Institutions involved with tidal correspondence in the nineteenth century.

 

American Association for the Advancement of Science: was founded in 1848 and incorporated in 1874, its headquarters are in Washington. The association's publications include Science, published weekly, Scientific Monthly and others. 2t

Board of Longitude

Bristol Society of Merchant Venturers

Bristol Standard: a Bristol daily newspaper. 1t

British Association for the Advancement of Science: was founded in 1831 at York with its first general secretary William Vernon Harcourt. It held peripatetic annual meetings throughout Britain and the Commonwealth and during the 19th and early 20th centuries made important contributions to advances in basic research. It subsidized tidal observations. The association publishes Advancement of Science quarterly. William Thomson, in 1871, was president of the British Association at its meeting in Edinburgh.4f 2t

Cambridge Scientific Instrument Company: Horace Darwin's company. 2f

Cambridge University Press: is the oldest printing and publishing house in the world, granted a charter by Henry VIII in 1534 it published its first book in 1584 as well as the first printed bible to be taken into the New World. 1f

The Cambrian: a Welsh Newspaper. 1t

Falmouth Packet: a newspaper. 1t

Government of India: 1f 2t

Hydrographic Office. Instituted in 1795 at the Admiralty in Charing Cross. In 1817 it moved to the top floor of the new building on Whitehall. The building is now called the Old Admiralty Building. An Edwardian addition extends into Horse Guards Parade. For the second World War it was moved to its present site in Taunton.

Admiralty Hydrographers

1795-1808    Alexander Dalrymple                   

1808-1823    Thomas Hurd  

1823-1829    Edward Parry

1829-1855    Francis Beaufort                       

1855-1863    John Washington

1863-1874    George Richards

1874-1884    Frederick Evans

1884-1904    William Wharton

1904-1909    Arthur Mostyn Field

1909-1914    Herbert Edward Purey-Cust

1914-1919    John F Parry

1919-1924    Frederick Charles Learmonth

1924-1931    Henry Percy Douglas

1932-1945    John Augustine Edgell

1945-1950    Guy Wyatt

1950-1955    Archibald Day

1955-1960    Kenneth St Barbe Collins

1960-1965    Edmund Irving

1966-1971    George Steven Ritchie

1971-1975    Geoffrey Penrose Dickinson Hall

1975-1985    David William Haslam

1985-1990    Roger Oliver Morris

1990-1994    John Anthony Lovell Myres

Liverpool Lyceum library: the home of the Liverpool Literary and Philosophical Society. This library held the long tidal records, made by William Hutchinson and used by the Holdens with which to make their predictions for Liverpool. Joseph Brooks Yates was its president twice. At the time of the manuscript being loaned to Joseph Foss Dessiou, Thomas F. Bennett was the president. 

Nautical Almanac Office: http://www.nao.rl.ac.uk/

New York Daily Mail: a newspaper. 1f

Royal Society: or The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge received its formal foundation about 1660 after earlier, informal beginnings. Henry Oldenburg, the first secretary, beginning with correspondence published the Philosophical Transactions from 1665. PT were divided into parts A & B from 1887. Beginning as Abstracts, the Proceedings of the Royal Society were published from 1832. From the time of its foundation onwards, it was appealed to by government for scientific advice; including tidal observations from 1832 and in 1884 the International Conference on the Prime Meridian. One of the most important duties which the Royal Society performs on behalf of the government, is the administration of an annual grant for the promotion of scientific research and the assistance of scientific publications. It periodically awards valuable medals and special lectures, endowed by the benefactors, are delivered to the society. 

In 1824-7 Sir John Frederick William Herschel was Secretary. In 1826-7, and again from 1830 to 1837, John George Children [q.v.] was one of the secretaries. Davies Gilbert was President 1827-1830. Samuel Hunter Christie [q.v.] was of secretary from 1837 to 1854. George Biddell Airy [q.v.] was president 1872-73. Sir George Gabriel Stokes [q.v.], Secretary 1854-1885, President 1885-1890. Sir William Thomson [q.v.] was president from 1890 to 1894.

6letters to.

Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge The Society was founded in 1826, largely at the instigation of Lord Brougham. The object of the new Society was 'the imparting useful information to all classes of the community, particularly to such as are unable to avail themselves of experienced teachers, or may prefer learning by themselves' (SDUK Prospectus, 1829). It sought to achieve this object by acting as the intermediary between authors and publishers in several different and often ambitious series of publications. The Society fixed the form and selling price of treatises, frequency of publication and payments to authors; the publisher made arrangement with the printer and organised the distribution and sale of publications. In charge of the Society's affairs was a General Committee of not less than 40 and not more than 60 members. Prominent on the Committee besides Lord Brougham were James Mill, Lord John Russell, Lord Althorp, Zachary Macaulay, Joseph Hume, Robert Aglionby Slaney and Augustus De Morgan. Sub-committees were appointed and their function handed over to a reconstituted Publication Committee, though even after this date, ad hoc sub-committees persisted. The Society was responsible for many series of publications including: Library of Useful Knowledge; British Almanac; Library of Entertaining Knowledge; Farmer's series; Maps; Working Man's Companion; Quarterly Journal of Education; Penny Magazine; Penny Cyclopedia; Gallery of Portraits; Library for the Young; Biographical Dictionary. In 1829 there were 515 annual subscribers to the Society but that number fell to 49 by 1842. Together with the fall in the number of subscribers went a general fall in the sale of publications. Perhaps the main reason for the fall in popularity of the publications was the fact that too many and too diverse sets of treatises ran concurrently, with an extremely cumbersome review procedure for each treatise. This led to the erratic appearance of treatises, with consequent delays in the completion of readers' sets. The publications were also felt to be of a miscellaneous and non-controversial nature and therefore aroused little interest. The Society's active life lasted until 1846 and its affairs were wound up in 1848. A very useful study on the Society is Monica C Grobel, 'The Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge 1826-1846 and its relation to adult education in the first half of the XIXth Century' (unpublished London University PhD thesis, 1932). 

SDUK committee 1837

Chairman:                     Lord Brougham

Vice-Chairman:             John Wood

Treasurer:                     William Tooke

Secretary:                     Thomas Coates, 59 Lincoln ’s Inn Fields.

W. Allen                                               J. T. Leader

Captain F. Beaufort                               George C. Lewis

G. Burrow                                            Thomas Loch

Peter Stafford Carey                             George Long

William Coulson                                    J. W. Lubbock

R. D. Craig                                           H. Malden

J. F. Davis                                            A. T. Malkin

H. T. DeLaBeche                                 James Manning

Lord Denman                                        J. Herman Merivale

Samuel Duckworth                                Lord Nugent

Bishop of Durham                                  W. H. Ord

Viscount Ebrington                                Sir H. Parnell

Sir Henry Ellis                                       Dr. Roget

T. F. Ellis                                              Edward Romilly

John Elliotson                                        Lord John Russell

Thomas Falconer                                   Sir M. A. Shee

I. L. Goldmith                                        John Abel Smith

B. Gompertz                                         Earl Spencer

G. B. Greenough                                   John Taylor

M. D. Hill                                             Dr. A. T. Thomson

Rowland Hill                                         H. Waymouth

Sir J. C. Hobhouse                                J. Wishaw

David Jardine                                        John Wrottesley

Henry B. Kerr                                      J. A. Yates

Th. Hewitt Key

 

Superintendent Tidal Branch

1914-1938    Harold Dreyer Warburg

1938-1945    William Ian Farquharson

1956-1967    David Leslie Gordon

1967-1987    Nisbet Cunningham Glen

1987-            Geoffrey Lewis Hope (in retirement)

                      John Page

Reviser of Tidal Literature

1977-            Anthony Gordon Merriman

 

Tide Table computers Three volumes were produced in the nineteenth century. They were for Britain, India and America.

The British volume began in 1833 with Joseph Foss Dessiou as its first computer. He was followed by John Burdwood in 1847. In 1870 he was succeeded by Davis. They eventually became anonymous. The post of Superintendent of  Sailing Directions was created during Burdwood's time; he was followed in that post by McDougall in 1870 and Richards in 1874.

The Indian volume began in 1880 and Edward Roberts was its compiler until at least 1903; it had joint authorship with Andrew Wilson Baird from 1881. It was published in London.

The American tidal department dates back to April 11th 1851; the division chief was W. W. Gordon. He was succeeded by Louis F. Pourtales on April 12th 1853; and in turn, on June 15th 1866 by Robert S. Avery. The American volume was begun in 1867.

 

United Service Journal: 1f