| Description | Volume 6/1 of William Ramsay's correspondence and papers, as compiled by his former assistant, Morris W. Travers, following Ramsay's death. A basic overview of the contents is as follows, but a detailed inventory can be found in RAMSAY/18. The correspondence includes letters to family members about domestic and personal subjects as well as work-related letters to / from colleagues on scientific topics.
At the front of the volume: Photograph of Ramsay and a smaller photograph Lady Ramsay. (1887)
Pages i-lx: Introduction. A detailed history of the Chemistry department and overview of its organisation and the history of the Professors before Ramsay took up his post, and the history of the Chemistry department following his appointment. Includes a printed plan of the Wilkins building showing the original allocation of the rooms in 1828, changes made between 1828 and 1848, and changes made between 1848 and 1876. Also an engraving of "The New Laboratory at University College" from The Illustrated London News, 30 May 1846. Describes in detail the layout of the Chemistry labs and teaching rooms constructed in the north wing in 1880, and the way the lab was run under Ramsay. See also the photograph of the laboratory on p.27 of this volume. The introduction also refers to some of the photographs in the other volumes in the archive, explaining who the students and other workers were and their working arrangements. Explains how the system of teaching and research worked in the department and what student life was like.
Describes the letters and papers contained in the rest of the volume with added contextual information.
Pages 1-10: Printed copies of letters of application and testimonials in favour of Ramsay as candidate for the Chair of Chemistry in University College London.
Pages 11-170: Correspondence and papers. (Feb 1887 – Dec 1890), including the following:
Page 27: Photograph of the Old Chemistry Laboratory, University College London. (1887)
Page 52: Copy of a letter to McGowan, 1888, outlining research being done in Ramsay's department.
Pages 73a-b: Ramsay’s ‘On the molecular weight of metals’ (reprinted from ‘Journal of the Chemical Society’, LV, August 1889), with related note.
Pages 114-141: ‘Discussion on the theory of solution’, by Spencer Umfreville Pickering (reprinted from ‘Report of the Royal Society’, 1890).
Page 146: Printed syllabus for a course of Technical Training in Chemistry at UCL, including list of Professors and table of fees. (c.1891)
Pages 153-159: Report on electrolysis and its physical and chemical bearings (reprinted from ‘Report of the Royal Society’, 1890).
At the end of the volume: F.G. Donnan’s Ostwald Memorial Lecture delivered on 27 January 1933 (reprinted from ‘Journal of the Chemical Society’, March 1933).
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