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The Smithsonian Institution ( ), established in 1846 "For the increase and diffusion of knowledge," is a group of museums and research centers administered by the Government of the United States. Originally organized as the "United States National Museum," that name ceased to exist as an administrative entity in 1967.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://siarchives.si.edu/history/national-museum-american-history )〕 Termed "the nation's attic" for its eclectic holdings of 138 million items, the Institution's nineteen museums, nine research centers, and zoo include historical and architectural landmarks, mostly located in the District of Columbia. Additional facilities are located in Arizona, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York City, Virginia, and Panama. A further 170 museums are Smithsonian Affiliates. The Institution's thirty million annual visitors are admitted without charge. Funding comes from the Institution's endowment, private and corporate contributions, membership dues, government support, as well as retail, concession and licensing revenues.〔 Institution publications include ''Smithsonian'' and ''Air & Space'' magazines. ==Founding== British scientist James Smithson (d. 1829) left most of his wealth to his nephew Henry James Hungerford; however, when Hungerford died childless in 1835, the estate passed "to the United States of America, to found at Washington, under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an Establishment for the increase & diffusion of knowledge among men", in accordance with Smithson's will. Congress officially accepted the legacy bequeathed to the nation, and pledged the faith of the United States to the charitable trust on July 1, 1836. The American diplomat Richard Rush was dispatched to England by President Andrew Jackson to collect the bequest; Rush returned in August 1838 with 105 sacks containing 104,960 gold sovereigns (about $500,000 at the time, which is ).〔Heather Ewing, ''The Lost World of James Smithson: Science, Revolution, and the Birth of the Smithsonian'', pp. 323–24, 330, 409. Ewing notes that it would be the equivalent of over $10 million today, using one index, but using a per-capita share of GDP, it would be the equivalent of over $220 million. It was close to the total of Harvard University's endowment at that point, which had accumulated for nearly 200 years by the 1830s and was not the result of a single gift, as Smithson's was.〕 Once the money was in hand, eight years of Congressional haggling ensued over how to interpret Smithson's rather vague mandate "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge."〔〔 Unfortunately the money was invested by the US Treasury in bonds issued by the state of Arkansas which soon defaulted. After heated debate, Massachusetts Representative (and ex-President) John Quincy Adams persuaded Congress to restore the lost funds with interest〔"Smithsonian Information Brochure", Smithsonian Visitor Information and Associates' Reception Center, May 2009〕 and, despite designs on the money for other purposes, convinced his colleagues to preserve it for an institution of science and learning.〔Nagel, Paul. "John Quincy Adams: A Public Life, a Private Life". p348. 1999, Harvard University Press〕 Finally, on August 10, 1846, President James K. Polk signed the legislation that established the Smithsonian Institution as a trust instrumentality of the United States, to be administered by a Board of Regents and a Secretary of the Smithsonian.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Smithsonian Institution」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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