Frederick H. Engels, ca. 1841 – after 1884

by Brian Stevenson
last updated December, 2022

F.H. Engels, M.D., was a physician/surgeon in Virginia City, Nevada during the 1870s – mid 1880s. Evidence indicates that he was a keen microscopist, with a particular interest in diatoms. He corresponded with the Fédération des Sociétés d'Horticulture de Belgique and the San Francisco Microscopical Society (where he lived during the early 1870s).

During the mid-1870s to mid-188s, Engels advertised in popular science magazines to exchange mounted and unmounted diatoms, gold ore, and other specimens with other microscope enthusiasts. The slides shown in Figure 1 probably came from such exchanges, with the Virginia, Nevada slide being prepared with his own diatom gathering, and the others probably obtained from correspondents.

Figure 1. Microscope slides that were prepared by Frederick H. Engels, ca. mid-1870s to mid-1880s. He used profession-quality type-set labels with his name and address. I acquired these three slides as part of a large collection from California, which was probably accumulated by a nineteenth century microscopist in that state. All three slides are mounts of diatoms, which was evidently Engels’ specialty. The specimens are (top to bottom) fossil diatoms from Virginia City, Nevada (undoubtedly collected by Engels), fossil diatoms from Calistoga, California (possibly collected by Engels, or possibly acquired by exchange), and fresh diatoms from “Lake Erie, near Niagara River” (likely acquired by Engels through an exchange).

Figure 2. Fossil diatoms from Virginia City, Nevada, prepared ca. 1880 by Frederick Engels (see Figure 1). Photographed with a 20x objective lens.

The 1870 and 1880 US censuses tell us that Frederick H. Engels was born ca. 1841 (he was 29 at the time of the 1870 census, and 39 at the time of the 1880 one). The 1870 census further informs that he was born in Kassel, Hesse, which is now part of Germany. It is probable that his first name was originally Friedrich. I have not found any records of Engels from before 1870, suggesting that he probably emigrated to the USA during the 1860s.

Engels published an advertisement for his medical business in 1875 (Figure 3). He stated that he received medical training at the University of Giessen, which is about 125 km / 78 miles from Kassel.

He further declared that he had worked as House Physician in hospitals in New York and San Francisco. This implies that he first landed in New York, worked for a period of time, then moved to San Francisco. He was in San Francisco at the time of the 1870 census. He then had a wife, Nellie, who was originally from New York. Nellie was only 19 years old in 1870, suggesting that she and Frederick had married fairly recently, probably in New York.

The 1870 census listed Engels’ occupation as “assistant physician”. The 1871 and 1872 San Francisco Directories listed him as “apothecary, City and County Hospital”. He wrote a letter to the magazine Figaro in June, 1871, describing himself as “Asst. Resident Physician, Apothecary, C. & C. Hospital”. He wrote two medical case reports during 1872 from the City and County Hospital, which were published in The Pacific Medical and Surgical Journal.

Engels was not listed in the San Francisco Directory for 1873, but was listed as a practicing physician and surgeon in Virginia City, Nevada (Figure 4). We can thus date his move from California to Nevada as having occurred in late 1872.

The first known evidence of Engels as a microscopist comes from the minutes of the December 7, 1876 meeting of the San Francisco Microscopical Society, “Dr. F.H. Engels also addressed the Society concerning a sample of fresh-water diatoms obtained by him in a stream near American Flat, Nevada, which he sent, asking for an exchange in the way of marine diatoms, &c..”

Throughout 1877, Engels published requests to provide gold ore samples and microscope slides of “crystals of rare chemicals” in exchange for diatoms or foraminifera (Figure 5). The Engels mount of diatoms from Lake Erie that is shown in Figure 1 probably came from such an exchange.

The 1880 International Naturalists’ Directory listed Engels as being interested in microscopy, diatoms and botany, and collecting and exchanging “diatomaceous material”.

In 1883, Engels advertised to exchange mounted or unmounted diatoms that he had collected from deposits in Carson City, Nevada, and Posa Creek, California. The former town is close to his Virginia City home. Posa Creek is probably what is now known as Poso Creek, which drains the western slope of the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range, suggesting that Engels travelled considerable distances to collect his samples.

The 1884 Bulletin de la Fédération des Sociétés d'Horticulture de Belgique listed Frederick Engels as a corresponding botanist.

He was listed a practicing physician in the 1884 Nevada Gazeteer. This is the last firm record I found about Frederick Engels. He was listed in the 1886 Medical and Surgical Directory of the United States with an asterisk beside his name, and that sort of directory is often not up-to-date since the compilers could not have contacted every person before each new edition. Engels is not listed in the 1885 or later International Naturalists’ Directories. Neither he not Nellie are identifiable in the next US census, which was taken in 1900.

Intriguingly, the 1882 Report of the State Mineralogist of California stated that “F.H. Engels, M.D., of Nevada City, Cal.” had helped to identify diatoms found in the Santa Monica diatomaceous earth deposit. I haven’t found another reference to Engels having lived in that town. Did Engels move to California around 1882, or did the State Mineralogist confuse Virginia City, Nevada with Nevada City, California?

The fate of Frederick Engels remains a mystery.

Figure 3. An 1875 business advertisement by Frederick Engels. He states, “Graduate of the University of Giessen, Germany, and late House Physician at New York and San Francisco Hospitals. Office and Residence, Tahoe House, Opposite Wells Fargo & Co.” From “The Virginia Evening Chronicle”.

Figure 4. Advertisement from the 1873 Virginia and Truckee Railroad Directory.

Figure 5. Exchange offers made by Frederick Engels, published in The American Journal of Microscopy and Popular Science (1877), and The American Monthly Microscopical Journal (1883).

Resources

The American Journal of Microscopy and Popular Science (1876) Exchange offers from F.H. Engels, page 28 and others

American Medical Directory (1907) F.H. Engels not listed

The American Monthly Microscopical Journal (1883) Exchange offer from F.H. Engels, page 60

Bulletin de la Fédération des Sociétés d'Horticulture de Belgique (1884) Corresponding Botanists, “Nevada. Tahoe House, Virginia. M. Dr. F.H. Engels (Diatomacées)”, page 125

Engels, F.H. (1871) Letter, dated June 20, 1871, Figaro

Engels, F.H. (1872) Two cases of locomotor ataxia and one of, probably, cerebral sclerosis, Pacific Medical and Surgical Journal, pages 337-344

Engels, F.H. (1872) Attempted suicide by taking 10 to 15 grains of strychnia, Pacific Medical and Surgical Journal, pages 460-461

Engels, F.H. (1880) Spontaneous cure of a cystic tumor of the broad ligament (?), The Western Lancet, pages 243-245

International Naturalists’ Directory (1880) “Engels, F.H., M.D., Tahoe House, Virginia. Mic., Diatoms, Bot., C. Ex. Diatomaceous material”, page 59

International Naturalists’ Directory (1885) F.H. Engels not listed

Medical and Surgical Directory of the United States (1886) “Virginia City. Engels, F.H.*”, page 587

Monthly Microscopical Journal (1876) Minutes of the San Francisco Microscopical Society, page 111

Nevada Gazeteer (1884) “Virginia. Engels F.H., physician, 70 South C”, page 518

San Francisco Directory (1871) “Engels F.H., apothecary City and County Hospital, cor Francisco and Stockton”, page 235

San Francisco Directory (1872) “Engels Frederick H., apothecary City and County Hospital”, page 232

Second Report of the State Mineralogist of California (1882) Diatoms and diatomaceous earths, pages 266-270

United States census and other records, accessed through ancestry.com

The Virginia and Truckee Railroad Directory (1873) Advertisement from F.H. Engels, page xli

Virginia City Directory (1877) “Engels Frederick H., physician and surgeon, office and res Tahoe House, 70 South C”, page 113

Virginia Evening Chronicle (1875) Advertisement from F.H. Engels, November 30, page 1