He returned to the United States in 1812 and was appointed professor of natural philosophy, chemistry and mathematics in the department of medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. He was appointed vice provost in 1814.[7] Patterson remained at Penn until 1828 when he joined the faculty of the University of Virginia. He was elected an Associate Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1834.[9] Patterson was nominated as director of the U.S. Mint by President Andrew Jackson[10][11] and served from 1835 to 1851.[12] In 1807, Patterson and his father were consulted by Ferdinand Rudolph Hassler for guidance on the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey. In 1826, Patterson was Consulted by the governor of Pennsylvania to determine the best source of water for a state canal.[8]
Patterson died on September 5, 1854, in Philadelphia,[13] and was interred at Laurel Hill Cemetery.[14] He was married to Helen Hamilton Leiper, daughter of Thomas Leiper, on April 20, 1814,[15] and together they had six children.[8]
American Philosophical Society
Patterson was the youngest person elected to the American Philosophical Society at 22 in 1809. He served as secreatry in 1813, as vice-president in 1825, and as president in 1849.[13]
Frederik Nebeker, Astronomy and the Geophysical Tradition in the United States in the Nineteenth Century: A Guide to Manuscript Sources in the Library of the American Philosophical Society, APS Publication No. 16 (Philadelphia, 1991), p. 75–76.
