Correspondence map
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William Thomson
John Frederick William Herschel
Autograph letter signed by sender. Sends John Frederick William Herschel a copy of the third edition of his Laws of Thought.
19 January 1853 Sender: William Thomson Reference number: HS/17/436
1855
Birth of Constance Anne Herschel, daughter of John Frederick William Herschel and Margaret Brodie Stewart
1855
Sir John Herschel is elected Foreign Associate of the Institut de France
1855
Sir John Herschel resigns from his position as Master of the Mint
1855
1860
Sir John Herschel publishes in the Proceedings of the Royal Society
1860: Sir John Herschel publishes some “Remarks on colour-blindness" extracted from a referee report on Pole’s paper on the same subject.
1861
Death of Margaret Louisa Marshall, née Herschel, daughter of John Frederick William Herschel and Margaret Brodie Stewart
1861
William Morris established the decorative design firm of Morris, Marshall, Faulkner & Company (later Morris & Company)
1861
Charles Dickens publishes Great Expectations as a three-volume book
1861
Sir John Herschel publishes Physical Geography as part of the Encyclopaedia Britannica.
1861
Abraham Lincoln begins his term as President of the United States
4 March 1861
1864
Autograph letter signed by sender. Thanks William Thomson for paper on rigidity of the earth; agrees tidal action affects not only fluid motion of earth, but the solid as well. Mentions John Frederick William Herschel's paper of the previous year suggesting that tidal waves cause earthquakes. Raises questions about the idea of the earth as a magnet and about William Thomson's dynamical theory of heat.
25 August 1864 Sender: John Frederick William Herschel Reference number: HS/17/349a
Autograph letter signed by sender. Reads John Frederick William Herschel's earthquake article and believes the effects of the transferences of matter of which John Frederick William Herschel speaks must be very small. Discusses the dynamical theory of heat. Will send to John Frederick William Herschel volume William Thomson is editing.
12 November 1864 Sender: William Thomson Reference number: HS/17/350
Draft in John Herschel's hand. Thanks William Thomson for pageproofs of his work on analytical dynamics. Compliments work on Isaac Newton's view of nature of luminous ether. Gives own views on ether and motion theory of heat.
22 November 1864 Sender: John Frederick William Herschel Reference number: HS/17/350a
Copy of letter, copied as part of the correspondence project led by Colonel John Herschel FRS following the death of his father. Thanks William Thomson for paper on rigidity of the earth; agrees tidal action affects not only fluid motion of earth, but the solid as well. Mentions John Frederick William Herschel's paper of the previous year suggesting that tidal waves cause earthquakes. Raises questions about the idea of the earth as a magnet and about William Thomson's dynamical theory of heat.
25 August 1864 Sender: John Frederick William Herschel Reference number: HS/24/59
Copy of letter, copied as part of the correspondence project led by Colonel John Herschel FRS following the death of his father. Thanks William Thomson for pageproofs of his work on analytical dynamics. Compliments work on Isaac Newton's view of nature of luminous ether. Gives own views on ether and motion theory of heat.
22 November 1864 Sender: John Frederick William Herschel Reference number: HS/24/70
1866
Sir John Herschel publishes his translation of Homer’s Iliad
1866
1867
Sir John Herschel publishes Familiar Lectures on Scientific Subjects
1867
1868
Benjamin Disraeli becomes Prime Minister
1 February 1868
William Gladstone becomes Prime Minister
1 December 1868
Autograph letter signed by sender. Comments on William Thomson's paper on geological time. Unsatisfied with the efficiency of tidal friction in retarding the rotation of the earth. Considers effect of external attraction on a rotating body to relate to momentum.
11 August 1868 Sender: John Frederick William Herschel Reference number: HS/17/351
Autograph letter signed by sender. Replies in detail to John Frederick William Herschel's objection to explaining the retardation of the earth's rotation as due to tidal friction, John Frederick William Herschel having urged that this effect should be analyzed in terms of momentum rather than of vis viva [kinetic energy], as William Thomson maintained.
24 September 1868 Sender: William Thomson Reference number: HS/17/351a