Science and the City: The role of women in the science city: London 1650–1800

Desborough, Jane; Clifton, Gloria

Science and the City: The role of women in the science city: London 1650–1800

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2023-11-16_TheRoleOfWomenJDesborough_FINAL.pdf

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Journal article

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Desborough, Jane

Clifton, Gloria

Date published

May 26, 2021

Abstract

Women played fundamental roles in the establishment of London as a ‘science city’ in the period 1650–1800. Taking its inspiration from the themes explored in the Science Museum’s new permanent gallery, Science City 1550–1800: The Linbury Gallery, this paper explores four broad categories of contribution that women made – as scientific instrument makers or retailers, as teachers, as students or participants, and as authors or correspondents in science – to demonstrate that they played more significant roles than has been fully accounted for previously. To do so, we consider the examples of 25 specific individuals and various other virtually unidentifiable women spanning the period 1650–1800. By bringing together examples of different types of contribution, we show that women did not play a single role; they contributed to the emergence of a scientific culture in London in many different ways. All of the women discussed in this paper were individuals with their own reasons for involvement in science. But several factors such as contemporary perceptions of women, networks in London, and the growing demand for scientific knowledge united them all and influenced their experiences.