Chemical Society

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Template:Short description The Chemical Society was a scientific society formed in 1841 (then named the Chemical Society of London) by 77 scientists as a result of increased interest in scientific matters.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Chemist Robert Warington was the driving force behind its creation.

The London Chemical Society 1824

The early days of the 1824 Chemical Society came with a rough start. Among the artisan class, the magazine The Chemist, written by John Knight and Henry Lacey, had started to get some traction.<ref name=":0" /> Some argue that they falsely mentioned that the 1824 Chemical Society was attempting to gather an educated upper and middle-class group of chemists and philosophers.<ref name=":0" /> Because of this, the writers of The Chemist maintained a very practical and anti-theoretical bias, as they had lashed out at the time wasted by academic chemists researching atomic weight distributions.<ref name=":0" /> To find a means of how this society should be better set up and run, correspondents and proponents of The Chemist advised that membership in The Chemical Society be limited to 20, pay a subscription fee, and cast ballots as to how they are to run the society.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> The thought was that the society would adopt a more experimental system as opposed to the previously disliked theoretical system.<ref name=":3">Template:Cite journal</ref> In doing so, members would give a lecture, and illustrative of the experiments they performed.<ref name=":3" />

Later, the official launch of the "London Chemistry Society" started with the new promise of "the study of chemistry and all its branches", with The Chemist working along-side them.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Despite its founding in 1824, it is doubtful that the Chemical Society made it into 1825.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> The Chemical Society of London, however, would eventually be founded under Robert Warington and had much more success than its predecessor.<ref name=":02">Template:Cite journal</ref>

History

One of the aims of the Chemical Society was to hold meetings for "the communication and discussion of discoveries and observations, an account of which shall be published by the Society". In 1847, its importance was recognized by a Royal Charter, which added to its role in the advancement of science, the development of chemical applications in industry. Only a decade after the creation of the Chemical Society of London, the society faced financial difficulties. Its survival was only possible through a merge with the Government School of Mines, now known as the Royal School of Mines, in 1853.<ref name=":4">Template:Cite journal</ref> One of the major issues was that most Chemical Society members were in London. In contrast, most industries were located farther north, with South Lancashire becoming one of the most important parts of the British chemical industry, overshadowing the Chemical Society's work.<ref name=":4" />

The reason why the Chemical Society worked with the Government School of Mines is because they did extensive work with mines as well. The Chemical Society's work with mines focused on testing and sampling gases. Dr. Graham worked at Newcastle Coal Mines examining "light carbureted gas"(methane).<ref name=":5">Template:Cite journal</ref> This work was crucial as mining safety concerns grew, especially after the Felling Colliery Disaster, which led to the founding of the Society for the Prevention of Accidents in Coal Mines in 1813.<ref name=":5" />

File:August W Hofmann.jpg
August Wilhelm Hofmann, (This picture was taken in 1890)

Although the Chemical Society often did not work with some larger chemical industries, smaller London industries offered collaboration opportunities. This included photography, which required fine chemicals for development, natural dyes, and drugs.<ref name=":4" /> August Wilhelm Hofmann, a prominent member, conducted groundbreaking research on coal tar products for two decades. Hofmann's work transformed coal tar from a waste material into a valuable resource for creating vibrant dyes, establishing a new industrial sector.<ref name=":4" /> His contributions led to his election as president of the Chemical Society in 1861.<ref name=":4" />

Now because of the "marriage of science and industry heralded the creation of London's Royal College of Chemistry," lead to the increasing role of the Chemistry Society in London's Chemical industry.<ref name=":4" /> Membership was open to all those interested in chemistry, but fellowship was restricted to men only.

The Chemical Society of London succeeded where a number of previous chemical associations - the Lunar Society's London branch chemical society of the 1780s, the Animal Chemical Club of 1805, the London Chemical Society of 1824 - failed. Many of these societies mentioned built the basis on which the Chemical Society of London was founded.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite journal</ref> One assertion of a cause of success of the Chemical Society of London is that it was, unlike its forerunners, a "fruitful amalgamation of the technological and academic chemist".<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

Robert Warington had an upbringing in chemistry that ultimately led to the creation of the Chemical Society of London (in 1841).<ref name=":1">Template:Cite journal</ref> Warington had started making a name for himself in the chemistry world, having close ties with Liebig and Faraday.<ref name=":1" /> Using this, after working for 7 years in a brewery, he departed 2 years later, during which, he began paving the way for the founding of a Chemical Society in London.<ref name=":2">Template:Cite journal</ref> Utilizing connections he had made throughout his professional career he reached out to numerous chemists to create the first meeting of the official Chemical Society of London (March 30, 1841).<ref name=":2" /> By this meeting, they had acquired seventy-seven men as new fellows. One of the men from the Chemical Society of 1824, George Smith, was also a member of this 1841 society. Their numbers would grow to over one hundred by the year 1867.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> The society used its scholarly background to display its reputation and stature and grow its connections to elevate itself and its members.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Its activities expanded over the years, including eventually becoming a major publisher in the field of chemistry. On May 15, 1980, it amalgamated with the Royal Institute of Chemistry, the Faraday Society, and the Society for Analytical Chemistry to become the Royal Society of Chemistry.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The Chemical Society also was expanding far before this as Roberts and Simmons wrote about British Chemical Societies, "Throughout the first half of the twentieth century, of those who worked outside the UK, more than half worked in Europe, the United States, or a range of other countries outwith the British Empire."<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Women in The Chemical Society

After a proposal in 1880 questioning women's membership in The Chemical Society, it was decided that any women present in the Chemical Society were only guests as the Presidential address from Birkbeck revealed that women were not eligible for membership.<ref name=":03" /><ref name="bhc2003" /> This is something that would hold true until 1920.<ref name=":03">Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="bhc2003" /> That, however, was not the only time this topic would be brought up as a similar proposal was brought up and rejected in 1888. Much of the reasoning behind the rejection of these proposals has to do with Henry Armstrong stating, "for fear of sacrificing their womanhood; they are those who should be regarded as chosen people, as destined to be the mothers of future chemists of ability."<ref name="bhc2003" />

In 1904, Edith Humphrey, thought to be the first British woman to gain a doctorate in chemistry (at the University of Zurich), was one of nineteen women chemists to petition the Chemical Society for admission of women to fellowship (largely inspired after the admission of Marie Curie as a foreign fellow).<ref name="bhc2003" /><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> This was eventually granted in 1919, and Humphrey was subsequently elected to fellowship.<ref name="bhc2003">Template:Cite journal</ref> This, however, was not the first attempt for women to enter The Chemical Society. In 1892, a woman (either Emily Lloyd or Lucy Boole) had tried.<ref name="bhc2003" /> With that, William Ramsey emerged as a supporter within the society for the admission of women into The Chemical Society.<ref name="bhc2003" />

Presidents

Original members

On 23 February 1841, a meeting was convened to take into consideration the formation of a Chemical Society. The Provisional Committee appointed for carrying that object into effect invited a number of gentlemen engaged in the practice and pursuit of chemistry to become original members. The following 77 communicated their written assent:<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

See also

References

Template:Reflist

Template:Royal Society of Chemistry Template:Chemistry societies Template:Authority control

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