From the earliest memories of our childhood, many of us can remember hearing the phrase “no
two snowflakes are alike”. This discovery was made in the small rural town of Jericho, Vermont,
by Wilson A. Bentley.
Wilson (Willie) Bentley (1865-1931) was born on a farm in Jericho, Vermont. Jericho was an
ideal place to study snow because it was in the heart of the snow belt, producing an average
annual snowfall of over 120 inches. Willie was home schooled until age 14, then he attended
public school for several more years. By age 14 he wanted to explore the world of science
firsthand.
A self educated farmer, Bentley attracted world attention with his pioneering work in the area
of photomicrography, most notably his extensive work with snow crystals (commonly known as
snowflakes). By adapting a microscope to a bellows camera, and years of trial and error, he
became the first person to photograph a single snow crystal in 1885.
He would go on to capture more than 5000 snowflakes during his lifetime, not finding any two
alike. His snow crystal photomicrographs were acquired by colleges and universities throughout
the world and he published many articles for magazines and journals including, Scientific
American and National Geographic.
Bentley learned that the reason no two snowflakes are exactly alike is because all ice
crystals—whether shaped like simple plates, bullets, needles, solid or hollow columns,
dendrites, or sheaths—are hexagonal. As they descend from the clouds, they ride air currents
up and down for an hour or more through regions of differing temperatures and humidity that
leave their marks on snowflakes’ growth and shape. Given how they form, it is extremely
unlikely that two complex snow crystals will end up exactly alike.
On Saturday, December 12th “Snowflake Bentley” will appear in person and share his
discoveries of snowflakes. As Wilson Bentley stated, “I found that snowflakes were
masterpieces of design. No one design was ever repeated. When a snowflake melted . . . just
that much beauty was gone, without leaving any record behind.” Wilson A. Bentley.
A display of origninal glass slides and snowflakes of “Snowflake Bentley” will be on display from
November 27th through December 22.
