SYMMES, John Cleves

(1780-1829)

   US army officer with the rank of Captain, who distinguished himself in the War of 1812, retired, and subsequently devoted his life to propagandizing (largely through speeches, apparently charismatic) on behalf of his theory of a HOLLOW EARTH consisting of 5 concentric spheres, with openings at the poles. He twice petitioned Congress (1822, 1823) for funds to mount an expedition to the (literal) interior, but failed. His health failed, too, after many lecture tours, and he died quite young. He did not leave any account in book form of his theories, though he did issue a paper in 1818. Symmes' Theory of Concentric Spheres (1826) was by a disciple, James McBride, and The Symmes Theory of Concentric Spheres, Demonstrating that the Earth is Hollow, Habitable Within, and Widely Openabout the Pole: Compiled by Americus Symmes from the Writings of his Father Captain John Cleves Symmes (1878) was by his 10th child. Althoughit has been thought that the novel Symzonia (1820) by Adam SEABORN may have been written pseudonymously by JCS, it has been pointed out (by E.F. BLEILER) that this is unlikely since, although the book alludes to Symmesin its title, it actually satirizes some of Symmes's ideas. These ideas were not sui generis, and indeed belong to a long tradition of PSEUDO-SCIENCE theorizing, one of whose important milestones was a 1692paper by the astronomer Edmond Halley (1656-1742), published by the Royal Society in London, also arguing for nested spheres (and an internal sun).JCS's version was, however, directly influential through much of the 19th century.

   PN

   See also: LOST WORLDS.