Online access to the 2024 British Science Week Programme at Chawton House: Ladies of Science. Many pioneering women in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries made inroads in botany, geology, mathematics, astronomy, palaeontology, and other disciplines, both disseminating scientific knowledge to others, but also making extraordinary discoveries against considerable odds. This programme explores five of these scientific women, whose work can be found in the Chawton House collection.
Online Talks Series: Ladies of Science
£10.00
Description
Available now, until the end of 2024
Purchasing this series gives you access to the landing page, which contains links to all the videos in the series, and additional reading resources around each topic.
Programme
1. Introduction: Science and the Chawton House Collection
2. Mary Somerville (Brigitte Stenhouse)
Mary Somerville was a Scottish mathematician and astronomer. She was the first woman to have an experimental paper printed in the Royal Society’s periodical, and also the first female Honorary Member of the Royal Astronomical Society (along with Caroline Hershel).
3. Jane Squire (Tita Chico)
Jane Squire is a now-forgotten mathematician. She is the only woman known to have openly competed for the British longitude reward offered as part of the 1714 Longitude Act.
4. Elizabeth Blackwell (Katie Childs)
Elizabeth Blackwell was a talented and pioneering botanical illustrator. Her Curious Herbal (1737-39) was created to secure her husband’s release from debtor’s prison. It contains 500 hand-etched and coloured plates of plants, accompanied by a short biography for each specimen, explaining in simple terms where the plant grew, its characteristics, name and uses.
5. Charlotte Jane St Maur (Kim Simpson)
Charlotte (1803-1889) was the daughter of Edward Adolphus St Maur, 11th Duke of Somerset and Lady Charlotte Hamilton. The Chawton House Collection includes a cache of 16 letters from her to her father and uncle. Her father had a lifelong interest in mathematics, whilst her Uncle, Lord Webb, was interested in geology. The two men, both Fellows of the Royal Society, took a keen interest in Charlotte’s education, particularly in relation to science.
6. Maria Graham (Carl Thompson and Emma Yandle)
Maria Graham was one of the leading travel writers of her time. She published books on India, Italy, Chile and Brazil, as well as art history, science, history, botany, and children’s literature, establishing herself as an authoritative expert in several fields. Her account of an earthquake in Chile was the first female- authored piece to appear in the journal of the Geological Society.
