The LIFE of Rock also worked as an astronomer at the U.S. Naval Observatory in Wash- MILES ROCK ingtonD.C. InDecember 1882, hewas detailed to aidProfessor Lewis Boss in the observation of the transit of Venus in Chile. Oct. 10, 1840 Born in Ephrata, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania 1859-61 Attends Franklin & Marshall College June 1861 Leaves Franklin & Marshall College to serve in the Union Army, joining the 1st Pennsylvania Reserve Volunteer Corps at West Chester and serving three years 1866 Enters Lehigh as part of the frst graduating class 1869 Graduates from Lehigh as a civil engineer 1870 Marries Susan Clarkson and becomes frst president of the new Lehigh Alumni Association 1870-73 Accepts position as an astronomical assistant to B.A. Gould, director of the Cordoba Observatory in Argentina, where he surveys and determines the magnitude of the stars in the Southern constellations 1873-74 An assistant engineer, surveying for the Easton and Amboy Railroad Hydrological Service and the U.S. Navy as an assistant engineer, determining latitudes and longitudes in the West Indies and Central America 1877-80 Joins the U.S. geological survey, west of the 100th meridian, on an expedition to determine the latitudes and longitudes of several western states and territories July 1880 Accepts a position with the U.S. Navy as assistant astronomer to the U.S. Naval Observatory in Washington, D.C. 1882 Joins Professor Lewis Boss’ expedition to Santiago, Chile, as a second astronomer to observe the transit of Venus 1883-98 Becomes president, astronomer and engineer-in-chief of the Boundary Commission of Guatemala with Mexico 1897 Makes his last visit to Lehigh for an alumni reunion and delivers a speech Jan. 29, 1901 Dies in Guatemala following a severe case of food poisoning On the recommendation of the U.S. government, Rock was appointed astronomical engineer for Guatemala in 1883, and for 15 years he served as chief of the Guatemala Boundary Commission, charged with the duty of determining and locating the disputed frontier between Guatemala and Mexico, according to his obituary. His work resulted in Guatemala retaining valuable land in the Petén region. Because of this, Rock was highly esteemed in Guatemala. Online maps still show a neighborhood in Guatemala City called “Colonia Miles Rock.” “To his technical knowledge, diplomatic skill, strong sense of justice and invincible courage, Guatemala unquestionably owes the retention of her rights in certain valuable lands in the district of Petén, which had been claimed by Mexico, even to the point of threatened hostilities,” says the obituary in Science. After fnishing his work for the Guatemalan Government in 1898, Rock continued to spend long stretches of time at property he owned in the country. He and Susan kept a permanent family home in Washington, D.C., where he was one of the founders of the Anthropological Society of Washington and of the Cosmos Club. He was also a member of theWashington Academy of Sciences and National Geographic Society. After his death, in recognition of his service to Guatemala, he was buried in the cemetery of Guatemala City with public honors, according to his obituary. In their reports to the Department of State, “the representatives of this country in Guatemala showed that Mr. Rock was universally mourned and no such funeral honors had ever before been accorded to anyone but the highest ofcials of the country.” A Snapshot of a Scientist David believes the Civil War was pivotal to Rock because it exposed him to the greater world, adding that it was a miracle he survived the experience. Company B of the 1st Pennsylvania Reserve Volunteer Corps was present for a long list of battles, including many of the most gruesome of the war, such as Seven Days, Gettysburg and Antietam. “During the Peninsula Campaign, Miles Rock seems to have realized that becoming a cannon fodder hero wasn't his personal goal,” David said. “He seems to have done a bit of soul searching and decided to focus his personal skills where they could do the most good, as a secretary to the company commander. This may have been infuenced by sickness, battle experience, fear or any number of things.” Being a valuedmember of the support staf certainly lowered the chance of being asked to head any bayonet charges, he said, but that doesn’t mean Rock would have been safely out of harm’s way. Rock’s brigade commander, General John F. Reynolds, died fromwounds sufered at Gettysburg. David has a particular fondness for Rock’s Civil War letters, on which he wrote a thesis when he was an undergraduate at Wittenberg University in Springfeld, Ohio. The thesis is available in Lehigh’s library. The letters and other items from the collection will provide many research opportunities for students and scholars alike, said Monica Najar, an associate professor of history at Lehigh. “The Miles Rock collection is a fantastic opportunity for Lehigh students to get up close and personal with the Civil War,” she said. “Beyond seeing Rock's uniform, students and scholars will be able to read about his unique path to handling the traumas, but also the strange opportunities, in the war.” For example, the war ofered Rock the chance to clerk and eventually teach fag-signaling, work that ofered him some safety, Najar said. At the same time, Rock had experiences typical of other enlisted men, and his letters ofer a vivid window into the hardships of war, such as missed rations and bitter weather. They also show the camaraderie of camp life. “The experience of being so close to the documents andmaterial culture of 3 4 | L E H I G H B U L L E T I N 1874-1877 Joins the U.S.
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