Title and statement of responsibility area
Title proper
James Dinwiddie fonds
General material designation
- Textual record
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Fonds
Repository
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Edition statement of responsibility
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Issuing jurisdiction and denomination (philatelic)
Dates of creation area
Date(s)
Physical description area
Physical description
2.16 m of textual records
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Archival description area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Dr. James Dinwiddie was born in 1746 at Dumfries, Scotland. He graduated from Edinburgh University in 1778. In 1779 he began writing his series "Queries and Hints", which were scientific journals covering a wide variety of subjects. His fields of research included history, physics, chemistry, engineering, military tactics, and many other diverse topics. In 1781 Dinwiddie embarked upon a lecture series around the United Kingdom on various scientific topics. In 1792 he was invited to join Lord Macartney's embassy to China, as an "experimentalist" and "mechanic". He performed several scientific experiments and demonstrated numerous apparatus for the imperial court. When the embassy left for the return voyage to Britain, Dinwiddie asked to be left behind and went to India. He continued to lecture in India, and was appointed Professor of Mathematics, Natural Philosophy, and Chemistry at the College of Fort William. Dinwiddie left Calcutta in September 1806, and resettled in London, where he continued to lecture and write in his scientific journals. He was an active member of the Royal Institution of Great Britain up until his death in 1815.
Custodial history
James Dinwiddie's records were found in the basement of Mrs. Barbara Bisson's house at Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1997. How the records got there has yet to be determined. Dinwiddie's records were given to Professor David Sutherland of Dalhousie University's History Department in January 1998. He passed them on to the University Library and they were accepted by the Dalhousie University Archives. The donation was formally accessioned on the 7th of January 1999.
Scope and content
Fonds consists of the personal papers of Dr. James Dinwiddie which include his lecture notes, scientific journals, notebooks, manuscript, early experiments for 1774, correspondence, and personal journals and also some records from the Royal Institution for 1808-1814. The papers also include the journals of W.J. Proudfoot and a biography of his father (and Dinwiddie's son-in-law) James Proudfoot.
Notes area
Physical condition
Immediate source of acquisition
Arrangement
Much of the material was already bound together and organized into various sections when it arrived, and for the bulk of this material that arrangement was maintained.
Language of material
- English
Script of material
Language and script note
English
Location of originals
Availability of other formats
Restrictions on access
All records are open.
Terms governing use, reproduction, and publication
Materials do not circulate and must be used in the Archives and Special Collections Reading Room. Materials may be under copyright. Contact departmental staff for guidance on reproduction.
Finding aids
A file list is available onsite. A website for the fonds is also available at url: http://www.library.dal.ca/archives/dinwiddie/din_main.htm
Associated materials
Accruals
No further accruals are expected.
General note
Preferred citation: [Identification of item], James Dinwiddie fonds, MS-2-726 Dalhousie University Archives and Special Collections, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Alternative identifier(s)
Standard number area
Standard number
Access points
Subject access points
Place access points
Name access points
- Bisson, Barbara (Subject)
- Blair, Justin (Subject)
Genre access points
Control area
Sources
This fonds description comes from the Dalhousie University Archives Catalog. The complete, original description is available there.