Isaac Newton 1642-1727

Sir Isaac NEWTON 1642-1727

Biographical Note

Born at Woolsthorpe, Lincolnshire, son of Isaac Newton, yeoman farmer. BA Trinity College, Cambridge 1665, MA 1668, fellow 1667, Lucasian professor of mathematics 1669-1702; his religious views and refusal to be ordained created problems but a workaround was found for someone of his recognised scientific genius. Although best remembered for his Principia mathematica of 1687, which set out the laws of gravity and of motion within the universe, he also made major contributions to the study of light (Opticks, 1704) and had extensive alchemical and theological interests. He was knighted in 1705, was MP for the University of Cambridge in 1689-90 and 1701-02, and Master of the Royal Mint from 1699. He was president of the Royal Society 1703-27.

Books

Newton acquired books by purchase and donation throughout his life and owned ca.2100 volumes when he died. It included, as would be expected, many scientific and mathematical titles, but also a wide range of other subjects, including theology, classics, history, geography and travel, literature, philosophy and law (see Harrison's book, in the Sources below, p.59 for a statistical breakdown).

He left no will and his estate was divided between eight nieces and nephews. His library was bought en bloc soon after his death by John Huggins, Warden of the Fleet Prison, for £300, who made a list of its contents (now British Library Add MS 25454). Most of the books were moved soon afterwards to Chinnor rectory, in Oxfordshire, where Charles Huggins (d.1750) was incumbent. He was succeeded as rector by James Musgrave (1712-78), who reorganised the library, in which Newton's books were mixed with others; the whole was moved to Barnsley Park, Gloucestershire in 1778. This library began to be dispersed in 1920, when many of Newton's books were sold; a further sale took place in 1928, but the remaining Newton books were then kept together before being sold to the Pilgrim Trust in 1943, who presented them to Trinity College where they remain today. Many of Newton's books are however scattered today around many places, following the earlier sale. Harrison's book, updated by the Newton Project, provides a complete list of known surviving and untraced books.

Characteristic Markings

Newton's library was very much a working collection; he did not use a bookplate, but regularly annotated his books with marginalia or corrections. He sometimes wrote his name and purchase price in books acquired at the beginning of his career, but soon gave that up. His habit of turning down the pages of leaves to mark particular points in the text - "dog-earing" - is well known and many examples survive (see Harrison, pp.25-7). Surviving Newton books today often carry the bookplate of James Musgrave (Franks 21445), and sometimes of Charles Huggins (Franks 15614), and it is from this that they can sometimes be identified.

Sources

• Newton's Library, The Newton Project.
• Harrison, John, The library of Isaac Newton, Cambridge, 1978.
• Thomson, K., New light on the history of Isaac Newton's library, The Library 7th ser 21 (2020), 89-97.
• Westfall, Richard S. "Newton, Sir Isaac (1642–1727), natural philosopher and mathematician." Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.