Identity area
Reference code
Herschel/Box 1/Letter 14
Unique identifier
Title
Date(s)
- 13 June 1817 (Creation)
Level of description
Item
Extent and medium
3p. paper
Context area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Astronomer; son of Sir William Herschel; senior wrangler and first Smith's prizeman, 1813; subsequently fellow of St John's College, Cambridge; MA 1816; helped to found Analytical Society, Cambridge, 1813; secretary to Royal Society 1824-7; president of Astronomical Society, 1827-32; created baronet, 1838; president of British Association, 1845; master of the Mint, 1850-5. Major contribution to astronomy through the discovery and cataloguing of many double stars, work on 'light' and early work on photographical process. Buried in Westminster Abbey.
Repository
Archival history
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Content and structure area
Scope and content
Tells of work in progress; books on algebra, translation of Lacroix. Also discusses the polishing of mirrors for Herschel's father's telescope. Mentions mutual acquaintances, discusses the actions of Wood, the Master of St John's, and tells of a visitor with an algebraic equation