Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- 1882-1949 (Creation)
Level of description
Extent and medium
6 boxes
Context area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Joseph John Thomson was born in Cheetham Hill, Manchester on 18 December 1856, the son of James John Thomson, bookseller and publisher and his wife Emma. In 1871 Thomson was admitted to Owens College Manchester and studied there until 1876, when he was awarded an entrance scholarship at Trinity College, Cambridge. In 1880 he graduated as Second Wrangler, was 2nd Smith's Prizeman and was made a fellow in the same year. He became a college lecturer at Trinity in 1883 and the following year succeeded Lord Rayleigh as Professor of Experimental Physics.
Thomson's research concerned the passage of electricity through gases. In 1897 he announced his discovery of the electron to an audience at the Royal Institution and in 1912, assisted by F W Aston, he discovered isotopes of neon. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1906
In 1918 Thomson became Master of Trinity, resigning from his chair in favour of Rutherford. However, a personal chair was created to enable him to continue his researches. He died in 1940.
Repository
Archival history
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
The papers were received from Mr David Paget Thomson, grandson of J. J. Thomson, for cataloguing by the National Cataloguing Unit for the Archives of Contemporary Scientists in 2002.
Content and structure area
Scope and content
Section A, Biographical, includes letters from the King George VI’s Private Secretary informing Thomson of the King’s wish to award him the Order of Merit. There are also press cuttings relating to Thomson and material concerning dinners and functions at Cambridge University.
Section B, Family and personal, chiefly consists of correspondence sent to Thomson’s wife, Rose, and to his brother Frederick. The former group of correspondence dates from 1882 to 1949 and comprises letters to Lady Thomson from various members of her family, including her twin sister, Violet, and letters of thanks for hospitality at Trinity College from visiting academics, scientists, politicians and others. The letters to Frederick Thomson are from Lady Thomson and date from 1906 to 1914. There are a few letters, 1903, from Thomson to his wife.
Section C, Correspondence, is presented in two sequences: general correspondence to Thomson dating from 1886 to 1939 and correspondence in French with foreign scientists 1898-1926. The general correspondence is from various scientists, politicians and academics, a large part of it being letters of thanks for hospitality at Trinity College. The correspondence in French, of both Thomson and his wife, is with a number of distinguished scientists, or their spouses, including Marie Curie, A.H. Becquerel and Paul Langevin.
Section D, Non-text material, has one item only: a film of Thomson delivering a lecture in 1934. There is also an index of correspondents.
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Accruals
System of arrangement
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
Not all the material in this collection may yet be available for consultation. Enquiries should be addressed in the first instance to:
The Archivist
Trinity College Library
Cambridge
CB2 1TQ
archives@trin.cam.ac.uk
Conditions governing reproduction
Language of material
- English
- French
Script of material
Language and script notes
Physical characteristics and technical requirements
Finding aids
A printed index of correspondents is available at the Wren Library.
Allied materials area
Existence and location of originals
Existence and location of copies
Related units of description
Papers and correspondence of Sir Joseph John Thomson previously catalogued by the Contemporary Science Archives Centre are also deposited in Trinity College Cambridge, see THJM I (CSAC catalogue no. 74/4/80) and THJM II (NCUACS catalogue no. 91/4/00). See also THMG, papers of Sir George Paget Thomson, and THMF, papers of the Thomson family.
Correspondence, notebooks and papers of Sir Joseph John Thomson are deposited in Cambridge University Library, Department of Manuscripts and University Archives. Ref: GB 0012 CUL Add 7654. See https://archivesearch.lib.cam.ac.uk/repositories/2/resources/7137.
Notes area
Alternative identifier(s)
NCUACS
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Archivist's note
The current record was created using the National Cataloguing Unit for the Archives of Contemporary Scientists finding aid, compiled by Simon Coleman and Peter Harper in 2003, and was edited by Rebecca Hughes in 2024.