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Papers, 1922-1980, of Joseph Henry Woodger, consisting of research and personal notebooks, research files, manuscript and typescript drafts of works, correspondence, photographs and printed material.

Notes on the history of science.

Although the collection is by no means comprehensive, there are interesting records of many aspects of Wilson's career.

Section A. Biographical: Brings together material relating to obituaries, tributes, honours and awards. Includes Wilson's account of his First World War experiences and his assessment of his scientific publications. Section B. Research: Although not extensive, provides documentation of a number of Wilson's principal interests including the Salmonella group of bacteria and milk hygiene. There are three laboratory notebooks with experimental data covering the period 1919-45. Section C. Public Health Laboratory Service (PHLS): Relates chiefly to the unpublished history written by Wilson after his retirement as Director of the PHLS. There is also a little material relating to laboratory design and equipment and PHLS personnel. Section D. Lectures and publications: The most substantial in the collection. There are records of Wilson's lectures for a period of forty years from 1944, extensive documentation of the later editions of Principles of bacteriology and immunity, and editorial correspondence and papers for the British Journal of Experimental Pathology and the Journal of Hygiene. Section E. Societies and organisations: Documentation of Wilson's association with ten British organisations including the Medical Research Club, Medical Research Council and Veterinary Club. The Medical Research Council material relates to the Working Party on Tristan da Cunha which was set up to supervise medical investigations when the inhabitants were evacuated to Britain after the island's volcano erupted in 1961. There is also material relating to the Research Foundation, Chicago, which specialised in tuberculosis research, on whose medical advisory committee Wilson served. Section F. Visits and conferences: Records of a number of overseas trips in an advisory capacity for the World Health Organisation, including to Ethiopia 1964, Iraq 1965, Iran, Sudan and Egypt 1971 and the Philippines 1972, and records of international microbiology congresses. Section G. Correspondence: Although not extensive, includes a chronological sequence of scientific correspondence, 1930-1987, Wilson's collection of autograph letters addressed to Topley and himself, and references and recommendations. Section H. Photographs: Photographic records of Wilson, colleagues, conferences and PHLS laboratories. Section J. 'Biographical History of Bacteriology': Manuscript of Wilson's history, with correspondence about publication.

Papers of Maurice Hugh Frederick Wilkins, 1854-2004, including: laboratory notebooks, graphs, data sets, notes, x-ray diffraction photographs and published articles relating to his scientific research, 1948-1976, chiefly his work on the structure of DNA, 1947-1966; correspondence, 1948-2004, with and about scientific colleagues, including Struther Arnott, Allen Blaurock, Francis Crick, Boris Ephrussi, Harriet Ephrussi-Taylor, Bruce Fraser, Meyer Friedman, Raymond Gosling, Leonard Hamilton, John Kendrew, Robert Langridge, Don Marvin, Linus Pauling, Max Perutz, John Randall, Alec Stokes, James Watson and Herbert Wilson. Correspondence, notes and articles, 1950-2003, relating to research on the history of the discovery of the structure of DNA, including: copies of Rosalind Franklin's laboratory notebooks and articles, 1951-1953, relating to her DNA research; correspondence, 1967-2003, with writers on DNA history, including Aaron Klug, Robert Olby, Meyer Friedman, Horace Judson and Watson Fuller; unpublished articles and talks on DNA history by Wilkins, 1975-1987. Drafts, notes, correspondence and collected background research relating to Wilkins' autobiography, The third man of the double helix (Oxford University Press, 2003). Papers relating to Wilkins' education and early career, 1928-1942, including: teenage essays and fiction on the role of science, 1928-1934; notes, articles and photographs, 1937-1938, relating to his student activities, including physics experiments, and photographs relating to his incendiary bomb testing for Cambridge Scientists Anti-War Group, 1938. Correspondence, memoranda, minutes, reports and notes, 1962-1982, relating to the administration of the Medical Research Council (MRC) Biophysics Unit, King's College London (from 1964, the Department of Biophysics), on topics including funding, staffing, equipment provision and teaching. Correspondence, course handouts, student essays (CLOSED) and background material, 1971-1996, relating to the undergraduate course, 'The social impact of the biosciences', created and run by Wilkins, 1972-1982. Correspondence, newsletters and conference papers relating to Wilkins' involvement in political pressure groups, 1968-2003, notably the British Society for Social Responsibility in Science (of which Wilkins was founding President, 1969-1991), Food and Disarmament International (Wilkins' was founding President, 1984-2004), the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND), and the Pugwash Conferences on World Affairs. Audio recordings, 1972-1996, including lectures by Wilkins on: social responsibility in science; his Eddington Memorial Lectures,Cambridge, 1977-1978, on the history and philosophy of science; nuclear disarmament, 1981; his retirement speech, 1982; the history of DNA.

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.

Records of Imperial College relating to the University of London, 1901-1989, including correspondence concerning syllabuses and examinations, 1901-1905; Principal's correspondence, 1910-1914; centenary celebrations, 1935; 150th anniversary, 1986; student accommodation, 1943-1944; Commissioners, 1927-1928; University of London Act and Statutes, 1926-1956; reports and proposed Act, 1975-1981; establishment of Imperial College as a University School, 1907-1908; correspondence with the Court concerning grants, 1930-1946; visitations and inspections, 1923-1985, including reports; papers relating to Quinquennial estimates, visits, developments and policy, 1946-1980, including Rector's papers, 1957-1969; academic plan, 1965-1970; governance of the university, notably Rector's correspondence, 1970-1983; reports, 1972-1982; Senate minutes, 1987-1989 (UL4-ULB);

Military Education Committee and Officers' Training Corps correspondence and papers, 1908-1958, including D Company roll book, 1927-1936; University Air Squadron correspondence, 1935-1939 (ULC); Conference and Committee papers on Engineering, and award of degrees, 1909-1926; correspondence concerning the recognition of Imperial College courses, 1945-1969; entrance and pass requirements for BSc degrees, 1954-1963; papers relating to postgraduate courses, 1961-1987 (ULG); correspondence relating to examinations and curricula, 1908-1934; student registration, 1952; confidential theses, 1940-1945 (ULH); Boathouse Committee papers, 1934-1947; University of London Students' Union ephemera, 1989 (ULM);
papers relating to the Nuclear Reactor Centre, Silwood Park, 1958-1980, notably opening, 1964-1965; purchase of the reactor, 1958-1965; Reactor Safety Committee, 1964-1974 (ULN);
papers concerning University Chairs and Readerships, 1908-1968, including regulations, 1922; correspondence concerning proposed Chairs and appointments, 1943-1968; Chairs tenable at Imperial College, 1943-1957; conferment of title of Professor and Readerships, 1931-1965; endowment of a Chair and Readership in Electrical Engineering, 1953-1958; applications for Assistant Professorships in Mining and Botany, 1908-1910 (ULO); papers concerning appointments to Chairs, with some papers concerning funding and administration for the Departments of Aeronautics, 1943-1975; Biochemistry, 1955-1979; Biology, 1952-1953; Botany including Biochemistry and Plant Physiology, 1936-1979; Chemical Engineering and Chemical Technology, 1935-1977; Analytical Chemistry, 1964-1975; Organic Chemistry, 1937-1978; Physical Chemistry, 1937-1977; Civil Engineering, 1945-1973; Computing and Control, 1974-1977; Electrical Engineering, 1944-1978; Geology, 1929-1975; Industrial Sociology, 1967-1978; Mathematics, 1946-1978; Mechanical Engineering, 1931-1978; Metallurgy, 1939-1976; Meteorology, 1933-1974; Mining, 1912-1980; Physics, 1937-1977; Zoology, 1930-1977 (ULP); appointments of readers in the Departments of Aeronautics and Aerodynamics, 1949-1972; Botany, 1942-1970; Chemical Engineering and Chemical Technology, 1932-1970; Inorganic and Physical Chemistry, 1937-1965; Organic Chemistry, 1944-1971; Civil Engineering, 1946-1977; Computing and Control, 1967-1968; Electrical Engineering, 1947-1965; Geology, 1936-1976; Mathematics, 1932-1977; Mechanical Engineering, 1936-1967; Metallurgy, 1937-1970; Meteorology, 1938-1970; Mining, 1950-1975; Physics, 1938-1970; Zoology, 1937-1970 (ULR);
correspondence concerning the recognition of college staff as teachers of the University, 1908-1949; establishment of the London Graduate School of Business Studies, 1963-1966; collaboration with Queen Elizabeth College, 1968-1981; with the Royal Postgraduate Medical School, 1968-1974; correspondence with Royal Holloway College, 1918-1974; with University College concerning a course on air navigation, 1936-1953 (UM).

Written in England. Contains the curious characters known as the Boetian contractions, and is a valuable document for the history of arithmetic. The treatise commences on the Roman abacal system, and afterwards proceeds to give an explanation of the Eastern Boetian system with altered characters, and with a complete adoption of the advantages of local position. In Folio 2, recto, line 5, the author says that he will expound 'quaedam de numerorum scientia. regulis uidelicet algorismi' and on Folio 3, verso, he refers to Pithagoras, Nicomachus, Apuleius and Boethius. The text ends on the first line of Folio 34, recto, and is followed by eight lines in a semi-current 13th century hand.

Folio 1, recto ' Prefatio sequentis operis. Vt ait salomon.. punge oculum. et profert lacrimam. punge cor' et profert sensum.....'

Folio 4, verso ' De impari numero..'

Folio 6, verso, line 6, ' Divisio algorismi '. The divisions are given as folows; ' digitus, mediato, multiplicatio, divisio '

Folio 8, recto, title in red in margin, ' Qualiter digitus multiplicat digitum '

Folio 9, recto, line 15 ' Qualiter articulus multiplicatur per articulum '

Folio 9, verso, line 13, heading in red, ' Qualiter digitus multiplicat articulum '

Folio 10, recto, line 10, heading in red, ' Qualiter compositus per compositum multiplicatur '

Folio 10, verso, heading in margin, ' Qualiter compositus multiplicat compositum non eundem habens articulum '

Folio 11, recto, bottom line, heading in red ' Regulo ab uno inequalibus '

Folio 12, recto, line 6, heading in red, ' Regula ab uno in equalibus binario adjecto '

Folio 12, verso, line 8, heading in red ' De duplicatione '

Folio 13, recto, line 5, heading in red, ' De pari adjecto '

Folio 13, verso, line 6, heading in red, ' De impari adjecto '

Folio 14, verso, heading in margin, ' De proposito secundum novenarium dispositum '

Folio 15, recto, line 7-8, heading in red, ' De significationibus et nominibus figarum et locorum '
Transcript extract from line 14 ' Prima itaque omnium est igin. 1. id est unitas. Secunda andras. 2. id est binarius. Tercia ormis. 3. id est ternarius. Quarta arbas. 4. id est quaternarius. Quinta quimas. 5. id est quinarius. Sexta caltis. 6. id est senarius. Septima zemis. 7. id est septenarius. octava celentis. 8. id est octonarius. Nona cemenias. 9. id est novenarius. Singule ataque figure in quocumque loco sint sui ipsius exprimunt significationem. Nunquam enim figura unitatis officium binarii sibi usurpabit, nec binarius ternarii, nec ternarius quaternarii, nec quelibet ceterarum quod alter significare poterit. Ad majorem itaque evidentiam significationes locorum ponamus. primo ita loco posita igin seipsam, id es unitatem, significat. Secundo denarium. Tercio centenarium. Quarto millenarium. Quinto decem milia. Sexto centum milia. Septimo mille milia. Decimo mille mille milia. Undecimo decies milies mille milia. Duodecimo centies milies mille milia. Terciodecimo milies milies mille milia, et sic usque in infinitam singulorum decuplationem locorum extenditur. Similiter autem et andras rimo loco seipsam, id est binarium, significat. Secundo xx. Tercio cc. Quarto duo milia. Quinto xx. Sexto cc. Septima mm. et sic per cetera loca eodem cemate et cetere figure secundum propriam differentiam decuplabutn singulos articulos per loca singula. Est adhucet decima figura cujus nulla significatio est, sed tamen per loca disposita ceterarum significationes auget vel minuit. Dicitur autemzifera, et taliter depingitur 0. Sciendum autem quod omnes figure versus sinistram scribi debent, quia sic vim extendunt. Sed e converso literali ordine legi. '

Folio 17, verso, line 6, heading in red, ' De subtractione'

Folio 18, verso, line 8, heading in red, 'De dupli``catione'.

The bulk of the collection consists of correspondence: the Singers were clearly vigorous letter writers and both Charles and Dorothea had an enormous number of family, friends and acquaintances. Unfortunately many of their letters were hand written and very few carbon copies survive. Very occasionally an attempt at methodical selection and arrangement is evident: on the whole correspondence had been kept in alphabetical order, and this has been retained in the arrangement of the collection. Dorothea and Charles' correspondence was fairly mixed (reflecting their working life together) with the exception of two distinct groups: correspondence about Dorothea's research on alchemical manuscripts, and later correspondence about her hearing aids.

The main part of the collection centres on the correspondence; this has been grouped together in a self-evident sequence: writings and biographical personal papers follow. Certain of Dorothea's papers remained clearly distinct and these have been kept together. Section E contains a variety of material relating to Jewish refugees, which had been placed on one side by Dorothea after the war for permanent preservation. It has not been listed in detail but sorted into three broad categories. The last section, comprising additional correspondence of the Singers with Sir Zachary Cope, Sir Arthur Salusbury MacNalty and Dr F N L Poynter, is not strictly part of the collection, but these groups of correspondence were given to the Institute to be placed alongside the Singer papers.

Papers of William Sharpey including copy letters, correspondence including from Neil Arnott, George Gabriel Stokes and James Newton Heale and notes by Sharpey, some on Royal Society business.

Papers collected by the antiquary George Scott. As well as catalogues of Scott's library (and many printed books) the collection includes George Scott's financial accounts; extracts from forest laws; abstracts of Treasury accounts; register of Queen Elizabeth I's out-letters; orders relating to the Cinque Ports; and a book of prescriptions. Also a diary of scientist Robert Hooke, 1671-1683. Please note this diary is available only with advance notice and at the discretion of the Assistant Director (Heritage).

Letters to Sir Arthur Rucker, his wife and daughter, during the late 19th and early 20th century; many of them from scientists, including J J Thompson, William Huggins, Aston Webb, David Gill, N S Maskelyne, A Geikie. Together with assorted notes and ephemera.

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'.

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 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.

The manuscript versions of papers published by the Royal Society in the 'Philosophical Transactions'. The series has many points of interest, which include authors' corrections to manuscripts, and the presence of original illustrations in various media (drawings, watercolours and photographs) bound in the volumes. Not all of the material printed in the 'Philosophical Transactions' relating to Society business survives, but manuscript examples of meteorological observations, lists of presents and annual indexing may be found in volumes 8, 9 and 12.
Papers are usually bound into vellum-covered volumes by year of publication, although a few (volumes 4, 5, 8, 9, 12, 17, 73-75) are loose, boxed items. Several gaps appear in the collection, notably for the period 1825-1839 (volumes 18-22) and any year may lack one or more papers; these omissions are noted at the beginning of each part. Despite this, the series constitutes a large, relatively complete run.

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

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.

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.

Council Attendance Book of Royal Society.

The collection consists of approximately 100 items on alchemy and early chemistry, the most notable item being De Secretis Mulierum. The collection also includes manuscripts of lectures given by Sir Henry Roscoe; his notes on solar chemistry work; letters written to him by a number of his peers and his notebook from 1849. The many volumes of letters in the collection includes correspondence with contemporaries such as Robert Bunsen, Michael Faraday, Dmitri Mendeleeff and Louis Pasteur as well as with a number of Presidents of the Chemical Society and the Royal Institute of Chemistry.

Papers of and relating to Joseph Priestley, inclusing volume of items relating to Priestley's life, three letters from Priestley, his spectacles, and Diploma and seal awarded in 1780 by Catherine II, Empress of Russia.

Microfilms of the Popper papers held at Stanford University, California, including Popper's speeches and writings, correspondence, course material, subject files, biographical files, index cards with the addresses of acquaintances, and selected writings by others.

Records of the Physiological Society, including all the minute books from the foundation of the Society in 1876, the proposal books for candidates from 1888, correspondence, histories and photographs. The bulk of the material dates from after 1939.

Manuscript transcription of Johann David Lembke's Compendium Physicæ theoreticoexperimentalis, in usum auditorum concinnatum, 1740 by Nicodemus Pankratien, 1773.

Papers of the Oxford Student Pugwash, including Proceedings of the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs, 1960-1986; papers relating to the Oxford Student Pugwash, 1978-1984, including Oxford Student Pugwash newsletters, International Student/Young Pugwash newsletters and guidelines on setting up local chapters.

Cartoon called "The Adventures of Isaac Newton" illustrating the attempts by Newton to demonstrate the force of gravity to the Fellows of the Royal Society, published in Viz Magazine, page 5, May 2004.

Biographical Memoirs notes and papers accumulated by Guido Pontecorvo relating to Hermann Joseph Muller gathered by Pontecorvo in the process of writing Muller's obituary for Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society.

Letters from Sir Robert Moray to his friend Alexander Bruce, Earl of Kincardine, also known as 'The Kincardine Papers'. Bruce was sick of the ague in Bremen for part of this time, and the letters were written to alleviate the tedium of of Bruce's illness, hence ranging over topics which might not otherwise have been the subjects of correspondence. They include accounts of chemical experiments in his laboratory, his interest in magnetism, medicine in all its aspects, horticulture, fuel, whale fishing, its risks and profits, coal mining, water wheels and tide mills, stone quarrying and the various qualities of different stones, the pumping works needed for undersea coal mines at Bruce's home at Culross in Fifeshire, even to the trees whose wood was best for pipelines, and the diameter of the bore best suited to the purpose. Familiarity is shown with mathematical and surveying instruments, with music, and all sorts of mechanical devices and especially clocks and watches, more particularly the taking out of a patent in respect of a clock for use at sea for finding longitude. Bruce is advised on the choice of books over a wide range of subjects. Moray includes anecdotes to amuse his ailing correspondent; he describes his quiet life and is enthusiastic about many of his chemical experiments. Notable at the end of the letters Moray added what he described as his Masonic signature - a pentagram which also occurs in his crest.

Files of papers and correspondence relating to the Royal Society's administration of its internal affairs. Currently, the bulk of this material falls within the period 1925-50, although the period covered varies considerably according to subject. At present, the collection forms an important source on the Society's activities during the Second World War, and includes files of the Central Register (Section for Scientific Reseearch) for 1939-1940. Section A of the series contains correspondence of a number of important Fellows; WH Bragg 1935-41; HH Dale 1926-45; ACG Egerton 1939-49; AV Hill 1949-45; FW Lanchester 1942-44; HG Lyons 1939-42; TR Merton 1941-56; R Robinson 1946-50; AC Seward 1932-41; FE Smith 1928-33; HT Tizard 1940

Single manuscript letters or small groups of related documents considered too small to be added to the Manuscripts General series. Includes various document formats. The collection contains all manner of papers by, about or belonging to the Fellows of the Royal Society. Subject matter covers all branches of the sciences and includes non-scientific material. Current accessions are limited to materials not generated by the Royal Society, but acquired by gift or purchase; these usually number less than 10 items per accession. This has not always been the practice, so that the collection also contains relatively large groups of papers, occasionally on Royal Society business.

The collection provides good documentation of many aspects of McIlwain's career and his contribution to the development of neurochemistry in the UK and internationally.

Section A, Biographical, brings together obituaries, curricula vitae and bibliographies, and material relating to the various stages of McIlwain's scientific career, especially in the 1930s and 1940s, his appointment to the Biochemistry Chair at the Institute of Psychiatry in 1954 and the symposium held in his honour on his retirement in 1980. The section also presents a significant body of material relating to McIlwain's undergraduate studies at King's College, University of Durham, including essays and notebooks.

Section B, Institute of Psychiatry, is principally papers relating to the activities of McIlwain's own Department of Biochemistry and especially its teaching programme in neurochemistry. There is also material relating to various government and University of London enquiries into medical education.

Section C, Research, includes copies of McIlwain's M.Sc. and Ph.D. theses, notes, drafts and reports for early work in the 1930s and correspondence 'from the Lab' for the 1930s and 1940s.

Section D, Publications, lectures and broadcast, is the largest in the collection. It presents significant documentation, especially correspondence, relating to his textbook Biochemistry and the central nervous system which went through five editions, 1955-1985, and important editorial correspondence for the Biochemical Journal (member of the Editorial Board, 1946-1950), Biochemical Pharmacology and Journal of Neurochemistry. There are also drafts for lectures and seminars for scientific audiences in the UK and abroad, principally from the 1960s onwards.

Section E, Societies and organisations, documents McIlwain's involvement with a number of UK and international bodies including the Biochemical Society, the International Brain Research Organisation and the International Society for Neurochemistry (ISN) of which he was a founder member and from 1984 'Historian' of the Society with responsibility for its archives.

Section F, Visits and conferences, covers the period 1947-1993 and is of particular interest for its documentation of the historical sessions which McIlwain organised at ISN meetings.

Section G, Correspondence, presents an alphabetical sequence of McIlwain's correspondence including significant exchanges with a number of distinguished mentors and contemporaries such as G.R. Clemo, F. Dickens, K.A.C. Elliott, P.G. Fildes, S.S. Kety, H.A. Krebs, Derek Richter and F.L. Rose, and a chronological sequence of shorter scientific correspondence covering the period 1938-1992.

There is also an index of correspondents.

MSS.3356-3382 comprise journals and memorandum books documenting the various phases of McCormick's career, as follows: MS.3356, sketchbook relating to West Indies and South America voyages, 1824-1825; MS.3357, journal of voyage north of Spitsbergen in the Hecla, 1827; MS.3358, notes of lectures on natural philosophy by Robert Jameson (1774-1854) at Edinburgh University, 1830-1831; MS.3359, diary of voyages to West Indies and South America, 1830-1832; MS.3360, half-pay diaries (7 volumes), 1830-1838; MS.3361, diaries covering 1823-1830, fair copy; MS.3362, sketch book covering voyages in North Sea and West Indies, 1832-1833; MS.3363, diary covering blockade of Dutch coast and voyage to West Indies, 1832-1834; MS.3364, diary of a walking tour in Devon (apparently part of a longer journey of which the other journal volumes are not extant), 1834-1835; MS.3365, diary while fitting out the Antarctic expedition of the Erebus, 1839; MSS.3366-3368, diaries written during the Erebus Antarctic expedition (15 volumes), 1839-1843; MSS.3369-3370, meteorological and ornithological logs respectively of the Erebus Antarctic expedition, 1839-1843; MS.3371, half-pay diaries (4 volumes), 1843-1845; MS.3372, memorandum book on Arctic discovery, chiefly compiled during the voyage of the North Star as part of the search for Sir John Franklin, 1848-1852; MS.3373, diary while fitting out the North Star as part of the search for Sir John Franklin, 1852; MSS.3374-3380, diaries written during the voyage of the North Star as part of the search for Sir John Franklin, 1852-1853; MSS.3381-3382, meteorological tables and sketches respectively, made during the voyage of the North Star as part of the search for Sir John Franklin, 1852-1853. MS.8682 comprises loose miscellaneous material, chiefly printed, relating to various phases of McCormick's career: evolving versions of his Narrative of a Boat-Expedition up the Wellington Channel in the Year 1852 (London: Eyre and Spotteswoode, 1854), plus testimonials, printed items by other authors including the Arctic traveller Dr. Richard King, publisher's advertisements and newspapers.

Private papers of Professor Stephen Finney Mason, [1859-2007], including published articles and reprints by Mason, [1945-1990]; articles and photocopies of articles by others on Mason’s research interests, [1859-2000]; lectures given by Mason; research notes and correspondence, including correspondence about scientists and historians including Professor Reiko Kuroda, Dr Robert Davis Peacock, Professor Mike Lappert, Professor Anthony James McCaffery, Dr George Tranter, Dr M P Melrose, Dr Tom Ziegler, Professor Martin Quack, Professor David Parker, Keith Hutcheon and Dr Jack Morrell.

Notes of lectures (on medical jurisprudence), on cases, and on diseases such as material on digestion and on hip disease, 1877-[1885].

Papers, c1914-1989, of Dame Kathleen Lonsdale.

Biographical material includes correspondence and papers relating to imprisonment in Holloway Prison, with Lonsdale's own accounts of her time there; diaries and personal notebooks, 1946-1969; letters of congratulation on election as Fellow of the Royal Society (1945); various photographs dating from school to her later years.

Papers relating to Lonsdale's teaching and administrative work at University College London include papers on teaching undergraduate and postgraduate courses; significant documentation relating to laboratory personnel, research funding and general university administration; papers relating to the 'Round Table on Peace Studies', which proposed the establishment of a centre for research into international conflict at the University.

Research material, 1924-1970, consists of Royal Institution papers comprising notebooks, one dating from Lonsdale's first period there (1923-1927), correspondence with colleagues such as W H Bragg and J M Robertson, and Lonsdale's notes and drafts for various research topics; correspondence and papers from her University College years covering many different areas of research, including diffuse scattering of X-rays, thermal vibrations in crystals, methonium compounds and urinary calculi (the latter topic particularly well documented and including several case studies), and including a large group of photographs, mostly of X-ray diffraction patterns.

Papers on the preparation of volumes of the International Tables for crystal structure determination from Lonsdale's chairmanship of the Commission on Tables (1948) comprise drafts, notes and correspondence with colleagues and publishers.

Extensive papers relating to publications, lectures and broadcasts include drafts of articles, on subjects including peace and religious issues, also including obituaries and biographical articles on various individuals, books, book reviews, obituaries, and letters to newspapers and magazines, the latter principally on the issue of atomic weapons; general correspondence concerning publications; drafts of lectures, 1945-1970, including ethics and the role of science in society; a large series of lecture notes, 1933-1970; scripts for broadcasts, on topics ranging from crystallography to religion, 1945-1967.

Papers on foreign and domestic travel, 1943-1971, relating to conferences and lectures, on crystallography, science ethics, and work for the Society of Friends, including her visit to China (1955) and her world tour (1965).

Papers relating to organisations, notably the British Association for the Advancement of Science (BAAS) and the International Union of Crystallography (IUCr), including material relating to a number of International Congresses of Crystallography, also papers relating to participation in Pugwash Conferences on World Affairs, 1958-1970, and papers concerning prison reform and the running of Bullwood Hall Borstal, Essex.

Correspondence, 1927-1974, comprises two main sequences, one arranged alphabetically, the other chronologically; 'day files', principally carbons of outgoing correspondence, 1966-1969; a sequence of references and recommendations; also including correspondence relating to Lonsdale's period of imprisonment (1943). Correspondents include scientists such as Max Born, W H Bragg, W L Bragg, E G Cox, Dorothy Hodgkin, Judith Milledge, L C Pauling and A J C Wilson.

Scientific papers sent to the Royal Society, many of which were published in the 'Philosophical Transactions'. As the name implies, the series is a combination and continuation of Early Letters and Classified Papers into the 19th century. Later, the sequence divided into Philosophical Transactions and Archived Papers. From the time that the Letters and Papers (or New Guard Books as they were originally known) were created, none of these original papers were copied into Letter or Register Books. Scientists represented include William Herschel (66 papers) William Watson (36 papers) Henry Baker (32 papers) Everard Home (31 papers), William Stukely (30 papers), and John Smeaton (23 papers). As the series progresses, the character of the documents alters - the earlier decades contain larger numbers of short letters, but by the 19th century most of the manuscripts are in the form of long monographs. The texts are supported by a large quantity of original illustrations throughout the series. This collection provides a virtually unbroken run of presentations by leading 18th century scientists; the few gaps include 1746-1749, when no papers were collected. Occasionally such missing items may be located in the archives of other institutions.

Copies of letters received by the Royal Society, the originals of which are in the Early Letters collection. The Letter Books were copied (as were the Journal and Register Books) for security reasons. The numbering of the volumes and their chronological range is slightly eccentric. Volumes numbered 1-18 are letters of 1662-1727; within this group, Volume 11 has been extended into two volumes. No Volume 17 was created in order to leave a gap in the series for retrospective copying of original papers. The succeeding Volumes 19-26 overlap in time, giving correspondence for the years 1720-1740. There are also five supplementary volumes providing fair copies of letters omitted from the main run; these are labelled A-B, B-C, D-G, G-H and H-S, the letters being arranged in order of author.

Papers and notes by Professor Lakatos on the philosophy of mathematics and science, including notes on Feyerabend, Kuhn and Popper; correspondence with many academics and philosophers; papers relating to the International Colloquium on the Philosophy of Science organised by Lakatos in 1965; and biographical material, desk diaries, press cuttings, and papers relating to student politics and the LSE 'troubles'.

The Journal Books exist in Original and Copy versions. The Journal Books contain minutes of the ordinary minutes of the Royal Society, setting out the following information: person in the chair, news of elections to the Fellowship and Council, non-Fellows given leave to be present, and books and rarities presented to the Society. Letters and papers read before the Society are given in abstract with any subsequent discussion. By the 19th century much of this earlier detail is lost, so that , for example, only titles of papers are recorded.

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.

Records of the History of Science and Technology Department of Imperial College, 1958-1994, notably correspondence, including foundation of the department, 1958-1960; Rectors' correspondence, 1963-1978; departmental accommodation, 1963-1968; future organisation, 1978-1980; Leverhulme Research Fellowship, 1966-1974; working party minutes, 1964-1968 (KH); course booklets for Science and Technology Studies, 1992-1994, (KHB); course details, 1995-1996; student magazines for Science Communication Studies, 1992-1993 (KHBC);
University of London Centre for the History of Science, Medicine and Technology course booklets, 1988, (KHC).

The correspondence of Sir John Frederick William Herschel, comprising three main groups of documents:
The first series comprises 19 volumes of manuscript letters sent to Herschel, with drafts of his replies (Ref: HS 1-19).

The second series comprises 16 volumes of copy letters from Herschel (Ref: HS 20-25). These are arranged in chronological order and are apparently constructed from Herschel's original letters brought together by a son, Col. John Herschel R.E., for a proposed biography and then returned to their original owners. The biography was never produced. There is some duplication between these versions of finished letters and the rough versions of the same in HS 1-19.
The third series comprises five boxes of unbound manuscript letters, copy books and listings (Ref: HS 25-28) in which there appears information on the copying project, and groups of original letters on particular topics, such as Herschel's involvement in W H F Talbot's photography patent disputes.

Manuscript transcripts of six writings on hermetic philosophy, [1700], including tracts by David de Planis Campy, Adrien Ameuric and Raymond Lulle.'

The collection contains handwritten notebooks and loose typescript papers. Some of the notebooks are entitled 'Electricitat' or 'J.H.Waitz' and are often in German. Some are concerned with the history of electricity. The folders contain loose papers, often correspondence, about student work and exams and societies, in the history of science.

Papers, 1930-1962, concerning lectures and publications by Hart, notably correspondence, 1951-1961, mainly relating to lectures on Leonardo da Vinci, aeronautical engineering and other subjects; correspondence relating to the writing and publication of his work, including James Watt and the history of steam power (Henry Schuman, New York, [1949]), 1948, and The world of Leonard da Vinci, man of science, engineer and dreamer of flight (Macdonald, London, 1961), 1960-1962; typescripts of lectures on textile education, 1951, the scientific basis for Leonardo da Vinci's work in technology, 1952, and handicraft instruction; typescript of The world of Leonard da Vinci, man of science, engineer and dreamer of flight (Macdonald, London, 1961), 1960; copies of published articles by Hart on medieval and modern science, 1930-1955.

Biographical Memoirs notes and papers accumulated by Professor Bryan C Clarke in the process of compiling two Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society: Edmund Brisco Ford FRS (1901-1988); and Arthur James Cain FRS (1921-1999).

Manuscript volumes, correspondence and papers by Michael Faraday including material based on original Faraday documents 1809-1961, comprising six volumes in total covering subjects on botany; chemistry; colour; fire eating; galvanism; gas lighting; light; magnetism; meteorology; lightning; preserving drawings; removing glass stoppers; scientific apparatus; details of his visits with Davy to France and Italy 1813- 1814; visits to copper works and state mines in Wales 1819; visit to the Isle of Wight 1824; manuscript notes on lectures given by Faraday to the City Philosophical Society 1816-1819; general observations; experiments; notes including scientific subjects as well as anagrams; etymology; recipes for gin and ginger beer; humour; love; memory; oratory; philosophy; Rochefoucault; Shakespeare; 'Chemical Love Letter.' 1816-1846; chemical notes [1822]; notes on experiments on electric lamps powered by batteries 1854 and a letter to John Tyndall; c 750 manuscript correspondence between Faraday and scientists, politicians and the general public 1812-1867; letters and draft letters by Faraday written from the Royal Institution 1853-1863; committe minutes from a subcommitte set up to conduct experiments in optical glass 1828-1835; papers relating to the wear and production of coinage at the Royal Mint 1835; papers relating to table-turning 1853-1864; Faraday's French passport 1856; notes on Faraday including his illness and his refusal of the post of President at the Royal Institution 1864-1872.

The papers are extensive covering Faraday's work in science. Details of his work on electro-magnetic induction, the laws of electrolysis and the theory of electro-magnetism are in the form of laboratory notebooks, lecture notes and various publications on experimental researchers in electricity. There are some administrative papers on the Royal Institution of Great Britain including cash books. The correspondence covers his work for the Admiralty and the Corporation of Trinity House whilst acting as Scientific Adviser; they also detail his general communication with people and other organisations. Other items include his book collection, scrapbooks, portfolio of portraits and apparatus. A few lacunae have been identified. There are no documents on his personal life or his work as Professor of Chemistry at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich.

Ent's papers, c.1641-1685, consist of his Apologia pro Circuitione Sanguinis..., in his hand, thought to be a revision prepared for the second edition of the work, c.1641-1685. The volume also includes the texts of some of Ent's speeches, such as his presidential addresses at the College, 1670-1674, and 1676, and contains some accounts entered by Peter Ent, 1671-1674, who was in possession of the volume for a time; Ent's anatomical lectures, delivered at the College 13-15 April 1665, in his hand, 1665.

Original manuscripts of letters to the Royal Society, which are largely scientific. These papers form the raw material from which the Letter Books were compiled. There are many letters of importance, 1613; 1642; 1651-1740.