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Confirmed minutes, 1780 - 1801

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Reference Code: GBR/0180/RGO 14/6
Confirmed minutes of the Board of Longitude, 1780-1801
Confirmed minutes of the Board of Longitude, 1780-1801

Scope and Contents

Minutes of Board of Longitude meetings regarding, among other matters, the rates of various chronometers; Charles Hutton's tables of products, powers and roots of natural numbers; the voyages of HMS 'Resolution' and HMS 'Discovery' and the examination of their log books; John Arnold's improvements to his watches; a suitable site for the Board of Longitude's instruments after the burning of the cupola of the Greenwich Hospital where they had been kept; improvements to reflecting telescopes; the printing and publication of the observations and results obtained on Captain Cook's last voyage; Robert Blair's method of adjusting John Hadley's quadrant; the production of the 'Nautical Almanac'; experiments into the variations of compasses; lunar observations made in the East Indies; the instruction of the masters of the Royal Navy vessels in the use of the 'Nautical Almanac' and John Hadley's quadrant; a method of finding longitude by the Moon's passage over the meridian; correspondence with the Marquis de Condorcet of the Académie des Sciences, Paris; instruments to be lent for the making of the astronomical observations at Botany Bay; the loan of a timekeeper to HMS 'Sirius'; the observations made during the second voyage of HMS 'Dolphin'; an atlas of the Spanish Mediterranean from the Royal Observatory at Cadiz; Grenier's improved pendulum; a paper from Dr Higgins on the making of glass suitable for acromatic telescopes; a letter from Captain William Bligh regarding the loss of a chronometer after the mutiny on HMS 'Bounty'; work on magnetism; the survey of the north-west coast of America to be carried out by HMS 'Hecla' and HMS 'Griper'; the purchase of an altitude and azimuth instrument; the method of obtaining latitude by observing two altitudes of the Sun and the interval of time between them, invented by José Mendoza de Ríos; the invention of an artificial horizon by Henry Ould; the trial of two watches by Thomas Earnshaw; the loan of a time-keeper to Lord Hood; Thomas Mudge's petition to the House of Commons for reward, relating to his work on the construction of chronometers; an invention by Joseph Martin to show the real motion of the Earth and the cause of tides; the appointment of John Crosley as astronomical observer on expeditions to the north-west coast of America; a treatise on magnetism by Ralph Walker; a letter from Captain George Vancouver on the observations obtained during his voyage to the north-west coast of America; the invention of an instrument by J. Leslie for detecting moisture in the atmosphere; an account of and details relating to the bankruptcy of the Board of Longitude's printer, Christopher Buckton; William Dawes' observations in New South Wales; a deficiency of the Board's publications in the Library of the British Museum; the voyage of John Crosley to Australia; and various bills and accounts with tradesmen, including printers, booksellers and clock- and chronometer-makers.

Dates

  • Creation: 1780 - 1801

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

From the Management Group:

Unless restrictions apply, the collection is open for consultation by researchers using the Manuscripts Reading Room at Cambridge University Library. For further details on conditions governing access please contact mss@lib.cam.ac.uk. Information about opening hours and obtaining a Cambridge University Library reader's ticket is available from the Library's website (www.lib.cam.ac.uk).

Extent

1 volume(s) (1 volume)

Language of Materials

English

Former / Other Reference

Vol. VI

Original geographic information

Australia [subject]

Original geographic information

Botany Bay [subject]

Original geographic information

East Indies [subject]

Original geographic information

New South Wales [subject]

Original geographic information

Newfoundland [subject]

Original geographic information

North America [subject]

Original geographic information

Port Jackson [subject]

Original geographic information

Saint John's [subject]

Finding aid date

2006-05-02 10:24:28+00:00

Includes index.

Subject

Repository Details

Part of the Cambridge University Library Repository

Contact:
Cambridge University Library
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