A Haven of Happiness: Inventor Michael Pupin in Norfolk

Michael I. Pupin immigrated to the United States in 1874 from what is now Serbia. Taking the first job he could find as a farm laborer, he quickly taught himself to speak and read English and improve his knowledge through night courses at Cooper Union. His curiosity about science and nature carried him far; after eventually earning a Ph.D., he was given a job as Professor of Electro-Mechanics at Columbia University.

Tragedy struck in 1895/96 when he came down with a bout of pneumonia that nearly killed him. He recovered but his wife became ill and died, leaving him a widower with a young daughter. Weak from his illness and distraught with grief, he came to Norfolk to regain his health. This exhibition reveals what he found.