Manuscripts: Baily - Glaisher

BAILY Letters and papers of Francis Baily (1774–1844).

1. Correspondence. Letters to Baily, arranged alphabetically by correspondents, who include:

G. B. Airy, 1 letter, 1841; C. Babbage, 1, 1823; F. Beaufort, 1, n.d.; J. Bonnycastle, 2, 1798; D. Brewster, 1, 1834; O. G. Gregory, 3, 1822–33; O. F. Mossotti, 1, 1835; C. H. F. Peters, 1, 1837; R. de Prony, 1, 1828; L. A. J. Quetelet, 1, 1834; R. Sheepshanks, 1, n.d.; J. South, 2, 1835, n.d.; W. S. Stratford, 1, 1825; W. Wyon, 1, 1833.

2. Computations for Baily’s edition of Flamsteed’s British Catalogue of Stars (1835): 7 bound vols of printed forms, arranged in order of RA.

3. Loose papers of correspondence, results and calculations on the RAS Standard Scale (1833–36). See Mem., ix, 35–184. The original order of these papers has been preserved; they include letters from T. Colby (3), T. Galloway (1), T. Henderson (8), J. B. Pentland (1), W. Simms (2), W. S. Stratford (1), and MSS in the hand of A. De Morgan.

4. Observations taken during Baily’s repetition of Cavendish’s experiment for finding the mean density of the

Earth: 6 vols. See Mem., xiv. There are two series of experiments (3 vols each) on printed forms:

4.1. Oct. 1838 – Dec. 1839. (With an introduction and notes by Baily.)

4.2. Jan. 1841 – May 1842. (These vols contain the results published in Mem., xiv.)

5. Loose MSS relating to a dispute involving Sir Thomas Brisbane, Charles Rümker and the Royal Society (1830) concerning observations made by Rümker at Paramatta, 1821–23. The original order of these papers has been preserved; they include letters – originals and copies – by T. M. Brisbane (15), J. Dunlop (3), D. Gilbert (6), C. L. C. Rümker (11), E. Sabine (3), H. C. Schumacher (1), and copies of letters from Baily.

6. Lacaille’s Catalogue of 398 Principal Stars .... See Mem., v, 93–124.

7.1. On a remarkable phenomenon that occurs in total and annular eclipses of the Sun. See Mem., x, 1–36.

7.2. Loose papers related to 7.1.

7.3. Printed copies of 7.1.

8.1. On the proper motion of the fixed stars ... Read Decem: 9th 1831. See Mem., v, 147–70.

8.2. Another version of 8.1, ‘...Read June 10.1831’.

8.3. Relevant letters and papers: 6 letters from T. R. Robinson, 1830–31, with observations taken at Armagh; 1 from W. H. Smyth, 1831, with observations taken at Bedford; 1 from G. B. Airy, 1831.

8.4. Notebook: ‘An Examination of those stars in the catalogues of Bradley & Piazzi, which are supposed to have considerable Proper Motion’.

9.1. Notebook marked ‘Examination of Pond’s Catalogue’. See Mem., iv. 255–90.

9.2. Loose papers marked: ‘Documents relating to my Paper on Pond’s catalogue of 720 stars. 1830’. Includes letters from T. G. Taylor (2), J. South (1), and 3 from Baily to J. Pond.

10. Loose papers marked ‘Papers relating to Groombridge’s Catalogue’. They include letters exchanged between Baily and officials of the Admiralty, 1 from G. B. Airy, 1834, and 1 from H. Taylor, 1834.

11. Bound volume of 414 ff: copies of letters from John Flamsteed (124) and Joseph Crosthwait (60) to Abraham Sharp, 1702–30, prepared under Baily’s direction and presented by him to the RAS, 10 Jan. 1834, with an introduction by Baily. See MN, iii, 8, 29.

12.1. Some account of the Astronomical Observations made by Dr. Edmund Halley, at the Royal Observatory at Greenwich. See Mem., viii, 169–90.

12.2. Miscellaneous notes concerning Halley.

13. Notebook on the use of a Hadley’s sextant.

14. Tract on fluxions: ‘A Learner’s Manuscript’.

15. Notebook: ‘Miscellaneous Extracts from Different Authors, and from Various publications’.

16. General Catalogue [of the principal Stars]. Reduced to Jan. 1. 1830. See Mem., ii, Appendix, pp. lv–ccxxi.

 

BAXENDELL Observations of Joseph Baxendell (1815–87). Note MN, lxvii, 316.

1. Astronomical observations, 3 vols, 1836–60.

2. Notebook: observations of stellar magnitudes, 1857–66.

3. Variable star observations, 9 notebooks, 1861–77.

4. Observatory journal, Southport, 1877–87.

5. Collected observations of variable stars, 3 vols, 1836–87.

6. Notebook: magnitudes of comparison stars, 1879–84.

7. Charts for variable stars, pasted on to the pages of a notebook (with some additions by Baxendell’s son, Joseph Baxendell Jnr).

8. Miscellaneous loose pages of observations and notes.

9. Notebook of Joseph Baxendell Jnr: ‘Magnitudes of the Comparison Stars of Variable Stars’.

BERNAERTS Observations of Gustave Louis Bernaerts (1841–79).

1. Drawings of Mars, 1875, 7.

2. Drawings of Jupiter, 2 vols, 1875–78.

3. Observations of sunspots, represented as on the Sun’s disk, 13 vols, 1870–79.

CAPE Observations made at the Royal Observatory, Cape of Good Hope, 1834–35.

1. Transit observations, 1834–35.

2. Mural circle observations, 3 vols, 1834–35.

3. Reduction of the circle observations, 1834.

4. Various loose drawings and diagrams.

CARRINGTON Sunspot observations of Richard Christopher Carrington (1826–75). See MN, xxxvi, 249–50.

1. Sunspot observations, 3 vols, 1853–61.

2. Reductions of these observations, 7 vols, 1853–61 (with one addition, 1873).

3. Drawings of sunspots, showing the whole of the Sun’s disk, 3 folio vols, 1853–61, and one 1870.

4. Drawings of groups of sunspots, folio vol.

DAWES Observations of William Rutter Dawes (1799–1868).

1–4. Journals of observations:

1. 1819–29. At Aston Standford and Liverpool.

2. 1844–47. Camdon Lodge, Cranbrook, Kent.

3. 1847–58. Cranbrook; Wateringbury, nr Maidstone; Haddenham, nr Thame.

4. 1859–67. Haddenham.

5. A drawing of Saturn .... shewing the Interior Obscure Zone, or Ring, as discovered by the Rev. W. R. Dawes at Wateringbury on November 29th, 1850... by him most respectfully presented to The Royal Astronomical Society’.

6. A bound volume of stellar observations on printed forms, 1863–67.

DE MORGAN Letters and papers of Augustus De Morgan (1806–71).

1. Correspondence. Letters to De Morgan, arranged alphabetically by correspondents, who include:

J. C. Adams, 2 letters, 1848, 1860; C. Babbage, 7, 1835–51, 1 n.d.; G. Bishop, 3, 1847–57; J. Booth, 1, 1854 D. Brewster, 2, 1842, 1843*; H. Brougham, Lord, 12, 1855–63, 3 n.d*; J. Challis, 8, 1844–57; T. Chevallier, 2, 1853, 1 n.d.; W. De La Rue, 3, 1858–61; J. Hartnup, 1, 1855; J. R. Hind, 3, 1848–62; W. Lassell, 4, 1848–57; J. Lee, 3, 1845–62; W. Parsons, third Earl of Rosse, 1, 1845; H. Raper, 2, 1853, 1 n.d.; A. Sedgwick, 1, 1859; R. Sheepshanks, 68, 1842–52, 19 n.ds; C. R. Weld, 1, 1853; W. Whewell, 1, 1855.
* Also 1 letter to ?Brewster, n.d., and 3 to Brougham, 1856–57.

2. Loose letters and papers relating to the RAS, under a cover marked ‘Astron Society’. They include letters from G. B. Airy (2), W. De La Rue (1), M. J. Johnson (1), J. Lee (1), R. Sheepshanks (5), S. C. Whitbread (1).

3. Bound vol.: 12 biographies reprinted from De Morgan’s Gallery of portraits , with annotations and drawings by De Morgan. The MS title page reads: ‘Mathematical Biography extracted from the Gallery of Portraits by Augustus De Morgan’. There are various insertions, including letters from S. P. Rigaud and J. F. W. Herschel, and Herschel has added some notes – mainly to the biography of his father.

4. Loose miscellaneous MSS in De Morgan’s possession; only a few are by De Morgan. They include letters and other MSS by C. Babbage, R. Sheepshanks, S. C. Whitbread, J. Winthrop.

5. Printed memoirs of W. H. Smyth, one containing a letter by Mrs Smyth.

DREYER Manuscripts and photographs of John Louis Emil Dreyer (1852–1926).

1. Adversaria ad historiam astronomiae pertinentia. Notes on the history of astronomy, 4 vols. See MN, lxxxvii, 256; there is no evidence that there ever was a fifth vol.

1.1. Commenced in 1879
1.2. 1916–19

1.3. 1920–22

1.4. 1923–

2. Notes on Comets. 4to vol. containing a letter from R. Copeland to Dreyer, 1895.

3. Notes on William Herschel’s Observations of Nebulae & Clusters, 1910–11. Contains also notes on Herschel’s double stars, some further notes, and 3 photographs of portraits, 2 of William Herschel and 1 of Caroline.

4. Notes on P. Duhem, Le système du monde, vols 2–4 (1914–16).

5. Catalogue of manuscripts at Oxford and Cambridge on planetary theory and planetary tables.

6. Notes on ‘R.A.S. Manuscript of the Alphonsine Tables’. See RAS MSS Add. 1.

7. An album of astronomical photographs: instruments and observatories.

EVERSHED Papers of John Evershed (1864–1956) (see 1–3) and of Mary Acworth Evershed (1867–1949) (see 4–5).

1. Correspondence of John Evershed: letters to him and copies of his letters, arranged alphabetically by correspondents. Most of these letters fall after our date limit of 1940, but earlier correspondents include: H. D. Babcock, K. Burns, A. S. Eddington, A. Fowler, T. Royds, G. C. Simpson, V. M. Slipher, H. H. Turner, F. J. W. Whipple.

2. Small sketchbook: ‘The chromosphere & prominences 1889’, April 1889 – Feb. 1890.

3. A series of 15 numbered sketchbooks: solar prominences, 1890–1901.

4. ‘Who’s Who in the Moon’. See Memoirs of the British Astronomical Association, xxxiv, part 1.

5. Loose notes for ‘Who’s Who in the Moon’.

6. Loose miscellaneous papers: J. and M. A. Evershed.

 

GILL Letters and papers of Sir David Gill (1843–1914).

1. Fifty-nine letters from Gill to A. W. Roberts, 1893–1913, with 1 from W. J. S. Lockyer to Gill, 1910.

2. Twenty-three letters from Gill to G. E. Hale, 1908–13.

3. Heliometer observations, 8 vols, 1877–82.

4. Account of a determination of the solar parallax from observations of Mars, made at Ascension in 1877, 2 vols. See Mem., xlvi.

5. A fragment by Gill concerning stellar photography.

6. Miscellaneous biographical notes on Gill.

7. A signed engraved portrait.

GLAISHER Letters and papers of James Glaisher (1809–1903) (see 1–6)

and of James Whitbread Lee Glaisher (1848–1928) (see 7–11).

1. Letters and papers of J. Glaisher, tied up under a cover marked: ‘Balloon Correspondence, Papers & Letters. 1868–69–70’. There are now 7 folders; the original order (roughly by date) has been preserved, and the papers in fact cover the period 1862–70. They include letters from:

G. B. Airy (1), W. R. Birt (1), H. Coxwell (2), W. De La Rue (1), J. P. Gassiot (1), H. Giffard (2), A. S. Herschel (1), J. F. W. Herschel (1), J. Lee (1), H. Lloyd (1), W. H. Sykes (8), J. Wrottesley, Lord (1).

2. Another collection of papers relating to ballooning, consisting largely of 60 letters from Henry Coxwell to

J. Glaisher, 1862–64.

3. Other letters to J. Glaisher. Includes 10 from G. B. Airy, 1 from J. W. L. Glaisher, 1 from J. Lee.

4.1. Bound vol.: addresses of congratulation to J. Glaisher on his eighty-ninth birthday from members of the General Committee of the Palestine Exploration Fund.

4.2. Loose letters and press-cuttings from inside 4.1.

5. J. Glaisher: loose miscellaneous papers and personal relics. These include a passport, 1871; a copy of a certificate on his admission to the Freedom of the City of London, 1881; a receipt for his Royal Society composition fee, 1849; a Masonic certificate, 1881.

6. J. Glaisher: photographs and drawings.

7. Correspondence of J. W. L. Glaisher as RAS President, May–July 1887. Includes 8 letters from E. B. Knobel to Glaisher, 2 from W. H. M. Christie to Knobel, 1 from D. Gill to Knobel.

8. Other letters to J. W. L. Glaisher.

9. Mathematical fragment of J. W. L. Glaisher, 29 Nov. 1928.

10. J. W. L. Glaisher: miscellaneous papers and personal relics. Includes a passport, 1897; 3 badges of the Womens’ Social and Political Union; De Morgan Medal of the London Mathematical Society.

11. J. W. L. Glaisher: photographs.

12. Unidentified mathematical MSS.

13. Miscellaneous papers.