Correspondence map
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Thomas Young
John Frederick William Herschel
John Frederick William Herschel publishes in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society.
1820: John Frederick William Herschel publishes “On the action of crystallized bodies on homogeneous light, and on the causes of the deviation from Newton's scale in the tints which many of them develope on exposure to a polarised ray” .
John Frederick William Herschel serves his first term as Foreign Secretary of the Royal Astronomical Society
1820
Autograph letter signed by sender. Gives diagram and explanation of Thomas Young's reduced parallax. John Frederick William Herschel's formula is elaborate but complicated. Thomas Young's formula is less exact but easier for public to use. Welcomes criticism.
1820 or 1825-2-18 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/351
1821
John Frederick William Herschel and Charles Babbage travel through France to Italy and Switzerland.
1821
John Frederick William Herschel publishes in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society.
1821:
John Frederick William Herschel publishes “On the aberrations of compound lenses and object-glasses" in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society.
John Frederick William Herschel receives the Copley Medal of the Royal Society for his papers printed in the Philosophical Transactions
1821
Autograph letter signed by sender. Board of Longitude will meet on 3 Jan. to examine instruments and proposals, and to consider Fearon Fallows's report from Cape of Good Hope.
31 December 1821 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/320
1822
Death of Sir William Herschel FRS
25 August 1822
Autograph letter signed by sender. Board of Longitude reluctant to pay for new building at James South's unless South and John Frederick William Herschel agree to place their observations at Board's disposal.
7 February 1822 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/321
Autograph letter signed by sender, with annotations by recipient. Next meeting of Board of Longitude.
25 March 1822 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/322
Autograph letter signed by sender. Fears John Frederick William Herschel misunderstood Thomas Young's remark about the injustice of James South's accusation regarding Nautical Almanac. Thomas Young was not trying to provoke South's hostility. Sends 'Schumacher's No. 10' for John Frederick William Herschel's perusal.
4 April 1822 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/323
Autograph letter signed by sender. Asks John Frederick William Herschel to check accuracy of Nautical Almanac entry for Jupiter's satellites III and IV on 20 Aug. 1819. Thanks for John Frederick William Herschel's note, but tell James South 'he is bound to give his reasons....'
1822-4 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/324
Autograph letter signed by sender. Has no errands for John Frederick William Herschel in Holland or Flanders. Asks for details on John Frederick William Herschel's and Charles Babbage's method of determining heights by barometrical observations. Hopes to use this to confirm Thomas Young's method by 'my formula deduced from refraction.'
4 August 1822 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/325
Copy of a letter. Leaving for two weeks in Netherlands.
2 August 1822 Sender: John Frederick William Herschel Reference number: HS/19/24
1823
John Frederick William Herschel receives the Bakerian Medal of the Royal Society.
1823:
John Frederick William Herschel gives the Bakerian lecture “On certain Motions produced in Fluid Conductors when transmitting the Electric Current”.
Autograph letter signed by sender. Board of Longitude will meet at Thomas Young's home on Saturday.
26 November 1823 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/326
Autograph letter signed by sender. Sends papers for the Royal Astronomical Society and A. J. Fresnel's papers. Modifies analogy of infinite pipes to clarify Thomas Young's hypothesis of three principal colors. Charles Babbage sent survey of Mont Cenis. Can John Frederick William Herschel find its barometrical observations?
3 January 1823 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/352
1824
John Frederick William Herschel moves to 56 Devonshire St., Portland Place, London
1824
John Frederick William Herschel serves as Secretary of the Royal Society
30 November 1824
Autograph letter signed by sender. Repeat computation for Jupiter's satellite IV [see Thomas Young's 1824-4]. Explains W. H. Wollaston's 'blue bow.' See figure 422 of Thomas Young's [Lectures on Natural Philosophy].
18 November 1824 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/327
Autograph letter signed by sender. As Royal Society [of London] vice president, John Frederick William Herschel should reconsider his report favoring Eilhard Mitscherlich over W. H. Wollaston. This may be last opportunity to pay Wollaston a 'just compliment.' Agrees with John Frederick William Herschel that much in Royal Society [of London] 'nicknamed science [is] sleight of hand,' and that 'great injustice is done to men of science.' But Thomas Young expects a short life and tries not to be concerned about approval of others.
1824-11-21 to 1825 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/328
Autograph letter signed by sender. Thomas Young would rather have John Frederick William Herschel's labor made useful another year. W. H. Wollaston does not want [Royal] medal, but medal wants Wollaston. One council member felt that Thomas Young's remarks offended John Frederick William Herschel. Assures John Frederick William Herschel it was not intended.
1824-11-21 to 1825 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/329
Contemporary copy in sender's hand, signed by sender. Thanks Thomas Young for books and for taking charge of [G. A. A.] Plana's plates. John Frederick William Herschel mentioned Eilhard Mitscherlich only when no other proposals came forth. Matter was left hanging. Assures Thomas Young that John Frederick William Herschel was not offended [see Thomas Young's 1824-11-21, i.e., #1075]. Regrets 'dilapidated state of scientific matters' in Royal Society [of London]
1824-11-21 to 1825 Sender: John Frederick William Herschel Reference number: HS/18/330
Autograph letter signed by sender. Math is flimsy in John Dalton's theory of vapor dispersion, but physical grounds are firm. Sends copy of Thomas Young's volume on sound. Modules of elasticity and tension are analogies to explain Thomas Young's doctrine. Presently studying modules of elasticity that do not apply to chimney pipes investigated by Daniel Bernoulli and J. H. Lambert.
1824-11-21 to 1825 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/331
Autograph letter signed by sender. John Frederick William Herschel is correct, and Thomas Young's 'little man is wrong.' Moon's apparent angular motion increases as spectator moves closer.
1824 to 1829 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/355
Copy of letter, copied as part of the correspondence project led by Colonel John Herschel FRS following the death of his father. Thanks Thomas Young for books and for taking charge of [G. A. A.] Plana's plates. John Frederick William Herschel mentioned Eilhard Mitscherlich only when no other proposals came forth. Matter was left hanging. Assures Thomas Young that John Frederick William Herschel was not offended [see Thomas Young's 1824-11-21, i.e., #1075]. Regrets 'dilapidated state of scientific matters' in Royal Society [of London]
1824-11-21 to 1825 Sender: John Frederick William Herschel Reference number: HS/20/176
1825
John Frederick William Herschel invents the actinometer to measure the heating power of the Sun’s rays
1825
Contemporary copy in sender's hand. Edward Sabine declares that Royal Society [of London] is hostile to Edward Sabine's interests. If Edward Sabine makes future claim for compensation, John Frederick William Herschel wants Thomas Young's opinion in writing. Need to order four night glasses for Fairlight Station. Encloses letter from [Richard] Copeland.
19 June 1825 Sender: John Frederick William Herschel Reference number: HS/18/332
Autograph letter signed by sender. Ask Charles Babbage to send tables of logarithms to Thomas Young, who will compare them to [Brook] Taylor's. Bets that five errors will be found. Did John Frederick William Herschel order mountain barometer from [J. F.] Newman? Will inquire about [W. E.] Parry's instruments. Admiralty, not us, should order sextants.
5 November 1825 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/333
Autograph letter signed by sender. Questions John Frederick William Herschel's conclusion that Board of Longitude has power to interfere in Admiralty operations. Disagrees that Nautical Almanac errors are serious. Compares them to tables of Charles Hutton, F. X. von Zach, and H. C. Schumacher. When will Thomas Young receive Charles Babbage's table?
7 November 1825 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/334
Autographed draft letter. Draft written around letter from Mrs Forbes [HS/18/335a] Herschel encloses note from Sir John Barrow refusing scientific instruments and objecting to using barometers. Supplying cameras and sextants to Admiralty's marine survey is not interference by Board of Longitude. Sent John Frederick William Herschel's expenses to Edward Sabine; has no further word on subject. Encloses Mr. Stewart's note about damages at Wrotham.
8 November 1825 Sender: John Frederick William Herschel Reference number: HS/18/335
Autograph letter signed by sender. [Board of Longitude] must answer to Parliament, not to public opinion. Do not contest the system. Order pocket sextants; they and barometer will be sent to Captain [Richard] Copeland. Knows how John Frederick William Herschel feels about expenses sent to Edward Sabine, but please write receipt and send it to Thomas Young within week. Will write directly to Charles Babbage for tables.
15 November 1825 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/336
Autograph letter signed by sender. Suggests change in John Frederick William Herschel's table of refractions. Possible error in John Pond's reductions [illustration].
11 December 1825 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/337
Copy of letter, copied as part of the correspondence project led by Colonel John Herschel FRS following the death of his father. Edward Sabine declares that Royal Society [of London] is hostile to Edward Sabine's interests. If Edward Sabine makes future claim for compensation, John Frederick William Herschel wants Thomas Young's opinion in writing. Need to order four night glasses for Fairlight Station. Encloses letter from [Richard] Copeland.
19 June 1825 Sender: John Frederick William Herschel Reference number: HS/20/214
Copy of draft letter, copied as part of the correspondence project led by Colonel John Herschel FRS following the death of his father. Draft written around letter from Mrs Forbes [HS/18/335a] Herschel encloses note from Sir John Barrow refusing scientific instruments and objecting to using barometers. Supplying cameras and sextants to Admiralty's marine survey is not interference by Board of Longitude. Sent John Frederick William Herschel's expenses to Edward Sabine; has no further word on subject. Encloses Mr. Stewart's note about damages at Wrotham.
8 November 1825 Sender: John Frederick William Herschel Reference number: HS/20/223
1826
John Frederick William Herschel publishes in the Philosophical Transactions
1826:
John Frederick William Herschel publishes “On the parallax of the fixed stars”.
Autograph letter signed by sender, with annotations by recipient. Errors in equinoctial time calculated by John Pond. Suggests limiting decimal places in value of equinoctial time to reflect this uncertainty. Making error uniform will make it awkward to alter future almanacs.
1826 to 1829 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/354
Autograph letter signed by sender. Resolved puzzle about sidereal year, which needs better definition. Error between true and nominal positions prevents Thomas Young adopting 'equinoctial time' for chronology investigations.
1826 to 1829 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/356
Autograph letter signed by sender. J. J. Littrow's paper in F. X. von Zach's April [Correspondence astronomique, geologique, hydrographique et statistique] is only 'a new hash' of [F. W.] Bessel and no improvement.
1826-6 or earlier Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/358
Autograph letter signed by sender. Send plan of furnace to Thomas Young or Michael Faraday before tomorrow's committee meeting.
1826-6 to 1829-5 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/359
1827
Joseph Nicéphore Niépce presents his photographs in England for the first time
1827
Autograph letter signed by sender. 'Our volume is nearly ready.' Problem dating vernal equinoxes before Christ's birth.
27 December 1827 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/338
1828
Autograph letter signed by sender. T. M. Brisbane is in town. Can John Frederick William Herschel meet him? John Frederick William Herschel's computations of definite integrals are simpler, more direct than P. S. Laplace's and more conclusive than Leonhard Euler's. Comments on W. H. F. Talbot's letters demonstrating Josef Fraunhofer's theorem.
13 May 1828 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/339
Autograph letter signed by sender. Board of Longitude will accomplish nothing by meeting before T. M. Brisbane comes to town, but Thomas Young suggests informal discussion, either at Thomas Young's or Henry Kater's.
28 March 1828 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/340
Autograph letter signed by sender. Henry Kater not well [enough to travel] and requests committee meet at Kater's house. Thomas Young urges John Frederick William Herschel to verify W. H. Wollaston's measurement of refraction before republishing John Frederick William Herschel's essay. Diagrams Christiaan Huygens's principle of refraction. Thomas Young is making forms of aplanatic lenses.
30 March 1828 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/341
Autograph letter signed by sender. Hopes John Frederick William Herschel will stay for Sunday dinner at Thomas Young's before John Frederick William Herschel visits Dr. Litten. If so, please invite T. M. Brisbane and Francis Baily to join them. Writes formula Thomas Young discovered for discontinuous spectra. Thomas Young can now communicate with H. W. M. Olbers and T. J. Seebeck via H. C. Schumacher.
1828-4 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/342
Autograph letter signed by sender, with annotations by recipient. Abandons Thomas Young's argument on Mr. Roberts's object glass. Asks John Frederick William Herschel's help in understanding A. J. Fresnel's calculations of diffraction and Josef Fraunhofer's discontinuous functions.
4 May 1828 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/343
Autograph letter signed by sender, with annotations by recipient. Sudden demolition of Board of Longitude. Thomas Young is left as superintendent [of Nautical Almanac]. Notes quality of J. F. Encke's almanac for 1830. Should English compete with German astronomers, or discontinue almanac supplements? Thomas Young's paper on 'Astronomical Chronology' in W. T. Brande's [Quarterly Journal of Science and Art] illustrates John Frederick William Herschel's equatorial time.
24 August 1828 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/344
Autographed draft letter, signed or initialed by sender. Encourages Thomas Young to publish 1829 supplement to Nautical Almanac. John Frederick William Herschel originally proposed supplement to introduce improvements that would bring N. A. to be like Encke's Ephemeris. That is all ended now. English are dropping behind French and Germans in science. John Frederick William Herschel refuses to accept money from government 'which treats its agents so cavalierly.' Reduction of Parramatta [Australia] observations. Did not see Thomas Young's paper in W. T. Brande's [Quarterly Journal of Science and Art], but objects to substitution of true for mean equinox.
30 August 1828 Sender: John Frederick William Herschel Reference number: HS/18/345
Autograph letter signed by sender, with annotations by recipient. Will not hold John Frederick William Herschel responsible for accuracy of William Richardson's computations. No instructions yet from Admiralty about Nautical Almanac, which goes to press soon. Thomas Young will insert John Frederick William Herschel's equinoctial time. Notes two works by A. F. C. Kollman on harmony and [Beck] on 'thorough-bass.'
31 August 1828 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/346
Autograph letter signed by sender. Feels responsible for John Frederick William Herschel refusing to accept Navy's £25 reimbursement. Used John Frederick William Herschel's [equinoctial] time [in Nautical Almanac supplement], but with different notation. Disagrees that England's scientific reputation depends upon its government. William Richardson is justified in continuing work of late Board of Longitude. Reports meeting in Paris with Jacques Babinet and François Arago.
1 September 1828 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/347
Autograph letter signed by sender. Problems calculating sun's mean longitude due to movement of perigee. Questions S. D. Poisson's value for sidereal year.
3 December 1828 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/350
Autograph letter signed by sender. Board of Longitude would approve providing Lieutenant Forbes with apparatus John Frederick William Herschel suggested. Inappropriate for any member to address Admiralty separately. Payment of expenses to committee members.
1828-5 or earlier Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/357
Copy of draft letter, copied as part of the correspondence project led by Colonel John Herschel FRS following the death of his father. Encourages Thomas Young to publish 1829 supplement to Nautical Almanac. John Frederick William Herschel originally proposed supplement to introduce improvements that would bring N. A. to be like Encke's Ephemeris. That is all ended now. English are dropping behind French and Germans in science. John Frederick William Herschel refuses to accept money from government 'which treats its agents so cavalierly.' Reduction of Parramatta [Australia] observations. Did not see Thomas Young's paper in W. T. Brande's [Quarterly Journal of Science and Art], but objects to substitution of true for mean equinox.
30 August 1828 Sender: John Frederick William Herschel Reference number: HS/21/26
1829
John Frederick William Herschel and Margaret Brodie Stewart are married in London
3 March 1829
Autograph letter signed by sender. John Frederick William Herschel's determination of length of equinoctial year will remain for long time. Mrs. Young is delighted to hear of John Frederick William Herschel's new discovery.
16 February 1829 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/348
Autograph letter signed by sender. Invites John Frederick William Herschel to join Thomas Young to meet Thomas Henderson at [Davies] Gilbert's party Saturday. T. F. Colby accepted payment from Board of Longitude up to Christmas; Henry Kater would not accept payment beyond dissolution of Board. Thomas Young believes John Frederick William Herschel should accept payment at least from March to June.
18 February 1829 Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/349
Autograph letter signed by sender. Measurement of moon's diameter and distance. Expects John Frederick William Herschel will soon have 'official authority over me' and [Nautical Almanac]. Astronomers probably regulate sidereal clock by variable equinox because they cannot find a fixed one. Errors in John Frederick William Herschel's equinoctial time.
1829-5 or earlier Sender: Thomas Young Reference number: HS/18/353
1830
John Frederick William Herschel is elected Foreign correspondent of the Académie des sciences
1830
Birth of Caroline Emilia Mary Herschel, daughter of John Frederick William Herschel and Margaret Brodie Stewart
31 March 1830
John Frederick William Herschel is nominated for the presidency of the Royal Society, loses by 8 votes to the Duke of Sussex
30 November 1830
Copy of a letter. John Frederick William Herschel agrees to assist Hudson Gurney in writing biography of Thomas Young. Please send catalogue of Young's works. Ask Hudson Gurney to write John Frederick William Herschel.
12 March 1830 Sender: John Frederick William Herschel Reference number: HS/18/310