Garrett P. Serviss

(1851- 1929)

Garrett Putnam Serviss was an American astronomer, popularizer of astronomy, and early SF writer. He was born in upstate New York and majored in science at Cornell University. He took a law degree at Columbia University, but never worked as an attorney. Instead, in 1876 he joined the staff of the The New York Sun newspaper, working as a journalist until 1892 under editor Charles Dana.

He showed a talent for explaining scientific details in a way that made them clear to the ordinary reader, leading Andrew Carnegie to invite him to deliver The Urania Lectures in 1894 on the sciences and related matters.

Serviss toured the United States for over two years delivering these lectures, then settled down to become a popular speaker in the New York area. He also wrote a syndicated newspaper column devoted to astronomy and other sciences and wrote frequently for the leading magazines of the day.

He wrote several books popularizing science.

His SF writing consisted of the following novels: Edison's Conquest of Mars (1898), A Columbus of Space (1909), The Sky Pirate (1909), The Second Duluge (1911), and The Moon Maiden (1915). He also wrote the SF short story "The Moon Metal" (1900).

Awards, Honors and GoHships:

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Person

1851—1929

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