George III Mahogany Banjo Barometer Edinburgh

George III Mahogany Banjo Barometer By Edie & Son. Edinburgh

Alexander James Adie FRSE MWS (7 November 1775, Edinburgh – 4 December 1858, Edinburgh) was a Scottish maker of medical instruments, optician and meteorologist. He was the inventor of the sympiesometer, patented in 1818

He was born the son of optician John Adie (died 1857).

He was apprenticed in 1789 to his maternal uncle John Miller a mathematical instrument maker on Parliament Close, off the Royal Mile close to St Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh.[2] In 1800 Adie was working for Miller at 38 South Bridge and the business was described as an optician.[3] Around 1805 went into business together as "Miller and Adie, Opticians" (also serving as mathematical instrument makers, but this was in much less demand) and had a shop at 15 Nicholson Street in the South Side[4] which continued until 1822.

After Miller died Adie opened his own shop at 58 Princes Street close to the Royal Scottish Academy.[5]

Adie supplied lenses to Joseph Hooker, Charles Darwin[6] and Sir David Brewster and was optician to William IV and to Queen Victoria. Adie invented the sympiesometer or marine barometer and had a small observatory erected long before there was a public observatory in Edinburgh. He was elected as Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh on 25 January 1819, upon the proposal of Lord Francis Gray, Sir David Brewster and James Russell.

Adie lived at 10 Regent Terrace, Edinburgh, from 1832 to 1838. His son John Adie FRSE joined his firm around 1840 to create Adie & Son based at 50 Princes Street.

He died at Caanan Lodge, in the Morningside district of Edinburgh (now demolished) in December 1858
His daughter married the astronomer Thomas Henderson (1798–1844) who would certainly have met through the instrument making. Henderson is buried with Adie but is not listed on the memorial.