found it "very trying" that her mentor preferred that she prepare the work of others for publication instead of her own. She complained that due to inadequate communication among certain staff members, Fleming was compelled to spend valuable time revising work instead of devoting it to her research endeavors. This last part really struck me, because it’s been more than a 100 years and this is still a gigantic issue. You’d think that at this point we’ll have more sophisticated issue, but in 2023 we still struggle with communication… 

Despite her great achievements and very progressive attitude of Pickering for that time, Mina and her female co-workers faced major inequalities. Advancements in the Observatory were extremely rare for women, with Mina occupying one of the most important ones. And compensation was… deplorable. Reading her diary entry I have flashbacks with many conversation I had with my colleagues in academia, only difference is that back then it was a solely gendered issue. She wrote “He seems to think that no work is too much or too hard for me, no matter what the responsibility or how long the hours.… Sometimes I feel tempted to give up and let him try some one else, or some of the men to do my work, in order to have him find out what he is getting for $1500 a year from me, compared with $2500 from some of the other assistants.… Does he ever think that I have a home to keep and a family to take care of as well as the men? But I suppose a woman has no claim to such comforts.”  No good deed goes unpunished I suppose. She was mainly pressured by the fact that she wanted to pay her son’s tuition at MIT and felt that she was on the verge of breaking down. As much as some scientific supervisors consider that breathing the air around them is enough to sustain one’s life, I hope that it takes less than a hundred years to fix this issue in academia. Who says I am bitter? You are bitter!

At the end, besides expressing gratefulness that she stuck to her guns and left such amazing legacy and inspiration, I want to talk about her as a person. In 1906, she was the first American elected a member of the British Royal Astronomical Society, and was starred in the first edition of American Men of Science. And no, the irony did not escape me. Good thing she wasn’t the first human that appeared in the first edition of American Dogs. 

She was an avid supporter of women in science and did her best to enable more to occupy positions in the Observatory. According to historian Owen Gingerich, "Mrs. Fleming's keen eyesight, remarkable memory, and industrious nature enabled her to advance to a position of considerable authority at the observatory”. One her colleagues, Dorrit Hoffleit described her as “Sparkling and friendly though she was, her reputation as a strict disciplinarian lived after her, and as late as the 1930s, elderly ladies who had worked with her in their youth still regarded her with awe.” Fleming possessed a generous and compassionate character, easily forming friendships with others. In her leisure time, she took pleasure in activities such as cooking and needlework. As a thoughtful gesture, she would sew dolls dressed in traditional Scottish Highland attire for her colleagues. Although based on her great achievements one would think that she had 30 hours a day, or invented time travel, r maybe made a pact with the Devil to live to 150. But the truth is that Mina’s life burnt  very bright and quick, dying at 54 of pneumonia. Annie Jump Cannon, appointed by Pickering as Fleming's successor as the Harvard Observatory's curator of astronomical photographs, recalled Mina Fleming as “possessed of an extremely magnetic personality and an attractive countenance, enlivened by remarkably bright eyes. Her bright face, her attractive manner, and her cheery greeting with its charming Scotch accent, will long be remembered." I will read the end of her speech in 1893 that I think encapsulates her legacy of perseverance, humanity and success in the face of an unfavorable world and unfair system: 
“In conclusion, while I may be thought to have strayed far afield from the subject on which I was supposed to address you here, the investigations and researches described above are those in which the women in this department are engaged, in which they are thoroughly interested, and in which they are becoming trained and competent assistants.
While we cannot maintain that in everything woman is man’s equal, yet in many things her patience, perseverance and method make her his superior. Therefore, let us hope that in astronomy, which now affords a large field for woman’s work and skill, she may, as has been the case in several other sciences, at least prove herself his equal.”


Resources
The speech https://speakingwhilefemale.co/science-fleming/ 
https://www.encyclopedia.com/women/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/fleming-williamina-paton-1857-1911
https://www.harvardmagazine.com/2017/01/williamina-fleming
https://www.nls.uk/learning-zone/science-and-technology/women-scientists/williamina-fleming/
https://www.britannica.com/science/spectrum
Cannon, Annie Jump. "Williamina Paton Fleming," in Science. Vol. 33. June 30, 1911, pp. 987–988.
"Williamina Paton Fleming," in Astrophysical Journal. Vol. 34, 1911, pp. 314–317.
Gordon, Anne. "Williamina Fleming: 'Women's Work' at the Harvard Observatory," in Women's Studies Newsletter. Vol. 6, no. 2. Spring 1978, pp. 24–27.
Mack, Pamela E. "Women in Astronomy in the United States, 1875-1920." B.A. honors thesis, Harvard University, 1977.
Pickering, Edward C. "In Memoriam: Williamina Paton Fleming," in Harvard Graduates Magazine. Vol. 2. September 1911, pp. 49–51.
Weatherford, Doris. American Women's History. NY: Prentice Hall, 1994.
https://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/astronomer-discovered-over-300-stars-during-her-career-fakfg/14215/