From H. C. Watson [19 November 1854]
Summary
In response to CD’s query, HCW says he cannot supply "any list of species as the flora of a single and sterile soil". Suggests a possible source of information, and provides some figures for Britain, but these apply to diverse soils.
| Author: | Hewett Cottrell Watson |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | [19 Nov 1854] |
| Classmark: | DAR 205.9: 402 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-1604 |
From James R. Garrett to Robert Patterson 1 December 1854
Summary
Discusses the transport of seeds by birds. William Thompson received letters on this subject from CD in 1848 and from Edward Forbes in 1850. Encloses copies of Thompson’s reply to Forbes’s letter of 23 Feb 1850 and of Thompson’s notes (1848–51) on transport of seeds by birds.
| Author: | James R. Garrett |
| Addressee: | Robert Patterson |
| Date: | 1 Dec 1854 |
| Classmark: | DAR 205.2: 232 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-1608 |
To J. D. Hooker 26 March [1854]
Summary
CD welcomes the prospect of the Philosophical Club of the Royal Society as means for seeing old acquaintances and making new ones. Will try to go up to London regularly.
Admits that the warning from JDH and Asa Gray (that more harm than good will come from combat over the species issue) makes him feel "deuced uncomfortable".
Reflects upon the complexity of Agassiz; how singular that a man of his eminence and immense knowledge "should write such wonderful stuff & bosh".
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
| Date: | 26 Mar [1854] |
| Classmark: | DAR 114: 120 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-1562 |
Matches: 4 hits
- … on the letter, see DAR 205.2: 102. Schleiden 1848 , Wallace 1853 , and Stansbury 1852 . …
- … CD’s notes on Schleiden 1848 are in DAR 71: 38–42. …
- … John Murray. Schleiden, Matthias Jacob. 1848. The plant; a biography. In a series of …
- … creation in the animal kingdom’; the second, 1848–9, was on comparative embryology ( Lurie …
To a librarian [early September? 1854]
Summary
Will return all but two volumes; requests four titles, including Pepys’s Diaries, but not the first volume.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Librarian |
| Date: | [early Sept? 1854] |
| Classmark: | The British Library (Surrogate RP 9763) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-1592F |
To A. A. Gould 9 September [1854]
Summary
Returns cirripede specimens to AAG. Encloses specimens for Louis Agassiz in same box.
Since AAG is a member of the Ray Society, will not send him a copy of Living Cirripedia, vol. 2.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Augustus Addison Gould |
| Date: | 9 Sept [1854] |
| Classmark: | Houghton Library, Harvard University (Augustus A. Gould papers, 1831–66 MS Am 1210: 225) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-1591 |
To J. D. Hooker 7 July [1854]
Summary
CD’s view requires only that ancient organisms resemble embryological stages of existing ones. Thus "highness" in plants is difficult to evaluate because they have no larval stages. Would compare highest members of two groups, rather than archetype, to determine which group was higher. Against Forbes’s polarity and parallelism.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
| Date: | 7 July [1854] |
| Classmark: | DAR 114: 123 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-1577 |
From J. D. Hooker 25 August 1854
Summary
JDH and F. W. Binney identify Calamites specimens as pith casts. They are cryptogams related to, but higher than, Lycopodiaceae and contradict progression.
Insects found in coal.
Lyell says Stonesfield slate marsupials are actually placentals.
JDH reading Alexander Braun on individuality ["Das Individuum der Pflanze in seinem Verhältniss zur Species", Abh. K. Akad. Wiss. Berlin (Phys. Kl.) (1853): 19–122].
| Author: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 25 Aug 1854 |
| Classmark: | DAR 205.9: 384 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-1581 |
To P. G. King 21 February 1854
Summary
PGK’s letter stirred memories of their old days in the Beagle.
Gives news of his work on cirripedes. Would like to examine Scalpellum papillosum of King from Patagonia if PGK’s father has a duplicate in his collection.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Philip Gidley King |
| Date: | 21 Feb 1854 |
| Classmark: | Mitchell Library, Sydney (MLMSS 3447/2 Item 1) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-1554A |
From G. R. Waterhouse 11 November 1854
Summary
Sends list of aberrant forms of Curculionidae.
Discusses in detail the artificiality of Carl Johan Schönherr’s classification. Sound generalisations about geographical distribution depend on sound classifications. Warns against putting too much faith in current catalogues.
| Author: | George Robert Waterhouse |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | 11 Nov 1854 |
| Classmark: | DAR 205.9: 401 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-1598 |
To J. S. Henslow 20 February [1854]
Summary
Honoured and gratified by the dedication [to CD] of Hooker’s book [Himalayan journals].
News of Lyell from Madeira.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | John Stevens Henslow |
| Date: | 20 Feb [1854] |
| Classmark: | California State Library, San Francisco, Sutro Library (Crocker collection: folder #11) |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-1554 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … identified. Henslow, one of the founders in 1848 of the Ipswich Museum and president after …
To J. D. Hooker 29 [May 1854]
Summary
CD "lectures" JDH on taking care of his health.
CD’s pleasure in London trip.
CD and Emma have taken season tickets to Crystal Palace.
Edward Forbes’s "Introductory Lecture" is the best CD ever read.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
| Date: | 29 [May 1854] |
| Classmark: | DAR 114: 122 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-1575 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … J. D. Hooker, 20 February – 16 [March] 1848 , in which Hooker expressed his fear that he …
From J. D. Hooker [29 June 1854]
Summary
JDH on "highness" of Coniferae: they are genuine Dicotyledons, not a link to cryptogams; that is a geologists’ fallacy. Thus they are highest plants in Carboniferous.
Does not agree with CD’s "elastic" species theory. Long correspondence with Lyell on this.
| Author: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
| Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Date: | [29 June 1854] |
| Classmark: | DAR 205.9: 383 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-1576 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … Vegetable kingdom. Forbes and Hanley [1848–]1853, 1: xi. The idea of a sequence or ‘ …
To J. D. Hooker 1 March [1854]
Summary
Thanks JDH for dedication of Himalayan journals. CD praises the work and suggests stylistic revisions.
Lyell’s remarks on lava beds in letter from Madeira are not original – they refer exclusively to Élie de Beaumont’s data.
| Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
| Addressee: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
| Date: | 1 Mar [1854] |
| Classmark: | DAR 114: 118 |
| Letter no: | DCP-LETT-1556 |
Matches: 1 hit
- … who strangled their victims’ ( OED ). In March 1848, Hooker had met a Lieutenant Ward in …
| letter | (13) |
| Darwin, C. R. | (8) |
| Hooker, J. D. | (2) |
| Garrett, J. R. | (1) |
| Waterhouse, G. R. | (1) |
| Watson, H. C. | (1) |
| Darwin, C. R. | (4) |
| Hooker, J. D. | (4) |
| Gould, A. A. | (1) |
| Henslow, J. S. | (1) |
| King, P. G. | (1) |
| Darwin, C. R. | (12) |
| Hooker, J. D. | (6) |
| Garrett, J. R. | (1) |
| Gould, A. A. | (1) |
| Henslow, J. S. | (1) |
Darwin in letters, 1847-1850: Microscopes and barnacles
Summary
Darwin's study of barnacles, begun in 1844, took him eight years to complete. The correspondence reveals how his interest in a species found during the Beagle voyage developed into an investigation of the comparative anatomy of other cirripedes and…
Matches: 8 hits
- … on geology ( letter to J. F. W. Herschel, 4 February [1848] ). Letters between Darwin and Richard …
- … on board ship ( see letter to Richard Owen, [26 March 1848] ). Darwin’s chapter plainly calls on …
- … a notion which was roundly criticised by William Hopkins in 1848. Hopkins maintained that transport …
- … ‘desideratum’ ( letter to J. L. R. Agassiz, 22 October 1848 ), was accepted by Darwin, and he …
- … the group, turned over some notes he had made, and, early in 1848, obtained permission for Darwin to …
- … & Species theory al Diabolo together During 1848, Darwin examined the genera Ibla …
- … is all gospel.—’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, 10 May 1848 ). Once Darwin had decided to …
- … this period, especially in 1847 and during the last half of 1848 and the beginning of 1849. When his …
Schools Gallery: Using Darwin’s letters in the classroom
Summary
English| History| Science English Pupils in Cumbria lead the way Year 9 English pupils at Ulverston Victoria High School spent several weeks studying Darwin’s letters, including comparing sections from Darwin’s ‘Voyage of the Beagle’ to letters…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Letter 1174 - Charles Darwin to Joseph Dalton Hooker, 10 May 1848 …
Darwin’s study of the Cirripedia
Summary
Darwin’s work on barnacles, conducted between 1846 and 1854, has long posed problems for historians. Coming between his transmutation notebooks and the Origin of species, it has frequently been interpreted as a digression from Darwin’s species work. Yet…
Darwin and the Church
Summary
The story of Charles Darwin’s involvement with the church is one that is told far too rarely. It shows another side of the man who is more often remembered for his personal struggles with faith, or for his role in large-scale controversies over the…
Scientific Practice
Summary
Specialism|Experiment|Microscopes|Collecting|Theory Letter writing is often seen as a part of scientific communication, rather than as integral to knowledge making. This section shows how correspondence could help to shape the practice of science, from…
Matches: 4 hits
- … Letter 1166 — Darwin, C. R. to Owen, Richard, [26 Mar 1848] Darwin describes in detail to …
- … Letter 1167 — Darwin, C. R. to Henslow, J. S., [1 Apr 1848] Darwin ends by suggesting that if …
- … Letter 1174 — Darwin, C. R. to Hooker, J. D., 10 May 1848 Darwin discusses his barnacle work. …
- … Letter 1202 — Darwin, C. R. to Hooker, J. D., 6 Oct [1848] Darwin writes to Hooker about his …
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: 25 hits
- … 1842]. Life of D. of Marlborough [A. Alison 1848]— (read) Montagus Translat of Visa …
- … 1834] (& of Europe?) [Gould 1832–7] & of Australia [Gould 1848]; well worth studying for …
- … [Dandolo 1825] /good/ M rs Whitby [Whitby 1848] In Library of Entomological Society & …
- … [E. Phipps 1850] L d . Harveys Memoirs [Hervey 1848] Cuming Lion Hunter [Cumming …
- … 1818] (Brougham) Ermans Travels in Siberia [Erman 1848] (Boot) 44 (read) Bethunes …
- … Horace Walpoles letter to C t . of Ossory [Walpole 1848] Lamb’s Letters [Lamb 1837] (read) …
- … [Godwin 1835] Brookes last Journal by Mundy [Mundy 1848] Goldsmiths life by Forster …
- … Charing Cross—sells Johnstons Maps [A. K. Johnston 1848] separately—Forbes is going to publish one. …
- … Emotions by G. Ramsay B.M. 6. 6. Black Edin. Longman [Ramsay 1848] St. John’s Nat. Hist. of …
- … 1839] Catherine 48 Life of Collins R.A. [Collins 1848] Phases of Faith [Newman 1850 …
- … Christian K.. Soc [Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge 1848] 81 March 30 th . Life …
- … Brown 1824, 1814, 1818]. [DAR 119: 21a] 1848 . Jan 1. Reports & …
- … 25. Bunbury Journal of Residence at C. of Good Hope [Bunbury 1848] March. 5. Memoires de la …
- … 12. Arthur Adams. Notes from Journal of Nat. Hist. [Belcher 1848] May Kosmos [?A. von …
- … 7 th Supplements to Müllers Physiology [Baly and Kirkes 1848] 17 th Thompson’s Birds of …
- … Oct 5. Gould Introduct. to Birds of Australia [Gould 1848] —— 20 Billing’s Voyage to N. Sea …
- … ] up to Tom IX inclusive [DAR 119: 21b] 1848 Jan 25. W. Tone …
- … July 20. Sterlings Memoir of by Hare [Sterling 1848]— moderately good Campbells Chancellors …
- … Eyre [Brontë] 1847]— Kelly’s & O’Kellys [Trollope 1848]— M r Warrenne [E. Wallace 1848 …
- … Autobiography of a Working Man. A Somerville [A. Somerville 1848] (excellent) 28. M. …
- … & Gould Principles of Zoology Vol I. [Agassiz and Gould 1848] 30. Hom. de Hells Travels …
- … 5 th . Miss Martineau. Eastern Travels [H. Martineau 1848], curious & interesting …
- … (poor) —— Sir Fowle’s Buxton’s life [Buxton 1848]— (very good) 3 d Sleeman’s …
- … 1845b]. G. Gurney [Hook] 1836]. Harold [Bulwer-Lytton] 1848] Consuelo [Sand 1847]. Wandering …
- … —— May. Haygarth Bush Life in Australia [Haygarth 1848] —— Diary of an Invalid [Matthews 1820 …
Darwin's health
Summary
On 28 March 1849, ten years before Origin was published, Darwin wrote to his good friend Joseph Hooker from Great Malvern in Worcestershire, where Dr James Manby Gully ran a fashionable water-cure establishment. Darwin apologised for his delayed reply to…
Matches: 3 hits
- … ill health, which increased in severity in the years around 1848, 1852, 1859, and 1863. In a letter …
- … entries and correspondence during periods of sickness in 1848, 1852, and 1859 (see Colp 1977, pp. 38 …
- … Correspondence vol. 4, letter to Emma Darwin, [27-8 May 1848] . See also Browne 1995, pp. 428-9 …
Scientific Networks
Summary
Friendship|Mentors|Class|Gender In its broadest sense, a scientific network is a set of connections between people, places, and things that channel the communication of knowledge, and that substantially determine both its intellectual form and content,…
Matches: 4 hits
- … sends a list of plants from Gray’s Manual of botany [1848] and asks him to append the ranges of …
- … Letter 1202 — Darwin, C. R. to Hooker, J. D., 6 Oct [1848] Darwin catches up on personal …
- … Letter 1189 — Darwin, C. R. to Henslow, J. S., 2 July [1848] Darwin criticises the lecturing …
- … Letter 1176 — Darwin, C. R. to Darwin, Emma, [20–1 May 1848] Darwin writes to his wife Emma. …
People featured in the Dutch photograph album
Summary
Here is a list of people that appeared in the photograph album Darwin received for his birthday on 12 February 1877 from scientific admirers in the Netherlands. Many thanks to Hester Loeff for identifying and researching them. No. …
People featured in the Dutch photograph album
Summary
List of people appearing in the photograph album Darwin received from scientific admirers in the Netherlands for his birthday on 12 February 1877. We are grateful to Hester Loeff for providing this list and for permission to make her research available.…
Living and fossil cirripedia
Summary
Darwin published four volumes on barnacles, the crustacean sub-class Cirripedia, between 1851 and 1854, two on living species and two on fossil species. Written for a specialist audience, they are among the most challenging and least read of Darwin’s works…
Matches: 3 hits
3.5 William Darwin, photo 2
Summary
< Back to Introduction Darwin’s son William, who had become a banker in Southampton, took the opportunity of a short visit home to Down House in April 1864 to photograph his father afresh. This half-length portrait was the first to show Darwin with a…
Jane Gray
Summary
Jane Loring Gray, the daughter of a Boston lawyer, married the Harvard botanist Asa Gray in 1848 and evidence suggests that she took an active interest in the scientific pursuits of her husband and his friends. Although she is only known to have…
Matches: 1 hits
- … of a Boston lawyer, married the Harvard botanist Asa Gray in 1848 and evidence suggests that she …
Father dies
Summary
Darwin's father, Robert Waring Darwin. dies in Shrewsbury
Matches: 1 hits
- … Darwin's father, Robert Waring Darwin. dies in Shrewsbury …
Julia Wedgwood
Summary
Charles Darwin’s readership largely consisted of other well-educated Victorian men, nonetheless, some women did read, review, and respond to Darwin’s work. One of these women was Darwin’s own niece, Julia Wedgwood, known in the family as “Snow”. In July…
Matches: 1 hits
- … the first intakes at both Queen’s and Bedford Colleges in 1848 and 1849. Her teachers included James …
Hermann Müller
Summary
Hermann (Heinrich Ludwig Hermann) Müller, was born in Mühlberg near Erfurt in 1829. He was the younger brother of Fritz Müller (1822–97). Following the completion of his secondary education at Erfurt in 1848, he studied natural sciences at Halle and Berlin…
Matches: 1 hits
- … the completion of his secondary education at Erfurt in 1848, he studied natural sciences at Halle …
Alfred Russel Wallace
Summary
Wallace was a leading Victorian naturalist, with wide-ranging interests from biogeography and evolutionary theory to spiritualism and politics. He was born in 1823 in Usk, a small town in south-east Wales, and attended a grammar school in Hertford. At the…
Matches: 1 hits
- … Henry Walter Bates, and the two men travelled to Brazil in 1848 to pursue natural history. Despite …
Dramatisation script
Summary
Re: Design – Adaptation of the Correspondence of Charles Darwin, Asa Gray and others… by Craig Baxter – as performed 25 March 2007
Matches: 1 hits
- … XVII, 1882 4 C DARWIN TO JD HOOKER 10 MAY 1848 5 C DARWIN TO JD HOOKER …
Asa Gray
Summary
Darwin’s longest running and most significant exchange of correspondence dealing with the subjects of design in nature and religious belief was with the Harvard botanist Asa Gray. Gray was one of Darwin’s leading supporters in America. He was also a…
Matches: 1 hits
- … the American Association for the Advancement of Science. In 1848 he married Jane Loring. They had no …
