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Letters from various scientists to Walter White, Assistant Secretary of the Royal Society. With occasional material addressed to Charles Richard Weld and others. Usually on Royal Society business.

The archive correspondence can be characterized as the routine treatment of important events. In 1863, for example, Richard Owen wrote to White with brief instructions for his paper describing the feathered dinosaur archaeopteryx. Occasionally the letters are more significant for the Society's history. In an extended note of 1865, ex Royal Society President the Earl of Rosse 'a plain well-grown man, farmer like in appearance' discussed the merits of signing an election certificate for Alfred Lord Tennyson (1809-1892). 'My opinion...was that it would be better to take the broad view and to elect men of great abillity...so as to strengthen the Society in carrying out, in the largest sense, its great object, that of improving natural science'. Tennyson was duly elected, an event which must have pleased White. The assistant secretary had become friendly with the Poet Laureate in the 1850s and White's published diary left a vivid picture of Tennyson reading aloud his Arthurian romances in the offices of the Royal Society.

Typescript of article 'The Administration of the Royal Society' by Edwin Herbert Samuel, 2nd Viscount Samuel, presented by Dr Anthony R Michaelis, Editor of 'Interdisciplinary Science Review'.

Nominations for visiting professors to the Royal Society.

The Royal Society's Tercentenary celebrations in 1960 prompted learned societies and centres of academic excellence worldwide to send gifts and messages of congratulations. Presentation books, medals and other memorabilia were presented also. Many of the messages were highly ornate, and this series illustrates a wide range of calligraphic techniques and styles of binding.

Secretaries Draft Minutes of Meetings of the Royal Society: these are the notes, more or less rough, which were written up to make the Journal Books. They fall into two sections;

1. 'Original Minutes' A series of guardbooks and packets of papers, 12 in number, containing original minutes of the Society's meetings. These minutes gradually approach nearer and nearer to the form and appearance of the Journal Book, and the last few volumes (from 15 onwards) are little different from the corresponding volumes of the Journal Book in their style.

2. 'Rough Minutes' A series of 5 notebooks containing rough minutes of meetings. It seems likely that these are the notes taken down by the Secretary at the meetings, which were later written out much more carefully to make the original minutes (which are usually more legible and more clearly intended to be preserved). These 5 notebooks cover fairly well the gaps in the series of Original minutes caused by the absence of Volume VI (almost certainly this is Sloane MS 3342 in the British Library) and the exceedingly fragmentary state of Volume V.

Disregarding the gaps, the period covered by the combined original and rough minutes is from August 1662 to November 1761. The period covered by the individual volumes are also shown on the backs of the volumes

The Register Books contain copies of scientific papers submitted to the Society - the original documents may be found in the Classified Papers. The papers were transcribed in order to establish their precedence for a particular discovery or idea. Therefore not all communications to the Society were registered in this manner, but only those judged to contain some significant material. Dates as listed are those in which the paper was communicated to the Royal Society; dates of writing, where given, are included in the description of each paper. Many of the these papers were published in 'Philosophical Transactions'.

The Register Books exist in Original and Copy form. The Register Book contains copies of scientific papers submitted to the Society - the original documents may be found in the Classified Papers series. The papers were transcribed to establish their precedence for a particular discovery or idea. It follows that not all communications to the Society were registered in this manner, but only those judged to contain some significant material.

A series of (generally) printed material relating to, and commenting on, the Society's activities. The press cuttings and scrap books contain cuttings from newspapers interspersed with other printed matter, and occasionally items of manuscripts. The remaining volumes are concerned with particular events or subjects, such as 'HMS Challenger 1872-1895' or 'National Antarctic Expedition 1899-1904'. There are three types of volumes; the first volume is for the years 1846-1876, but therafter two types of book were kept;

a) biographical - 12 volumes, 1872-1910

b) general, 10 volumes 1885-1910.

These were discontinued for a short period, then merged: 36 volumes, 1918-1976. Thereafter newscuttings were photocopied and kept in monthly bundles.

A list of presents to the Royal Society, 1831-1849.

A small collection of photostats or photocopies of manuscripts held in other institutions, but of some relevance to the Royal Society and its own Archives. The series largely consists of groups of correspondence, notable letters to Julius Plucker (PH.1) letters of Hevelius, Newton and Flamsteed (PH.2) and of Edmond Halley (PH.3) There are some records of other institutions, including a minute book of the Physiological Society 1876-1892 (PH.9), and copies of Rutherford's correspondence at the Cavendish Laboratory.

Correspondence relating to the Royal Grant of Apartments in Somerset House to the Royal Society by King George III including a copy of a memorandum by Albert, the Prince Consort, in 1851.

Copies of the outgoing letters written by the Foreign Secretaries of the Royal Society.

Minutes of the meetings of the Officers of the Society to discuss matters of policy, the administration and staffing of the Society, and to consider reports from staff.

Copies of outgoing letters from the President, Officers and Assistant Secretaries. Each page may contain up to four copied documents. Volumes are numbered 1-73 with an additional volume for the period January 1901-November 1904.

Catalogue of the Royal Society Museum, possibly seventeenth or early eighteenth century.

The Royal Society Library and Museum; 'Libri desiderate' library request book with minutes of the Library Committee from undated to 1932.

Royal Society Library and Museum Account Book; the catalogue in account with the Royal Society.

Acquisitions book for the Royal Society Library, appears to be nineteenth century.

Inspectors' Visitation of the Royal Society Library, 1768-1769 and 1777.

Letters sent to the Royal Society, its President or Officers. Subject matter is both domestic and scientific. Domestic concerns include such matters as instructions from authors on the publication of papers. The letters on scientific topics appear to be those which were considered of small significance, e.g. giving notice of minor inventions, or appealing to the Society for recognition.

Miscellaneous letters and papers concerning the landed property of the Royal Society covering the nineteenth century.

Declarations in lieu of charter oath by Royal Society Fellows.

Council Attendance Book of Royal Society.

Papers relating to the 250th Anniversary of the Incorporation of the Royal Society consisting of two separately bound addresses from the University of Paris and the University of Parma, a box of addresses from Europe other than the United Kingdom, Japan, USA, and the British Empire; a box of addresses from the United Kingdom; and a box of other miscellaneous papers.

Lists of Visitors introduced at Meetings of the Royal Society in 9 volumes as follows: Volume 1 1783-1788; Volume 2 1812-1820; Volume 3 1822-1832; Volume 4 1847-1855; Volume 5 1856-1866; Volume 6 1867-1877; Volume 7 1878-1888; Volume 8 1889-1898; Volume 9 1899-1906.

Papers relating to the International Association of Academies including Generalplan zur Grundung einer internationalen Association der Akademien, 1899; Statuten der internationalen Assoziation der Akademien, 9-10 October 1899; Letter from J Larmor, Secretary of the Royal Society, to the President of the Council of the International Association of Academies, Imperial Academy of Sciences, Vienna 21 December 1905; Letter from Chevalier Edm. Marchal, Secretaire perpetuel de l'Academie Royale des Sciences, des Lettres et des Beaux-Arts de Belgique, 16 May 1905; Letter from Robert Harrison, Assistant Secretary of the Royal Society to The President, Kaiserliche Akademie der Wissenschaften, Vienna, 14 February 1906; Letter from J Gollancz, Secretary of the British Academy to Professor Victor von Lang, 26 February 1906; Letter from Robert Harrison to Professor Arthur Schuster FRS, 16 March 1906; Minutes of first sitting of General Assembly of the International Association of Academies, 29 May 1906; Minutes of the Committee meeting held on, 1 June 1906.

Draft and copy minutes of Royal Society meetings taken by Robert Hooke, the first 120 pages consist of notes taken by Robert Hooke after going through the draft notes of his predecessor, Henry Oldenburg, as Secretary. Remaining pages are notes taken by Hooke as Secretary attending the Society meetings. Includes a folder of loose material which was removed from the folio without noting where they came from before it was acquired by the Society.

Originals of the Fellows bonds for payment of fees to the Royal Society: Volume 1 covers 1674-1729, and Volume 2 covers 1729-1809.

A series of volumes containing additional papers read before, or collected by the Royal Society and others not entered into the Classified Papers series.