To C. T. Whitley [10 August 1828]
Summary
His idle life and the pleasures of Barmouth: "my reading [in mathematics] is a failure"; "Beettle hunting … is my proper sphere".
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Charles Thomas Whitley |
| Date: | [10 Aug 1828] |
| Classmark: | Shrewsbury School, Taylor Library |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-45A |
To W. D. Fox [19 August 1828]
Summary
Accepts invitation to a Music Meeting at Osmaston, Derbyshire.
Entomological news and queries.
Has taken up angling.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | William Darwin Fox |
| Date: | [19 Aug 1828] |
| Classmark: | Christ’s College Library, Cambridge (MS 53 Fox 4) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-46 |
| letter | (2) |
| Fox, W. D. | (1) |
| Whitley, C. T. | (1) |
| Darwin, C. R. | (2) |
| Fox, W. D. | (1) |
| Whitley, C. T. | (1) |
Capturing Darwin’s voice: audio of selected letters
Summary
On a sunny Wednesday in June 2011 in a makeshift recording studio somewhere in Cambridge, we were very pleased to welcome Terry Molloy back to the Darwin Correspondence Project for a special recording session. Terry, known for his portrayal of Davros in Dr…
Darwin in letters, 1874: A turbulent year
Summary
The year 1874 was one of consolidation, reflection, and turmoil for Darwin. He spent the early months working on second editions of Coral reefs and Descent of man; the rest of the year was mostly devoted to further research on insectivorous plants. A…
Darwin in letters,1870: Human evolution
Summary
The year 1870 is aptly summarised by the brief entry Darwin made in his journal: ‘The whole of the year at work on the Descent of Man & Selection in relation to Sex’. Descent was the culmination of over three decades of observations and reflections on…
Matches: 4 hits
- … more grateful I shall be’ ( letter to H. E. Darwin, [8 February 1870] ). She had previously read …
- … that I shd. turn parson?’ ( letter to H. E. Darwin, [8 February 1870] ). Henrietta disagreed: …
- … as the mind of man!’ ( letter from H. E. Darwin, [after 8 February 1870] ). Darwin was also …
- … he will not succeed’ ( letter to James Crichton-Browne, 8 June [1870] ). Darwin’s queries …
Darwin in letters, 1872: Job done?
Summary
'My career’, Darwin wrote towards the end of 1872, 'is so nearly closed. . . What little more I can do, shall be chiefly new work’, and the tenor of his correspondence throughout the year is one of wistful reminiscence, coupled with a keen eye…
Matches: 3 hits
Darwin’s hothouse and lists of hothouse plants
Summary
Darwin became increasingly involved in botanical experiments in the years after the publication of Origin. The building of a small hothouse - a heated greenhouse - early in 1863 greatly increased the range of plants that he could keep for scientific…
Matches: 8 hits
- … greenhouse for experiments (see Correspondence vols. 8–10). Though his greenhouse was probably …
- … ( Correspondence vol. 3, letter to Charles Lyell, 8 October [1845] ). Having indulged …
- … plants drawn up by Darwin; these lists are in DAR 255: 8 and DAR 255: 2–5. The first is a list that …
- … Get Edwardsia tetraptera mentioned by Treviranus Honey. 8 Acropera …
- … —— pictus . 13 8 s …
- … chæmæcistus 20 Provenance: DAR 255: 8 Notes 1. Hugh Low & …
- … 7. Melastoma trinerve or M. trinervium. 8. This sentence added in pencil. The reference is …
- … 5 s .’ deleted in ink. 13. ‘—— pictus 8 s .’ deleted in ink. 14. ‘Drosera’ …
Women’s scientific participation
Summary
Observers | Fieldwork | Experimentation | Editors and critics | Assistants Darwin’s correspondence helps bring to light a community of women who participated, often actively and routinely, in the nineteenth-century scientific community. Here is a…
Matches: 7 hits
- … Letter 6736 - Gray, A. & J. L to Darwin, [8 & 9 May 1869] Jane Loring Gray, …
- … Letter 7223 - Darwin to Wedgwood, L. C., [8 June 1867 - 72] Darwin asks his niece, …
- … Letter 5602 - Sutton, S. to Darwin, [8 August 1867] Sutton, the keeper of the …
- … Letter 4235 - Becker, L. E. to Darwin, [8 July 1863] Lydia Becker sends Darwin a …
- … Letter 12745 - Darwin to Wedg wood, K. E. S., [8 October 1880] Darwin asks his …
- … . Letter 9485 - Treat, M. to Darwin, [8 June 1874] Mary Treat details her …
- … . Letter 7124 - Darwin to Darwin, H. E., [8 February 1870] Darwin seeks …
The Lyell–Lubbock dispute
Summary
In May 1865 a dispute arose between John Lubbock and Charles Lyell when Lubbock, in his book Prehistoric times, accused Lyell of plagiarism. The dispute caused great dismay among many of their mutual scientific friends, some of whom took immediate action…
Matches: 4 hits
- … extinct species such as the mammoth ( Correspondence vol. 8, letter to Charles Lyell, 4 May [1860 …
- … what he thought about ‘the derivation of Species’. 8 Darwin continued to feel aggrieved about …
- … theory of transmutation, see Bartholomew 1973. 8. See Correspondence vol. 11, …
- … Letters from Charles Lyell to T. H. Huxley, 7 June 1865, and 8 June 1865 (Imperial College, Huxley …
Darwin in letters, 1881: Old friends and new admirers
Summary
In May 1881, Darwin, one of the best-known celebrities in England if not the world, began writing about all the eminent men he had met. He embarked on this task, which formed an addition to his autobiography, because he had nothing else to do. He had…
Matches: 5 hits
- … letter about Darwin in the St James’s Gazette on 8 December. Krause countered Butler’s …
- … vol. 28, Appendix VI). When Huxley heard on 8 January that Wallace would receive £200 a year, …
- … totally & entirely’. Wallace also received the news on 8 January (his 58th birthday) and …
- … behaviour were trustworthy ( letter to Francis Galton, 8 March [1881] ). Although results from …
- … now wish that I had not done so’ ( letter to J. V. Carus, 8 December 1881 ). The …
Darwin in letters, 1856-1857: the 'Big Book'
Summary
In May 1856, Darwin began writing up his 'species sketch’ in earnest. During this period, his working life was completely dominated by the preparation of his 'Big Book', which was to be called Natural selection. Using letters are the main…
Darwin’s reading notebooks
Summary
In April 1838, Darwin began recording the titles of books he had read and the books he wished to read in Notebook C (Notebooks, pp. 319–28). In 1839, these lists were copied and continued in separate notebooks. The first of these reading notebooks (DAR 119…
Matches: 16 hits
- … 39. tom. 4. p. 273. Latreille Geographie des Insectes 8 vo p 181 [Latreille 1819]. see p. …
- … de Serres Cavernes d’Ossements 7 th Ed. 10 8 vo . [Serres 1838] good to trace Europ. forms …
- … by Loudon [Loudon 1831]. Book I. ch. 7 & Book II. Ch. 8. Book. VII. ch 8, 11. read 1 st …
- … Lacordaire Introduction Entomologique [Lacordaire 1834–8]: Reptiles [Duméril and Bibron 1834–54]: …
- … Mem. of Helvetic Soc. of Neuchatel on Jura. 1846, or 7, or 8 [?Marcou 1845]. 46 Morris good …
- … 1838] Walter Scott’s life [Lockhart 1837–8] 1 st 2 nd & 7 th vols. …
- … on Geology of France [Dufrénoy and Élie de Beaumont 1830–8] & C Prevost on l’Ile Julie [Prévost …
- … 1839 Jan 10 All life of W. Scott [Lockhart 1837–8] except 5 th vol. 19 Mungo …
- … hermaphroditism—good letters of M r Knight July 8 th M.S. Voyage of Kolff to the …
- … Works & several reviews [Carlyle 1838–9] Nov 8 th Murchison Silurian System [Murchison …
- … of the Bath and West of England Society ]. 1 st to 8 th vol. inclusive 1 st . series …
- … Pallas Travels [Pallas 1802–3] (wretched) ——8 th Brand’s dissert. [Linnaeus 1781c] …
- … E. Ferrier] 1824 and 1818].— 18 th . 7 th & 8 th . Vol of Hume’s England [Hume …
- … Botanica [Linnaeus 1751] (references at end) June 8 th . Evelyn’s Sylva [Evelyn 1664]. …
- … 1825] & Liebers remains of Niebuhr [Lieber 1835]. 8 Paley’s Evidence. of Christ. [Paley …
- … Register of Rural & Domestic Improvement ] Vol 7 th . & 8 th . vol. April 8 th …
Darwin in letters, 1868: Studying sex
Summary
The quantity of Darwin’s correspondence increased dramatically in 1868 due largely to his ever-widening research on human evolution and sexual selection.Darwin’s theory of sexual selection as applied to human descent led him to investigate aspects of the…
Matches: 4 hits
- … I shall look rather blank’ ( letter from W. S. Dallas, 8 January 1868 ). Darwin sympathised, …
- … enemies of Nat. Selection’ ( letter from A. R. Wallace, 8 [April] 1868 ). Researching …
- … cry (letters to W. E. Darwin, [15 March 1868] and 8 April [1868] ). Such facts proved …
- … omnipotent and omniscient Creator’ ( letter to Asa Gray, 8 May [1868] ). Others were concerned …
Darwin’s earthquakes
Summary
Darwin experienced his first earthquake in 1834, but it was a few months later that he was really confronted with their power. Travelling north along the coast of Chile, Darwin and Robert FitzRoy, captain of HMS Beagle, were confronted with a series of…
Matches: 1 hits
- … having happened Darwin to his sister Catherine, 8 November 1834 Darwin …
The writing of "Origin"
Summary
From a quiet rural existence at Down in Kent, filled with steady work on his ‘big book’ on the transmutation of species, Darwin was jolted into action in 1858 by the arrival of an unexpected letter (no longer extant) from Alfred Russel Wallace outlining a…
Matches: 3 hits
Darwin’s queries on expression
Summary
When Darwin resumed systematic research on emotions around 1866, he began to collect observations more widely and composed a list of queries on human expression. A number of handwritten copies were sent out in 1867 (see, for example, letter to Fritz Muller…
Henrietta Darwin's diary
Summary
Darwin's daughter Henrietta kept a diary for a few momentous weeks in 1871. This was the year in which Descent of Man, the most controversial of her father's books after Origin itself, appeared, a book which she had helped him write. The small…
Darwin and Fatherhood
Summary
Charles Darwin married Emma Wedgwood in 1839 and over the next seventeen years the couple had ten children. It is often assumed that Darwin was an exceptional Victorian father. But how extraordinary was he? The Correspondence Project allows an unusually…
Matches: 1 hits
- … lines were built to the area (Darwin to J. D. Hooker, 8 April [1856] ). This meant that most of …
Diagrams and drawings in letters
Summary
Over 850 illustrations from the printed volumes of The Correspondence of Charles Darwin have been added to the online transcripts of the letters. The contents include maps, diagrams, drawings, sketches and photographs, covering geological, botanical,…
Matches: 1 hits
- … on the structure of bees’ cells, [before 8 June 1858] , and their geometry, [19 June 1858] . …
Women as a scientific audience
Summary
Target audience? | Female readership | Reading Variation Darwin's letters, in particular those exchanged with his editors and publisher, reveal a lot about his intended audience. Regardless of whether or not women were deliberately targeted as a…
Darwin in letters, 1864: Failing health
Summary
On receiving a photograph from Charles Darwin, the American botanist Asa Gray wrote on 11 July 1864: ‘the venerable beard gives the look of your having suffered, and … of having grown older’. Because of poor health, Because of poor health, Darwin…
Matches: 3 hits
Dramatisation script
Summary
Re: Design – Adaptation of the Correspondence of Charles Darwin, Asa Gray and others… by Craig Baxter – as performed 25 March 2007
