Blue Plaques for Physicists

A few years ago, the Director of the Institute of Physics, Brian Davies, set up a scheme to erect blue memorial plaques in public places commemmorating famous scientists. He was concerned that although there were plenty of artists being honoured in this way, there were very few scientists. The scheme continues as part of the Institute of Physics contribution to the Public Understanding of Science.

Members of the Institute are encouraged to make nominations of scientists from their part of the country through the Institute's Branches. This is normally done in collaboration with a local historical society for the area and the local authorities who have to agree the planning permission. There may be other formalities if the plaque is to be on a listed building or in a National Park. BCA members who attended the Annual Conference in Leeds last year may have seen the one commemorating Sir William Henry Bragg (see 'Crystallography News' No. 60 March 1997 'The Braggs in Leeds' and page 63 for the text of the plaque).

The Spring 1998 newsletter of the History of Physics Group of the Institute of Physics has more details and includes names of further proposals, one is for Dame Kathleen Lonsdale FRS (1903 - 1971); I feel sure members of the BCA will want to support her case. You may also like to propose other physical crystallographers from your area who deserve to be commemorated; look at the list below and see which eminent physicists are missing. If so, please contact the Director, Education & Public Affairs, The Institute of Physics, 76 Portland Place, LONDON W1N 3DH with your proposals.

Criteria to be satisfied in erecting a plaque

• The person to be honoured must be recognized as an outstanding physicist (scientist, astronomer, etc) who has contributed to the advancement of physics by his/her theories, discoveries or inventions.
• The person to be honoured must have a direct connexion with the proposed site of the plaque (birthplace, school, university/laboratory [where he/she taught, carried out most of his/her work), place of residence, a building already associated with physics, astronomy etc housing artefacts with with he/she had a strong connexion).
• There should not be any other commemorative plaque/tablet/inscription to the person to be honoured in the same locality

Partial list of plaques erected so far

The following names are listed in alphabetical order of surname, with th location to the right.

• Sir Edward Appleton ( 1892 - 1965 ) Bradford, Yorkshire
• John Logie Baird ( 1888 - 1946 ) Hastings, Sussex
• Sir William Henry Bragg ( 1862 - 1942 ) Leeds, Yorkshire
• Nicholas Callan (?? ) Co. Kildare, Ireland
• John Canton ( 1718 - 1782 ) Stroud, Gloucestershire
• John Dalton ( 1766 - 1844 ) Kendal, Cumbria
• Paul Dirac ( 1902 - ? ) Bristol, Avon
• Sir Arthur Eddington ( 1882 - 1944 ) Kendal, Cumbria
• Daphne Jackson ( ?? ) Guildford, Surrey
• Sir Oliver Lodge ( 1871 - 1940 ) Penkhull, Staffs
• James Clerk Maxwell ( 1831 - 1879 ) King's College, London
• Sir Charles Parsons (1854 - 1931 ) Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Teeside
• Joseph Priestley ( 1733 - 1804 ) Warrington, Cheshire
• Frederick Soddy ( 1877 - 1956 ) Eastbourne College, Sussex
• Edmund Stoner ( 1899 - 1968 ) Leeds, Yorkshire
• Ernest Walton ( 1804 - 1995 ) Dublin, Ireland
• Evan James Williams (?) near Swansea, South Wales
• Charles Thomson Rees Wilson (1869 - 1959 ) Pentland Hills, near Edinburgh, Scotland

Plaques proposed

• Matthew Boulton
• G P Eckinton
• John Flamsteed
• Frederick Guthrie
• John Herschel
• James Jeans
• Lord Kelvin
• Joseph Lockyer
• Kathleen Lonsdale ( 1903 - 1971 )
• Henrie Massey ( 1908 - 1983 )
• William Napier Shaw
• George Simpson

Details of the Plaques