Figure 1: Plaque to John Dalton and Sir A. S. Eddington
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If, as I did, you always assumed that blue plaques were a national scheme, administered centrally, it might come as some surprise to you to learn that there are actually many different schemes in operation. There is a scheme administered by English Heritage for London, providing the familiar blue plaques to politicians, poets, not enough scientists, etc. Outside the Capital, it is up to local authorities to put up plaques, of whatever hue they desire; and even within London, it is perfectly acceptable for the Borough councils to erect their own plaques to their own specifications. The Institute of Physics has its own scheme, and, as you know, the History Group has been concerned with the Blue Plaques schemes, including those set up by the Institute itself. The following section of the newsletter has more on the subject, including details about what you can do to help the History Group’s project for the Institute’s 125th Anniversary.
Malcolm Cooper
Where was Sir Isaac Newton born? Well thatrsquos a fairly straightforward question you may think. And so it is to readers of this newsletter, but it was the question I posed myself about 10 years ago when I first joined the Institute and the History of Physics group.
So a quick check with the biographical dictionary revealed Woolsthorpe Manor, Lincolnshire, and pondering over the map I decided that a visit was long overdue. Driving down the A1, shock and dismay crept over me - where were the signposts? Where were the Brown Boards announcing:
Visit historic Woolsthorpe Home of SIR ISAAC NEWTON (Teas, snacks, gift shop) |
But no. Nothing.
It may be different now of course, but I did finally find the house without too much difficulty, and pulled into the empty car park. I had arrived at the birthplace of one of the countryrsquos greatest scientists and where was everybody? Had this been Stratford-upon-Avon, the situation would be very different. The place would be heaving with tourists wandering about bristling with cameras and clutching guidebooks. Bookshops and museums might be selling titles like:
“The Complete Works of Newton” or “The De Luxe Illustrated Principia” or “Opticks for Everyman”
At the car park entrance there was a board quietly informing visitors that this was the birthplace of Sir Isaac Newton. Now to be entirely selfish, I wouldnrsquot have it any other way, but I idly wondered how many people chancing upon this beautiful spot would think – “Who?”.
Returning home I decided that I should conduct a straw poll among some friends and colleagues to see if the question could be answered.
It was. About a third had not even heard of him, and of the remainder, about 80% said something like “Oh, yes. Something to do with apples falling wasn’t he?” Only a few knew of what he achieved and, incidentally, when. Now, it may be that this gives an unfair picture of the nation’s awareness of such figures? But I fear not.
The article on blue plaques in last year’s issue suggests more should be done, and indeed it was heartening to see the list of several physicists honoured in this way in the last issue, but this can only be a part of raising public awareness of our national scientific heritage.
And what about our international heritage? I don’t know but a couple
of years ago my wife and I were on holiday in Bavaria so we thought
we’d take in a visit to Ulm, the birth town of surely the most famous
name in physics and in science generally - Albert Einstein. Enquiring at the
local tourist information centre, in our admittedly faltering German,
“Bitte, wo ist die Geburtshause von Einstein?”, we discovered
that the house had been destroyed during the war but that there was a
monument on the site.
But when asking about a plaque featured in a tourist leaflet of Ulm there
was great consternation and conferring amongst colleagues before we were
told … it was right next to the monument! Interestingly this plaque was
a gift from India through the Calcutta Arts Society!
Later during the holiday we went to Vienna where (among other things!) I wanted to see the grave of Ludwig Boltzmann, and so into the tourist office we went:
“WHO?”
“BoItzmann. Ludwig Boltzmann.”
“Is that with a ‘B’?”
“Yes. He was a famous physicist.”
Well they were really very efficient; down came The Big Book, pages turned, and a gasp of pleasure when the entry was found. And they promptly described how to get to the cemetery where he was buried - even the plot number -14c!
Which was more than could be said of the tourist information centre in Edinburgh. “Can you tell me where James Clerk Maxwell was born, please?”
Yes, - you’ve guessed it!
“WHO?” with a totally blank look
Well by this time I’m either in that resigned mood or jumping up and down - well almost.
This is not intended to be a tirade against tourist information centres (although it does indicate, I think, that training is lacking in some) but it did demonstrate what I know is well known, in a very obvious if simplistic way, that ignorance is alarmingly widespread; not only among the general public but also among those who are in a position to pass on information to a wider audience.
I think it was the look of total disinterest on the assistant’s face when I said, “Yes, one of Scotland’s greatest scientists.”
But it’s not always like that. I felt somewhat daunted arriving at the old cemetery in Sale in search of the grave of James Prescot Joule. On enquiring rather hesitatingly of the sexton, he said “Oh, yes. Come this way, I’ll show you. We get all sorts asking after it. I’ve had ’em from France, America, even Japan!”
Where next? Haven’t decided yet!
As part of the 125th Anniversary commemorations, we are hoping to gather a nationwide database of information on places to visit which have connections with physics. This information will be put on the Anniversary website. Although we appreciate that many people do not have internet access, a website is a good start. Once the information exists, it may be possible to persuade somebody to print all the entries as a booklet.
Could you spare the time to take a photo of your local IOP blue plaque?
We would ideally like you to take a photo of the location of your local blue plaque (listed overleaf). This would then be put together with a couple of paragraphs about the place and the connections that it has with physics. Because of copyright, it is essential that the photo is taken by somebody who is willing to relinquish copyright of that photo so that it can be put on the website without incurring extra costs. As you may well remember, we had a large amount of biographical information in the newsletter last year, so it may well not be necessary for you to do any writing at all, unless you would like to.
If this information is available on the Internet, then many schools will be able to access it (perhaps for a class visit by a physics class?), or physicists on holiday may chose to take a detour to look at a physics place for twenty minutes. It will be possible to send paper copies of appropriate information to tourist offices, with photocopying permission; and those offices with internet access (yes, there are some!) will be able to print out their own. The information will also be printed in the History Group’s newsletter, so members of the group who do not have internet access will be able to cut-out-and-keep their own copies.
If you feel you can spare the time to take a photo, please contact me:
| Miss Lucy Hudson | |
| 11 Jewel Road | 0181 520 9457 |
| LONDON E17 4QU | lucy.hudson@bbc.co.uk |
For this year, it is proposed to gather information on only the Institute’s own plaques, but there are many other interesting places with connections to physics and physicists in the UK, and if we get a good response, it would be very helpful to have information on these as well.
Plaques sponsored by the Institute of Physics:
Malcolm Cooper
On a wild, wet and windy day in March, members of the Kendal Civic Society, the Institute of Physics and the Royal Astronomical Society met to attend the unveiling of a plaque to commemorate John Dalton and Sir Arthur Eddington.
The plaque [Fig. 1], in fact green, part of a series of 30 erected by the Kendal Civic Society to honour local worthies, was jointly sponsored by the I.O.P. and the R.A.S.. It is mounted on a wall near the site of the old Quaker School in Stramongate, Kendal, where John Dalton taught from 1781 to 1793.
Figure 1: Plaque to John Dalton and Sir A. S. Eddington
Coincidentally, Eddington‘s father was the headmaster at the school about a hundred years later and so it was here that his son, Arthur Stanley Eddington, was born in 1882. He was only 2 years old when the family moved to Somerset, following the tragic death of his father in the typhoid epidemic of 1884.
John Dalton was born about September 5th, 1766, in the small village of Eaglesfield near Cockermouth, Cumberland (now Cumbria), in a tiny cottage which already bears a plaque over the doorway commemorating his birthplace. There is also another plaque to him installed by the Royal Society on the local Church.
The branch, especially through the efforts of Vice Chairman, Dr. Ian Ferguson, has been actively pursuing a number of other ‘candidates’: Edward Troughton (instrument maker), John Desmond Bernal, Sir John Ambrose Fleming and Sir William Henry Bragg. My own involvement has been with the early years of William Bragg [Fig. 2] who was born and brought up near Wigton, Cumberland.
Figure 2: Portrait of Sir William Henry Bragg, painted in 1934
His father, R J Bragg, was a merchant seaman sailing out of Workington and later Liverpool to the Far East. He gave up the sea in the late 1850s to settle down as a yeoman farmer at Stoneraise Place [Fig. 3], in the little village of Westward, Cumberland (NY274457).
Figure 3: Stoneraise Place, Westward, Cumberland
It was here that he met his future wife, Mary Wood, daughter of the Curate
of St Hilda’s, Westward. They were married on 27th June
1861, the service being conducted by his future father-in-law, Robert Wood!
William Henry Bragg, their first son, was born on July 2nd 1862
and his two brothers, Robert John and James Wood were born in 1864 and 1866
respectively. Their childhood seems to have been a very happy one and even
after William went to live with his uncles in Market Harborough,
Leicestershire, he made frequent visits to Stoneraise Place during the
school holidays.
Adjoining the rear of the house are barns, one part of which may have been used as a ‘den’ for the Bragg brothers [Fig. 4] and there are still today inscriptions on the beams and drawings on the whitewashed walls, including cartoons and symmetrical patterns [Fig. 5]. Unfortunately there is no evidence that the drawings were done by the Bragg brothers, but it would seem to be quite likely.
Figure 4: A den for the Bragg brothers?
Figure 5: Their artwork?
On his father’s insistence, William attended King William’s College, Isle of Man, (there were family connections with the school) and in the spring of 1880 he was awarded an Exhibition at Trinity but in fact did not go up to Cambridge until the following year.
Interestingly there is already a plaque on the house commemorating his birth (thought to have been placed there by his family) but it unfortunately gives little detail. The house is well set back from a very minor road and so it was decided that no further action as regards a new plaque could be supported. However it good to note that a blue plaque has been unveiled to Sir William on the Parkinson Building, University of Leeds, where he held the chair in physics after his return from Adelaide in 1909.
My thanks to Mr. & Mrs. Hunter, the present
owners of Stoneraise Place, for kindly allowing me to photograph the house
and barn, and thanks to Tully House Museum for their
kind permission to reproduce the portrait of Sir William.
Acknowledgements to “William Henry Bragg, 1862-1942, Man and
Scientist” by G M Caroe for the details of his early life.
page last updated 24 November2012