Taken by any measure that one might chose, the world of science was vastly different at the time of the Department's establishment from that of a century later. The number of scientists alive in 1904 was insignificant when compared with the number at the end of the century, and there was then still a strong amateur component that has all but vanished. Science is now a well-established, paid profession, one for which government policy is a matter of abiding concern. In 1902 government participation in science was restricted to those few matters for which it felt a direct need: navigation, geological surveys, industrial standards, and agriculture. Pure research was outside the national interest, at least insofar as monetary support was concerned. Given the complete transformation that science has undergone, it is remarkable that the Department has functioned so well as the environment for its operations altered so drastically. It is worth while to trace the important decisions that have shaped DTM's history.

It was Louis Bauer's determination and energy that caused the Department to be established. Without his drive there is little probability that anyone else with authority would have set about mapping in detail the magnetic field of the Earth as a goal requiring a substantial fraction of the Institution's funds. But Bauer's case for a non-governmental agency to coordinate this activity found support from President Woodward and the physics community.