Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- [1838-1839] (Creation)
Level of description
Extent and medium
1 volume
Context area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Born 1820; educated at Hinton Charterhouse near Bath, 1833-1836; assistant schoolmaster at Derby, 1837; worked as a draftsman and engineer during the building of the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway, 1837-1841; sub-editor of the Pilot, the organ of the Complete Suffrage Movement, 1844; occupied himself anew with engineering, 1844-1846, and experimented with mechanical inventions, 1846-1847; sub-editor of The Economist in London, 1848-1853; visited house of John Chapman, the advanced publisher, 1849, and became part of a literary circle which included George Eliot, Huxley and Tyndall; published Social Statics (1851), advocating an extreme individualism; contributed articles to the Leader, Westminster Review, and other periodicals, collecting many of these in Essays (1857, 1863, and 1864); published Principles of Psychology (1855), but during the writing of this book his health gave way, and was never fully restored; in 1858 he planned a system of synthetic philosophy, covering metaphysics, biology, psychology, sociology, and ethics, which broke down about 1865, though he published Principles (1862) and Principles of Biology (1864 and 1867); wrote Education (1861), a treatise aiming at a natural development of the child's intelligence, which became a leading textbook; in order to deal with the principles of sociology he employed assistants to collect systematically large masses of facts, of which eight volumes under general title of Descriptive Sociology were issued by 1881, while additional volumes appeared after Spencer's death; he wrote extensively on philosophical and social issues, including Principles of Sociology (1876, 1882, and 1896), Principles of Ethics (1892 and 1893); formed with Frederic Harrison and John Morley and others an Anti-Aggression League, 1882; died 1903.
Archival history
Also known as R 0139.
GB 0097 SR 0139 [1838-1839] Collection (fonds) 1 volume Spencer , Herbert , 1820-1903 , philosopher
Born 1820; educated at Hinton Charterhouse near Bath, 1833-1836; assistant schoolmaster at Derby, 1837; worked as a draftsman and engineer during the building of the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway, 1837-1841; sub-editor of the Pilot, the organ of the Complete Suffrage Movement, 1844; occupied himself anew with engineering, 1844-1846, and experimented with mechanical inventions, 1846-1847; sub-editor of The Economist in London, 1848-1853; visited house of John Chapman, the advanced publisher, 1849, and became part of a literary circle which included George Eliot, Huxley and Tyndall; published Social Statics (1851), advocating an extreme individualism; contributed articles to the Leader, Westminster Review, and other periodicals, collecting many of these in Essays (1857, 1863, and 1864); published Principles of Psychology (1855), but during the writing of this book his health gave way, and was never fully restored; in 1858 he planned a system of synthetic philosophy, covering metaphysics, biology, psychology, sociology, and ethics, which broke down about 1865, though he published Principles (1862) and Principles of Biology (1864 and 1867); wrote Education (1861), a treatise aiming at a natural development of the child's intelligence, which became a leading textbook; in order to deal with the principles of sociology he employed assistants to collect systematically large masses of facts, of which eight volumes under general title of Descriptive Sociology were issued by 1881, while additional volumes appeared after Spencer's death; he wrote extensively on philosophical and social issues, including Principles of Sociology (1876, 1882, and 1896), Principles of Ethics (1892 and 1893); formed with Frederic Harrison and John Morley and others an Anti-Aggression League, 1882; died 1903.
Also known as R 0139.
Birmingham and Gloucester Railway time book, filled in by Herbert Spencer with details of his surveying work, [1838-1839].
Chronologically.
Open.
May not be copied.
English
No further list required.
The British Library of Political and Economic Science holds further material relating to Herbert Spencer in the papers of Leonard Henry Courtney (Ref: Courtney 3/117, 7/68 and 30); Frederic Harrison (Ref: Harrison 1/107); Alfred George Gardiner (Ref: Gardiner 1/33); and Beatrice and Sidney Webb (Ref: Passfield 2/1/2/1, 5; 2/4/A, B; 3/1/1/A; 6/79; 7/1/41; 8/1/6).
The University of London Library holds correspondence and papers, 1844-1903 (Ref: Ms 791); the British library, London, has literary manuscripts (Ref: Add Mss 36883-96, 43831), and letters from George Eliot, 1851-1902 (Ref: Add Ms 65530), and William Ewart Gladstone, 1873-1896 (Ref: Add Mss 44441-785); Knox College, Illinois, USA, contains correspondence, 1849-1903; the University of Chicago Library, USA, holds letters to Sir Percy Willliam Bunting, 1882-1903; the Library of Congress Manuscripts Division, Washington DC, USA, has letters to Andrew Carnegie, 1883-1903; the Huntington Library, California, USA, contains letters to John Fiske, 1864-1894; the National Library of Scotland, Edinburgh, holds letters to Alexander Campbell Fraser, 1853-1881 (Ref: Dep 208), and Sir Patrick Geddes, 1877-1898 (Ref: Mss 10291, 10525-30, 10993); University College London has letters to Sir Francis Dalton, 1888-1897, George Croom Robertson (Ref: Ms Add 88) and James Sully (Ref: Ms Add 158); the Houghton Library, Harvard University, USA, contains letters to Rowland G Hazard, 1869-1886; the Royal Society, London, holds correspondence with Sir John Frederick William Herschel (Ref: HS); the Co-Operative Union Archive, Manchester, has letters to George Jacob Holyoake, 1860-1903 (Ref: MM/96636/1-12); Imperial College London contains letters to Thomas Henry Huxley, 1852-1900 (Ref: B/Huxley); Trinity College Dublin holds correspondence with Elizabeth Lecky, 1875-1903 (Ref: Mss 1827-36, 1931); Exeter University Library has letters to Sir J Norman Lockyer; Northwestern University Library, Illinois, USA, contains correspondence with John Stuart Mill; the Royal Institution of Great Britain, London, holds correspondence.
Sources: Who's Who 1897-1996 (A & C Black, 1996); British Library On-Line Public Access Catalogue 97; Historical Manuscripts Commission National Register of Archives. Compiled by Sarah Aitchison as part of the RSLP AIM25 project. Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997. Mar 2001 Avon Birmingham and Gloucester Railway Engineering England Europe Gloucester Gloucestershire Railway transport Spencer , Herbert , 1820-1903 , philosopher Transport Transport infrastructure UK Western Europe London
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Content and structure area
Scope and content
Birmingham and Gloucester Railway time book, filled in by Herbert Spencer with details of his surveying work, [1838-1839].
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Accruals
System of arrangement
Chronologically.
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
Open.
Conditions governing reproduction
May not be copied.
Language of material
- English
Script of material
- Latin
Language and script notes
English
Physical characteristics and technical requirements
The British Library of Political and Economic Science holds further material relating to Herbert Spencer in the papers of Leonard Henry Courtney (Ref: Courtney 3/117, 7/68 and 30); Frederic Harrison (Ref: Harrison 1/107); Alfred George Gardiner (Ref: Gardiner 1/33); and Beatrice and Sidney Webb (Ref: Passfield 2/1/2/1, 5; 2/4/A, B; 3/1/1/A; 6/79; 7/1/41; 8/1/6).
Finding aids
No further list required.
Allied materials area
Existence and location of originals
Existence and location of copies
Related units of description
The University of London Library holds correspondence and papers, 1844-1903 (Ref: Ms 791); the British library, London, has literary manuscripts (Ref: Add Mss 36883-96, 43831), and letters from George Eliot, 1851-1902 (Ref: Add Ms 65530), and William Ewart Gladstone, 1873-1896 (Ref: Add Mss 44441-785); Knox College, Illinois, USA, contains correspondence, 1849-1903; the University of Chicago Library, USA, holds letters to Sir Percy Willliam Bunting, 1882-1903; the Library of Congress Manuscripts Division, Washington DC, USA, has letters to Andrew Carnegie, 1883-1903; the Huntington Library, California, USA, contains letters to John Fiske, 1864-1894; the National Library of Scotland, Edinburgh, holds letters to Alexander Campbell Fraser, 1853-1881 (Ref: Dep 208), and Sir Patrick Geddes, 1877-1898 (Ref: Mss 10291, 10525-30, 10993); University College London has letters to Sir Francis Dalton, 1888-1897, George Croom Robertson (Ref: Ms Add 88) and James Sully (Ref: Ms Add 158); the Houghton Library, Harvard University, USA, contains letters to Rowland G Hazard, 1869-1886; the Royal Society, London, holds correspondence with Sir John Frederick William Herschel (Ref: HS); the Co-Operative Union Archive, Manchester, has letters to George Jacob Holyoake, 1860-1903 (Ref: MM/96636/1-12); Imperial College London contains letters to Thomas Henry Huxley, 1852-1900 (Ref: B/Huxley); Trinity College Dublin holds correspondence with Elizabeth Lecky, 1875-1903 (Ref: Mss 1827-36, 1931); Exeter University Library has letters to Sir J Norman Lockyer; Northwestern University Library, Illinois, USA, contains correspondence with John Stuart Mill; the Royal Institution of Great Britain, London, holds correspondence.
Publication note
Notes area
Note
Alternative identifier(s)
Access points
Subject access points
Place access points
Name access points
Genre access points
Description control area
Description identifier
Institution identifier
Rules and/or conventions used
Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.
Status
Level of detail
Dates of creation revision deletion
Language(s)
- English