John Whitehurst
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John Whitehurst FRS (10 April 1713 – 18 February 1788) of Cheshire, England was a clockmaker and scientist, and made significant early contributions to geology. He was an influential member of the Lunar Society.
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[edit] Life and work
Whitehurst was born in Congleton, Cheshire, to a clockmaker, the elder John Whitehurst. In 1722 he invented the "pulsation engine", a water-raising device that was the precursor of the hydraulic ram. In 1736 Whitehurst moved to Derby. In 1774, he obtained a post at the Royal Mint in London, receiving the title "Stamper of the Money Weights" in 1775.[1] In 1778 Whitehurst published his theory on geological strata in An Inquiry into the Original State and Formation of the Earth. He became a Fellow of the Royal Society on the 13th May 1779.
[edit] Selected writings
- Whitehurst, John (1778). An Inquiry into the Original State and Formation of the Earth. London: J. Cooper.
- Whitehurst, John (1787). An Attempt Towards Obtaining Invariable Measures of Length, Capacity, and Weight, From the Mensuration of Time, Independent of the Mechanical Operations Requisite to Ascertain the Center of Oscillation, or the True Length of Pendulums. London: W. Bent.
[edit] References
[edit] Further reading
- Craven, Maxwell (1996). John Whitehurst of Derby: Clockmaker and Scientist 1713-88. Derbyshire: Ashbourne.
- Ford, Trevor D. (2002). "John Whitehurst (1713–1788): Philosopher, Geologist, Horologist and Engineer". Geology Today 18: 100 – 107.
- Hutton, Charles (1792). The Works of John Whitehurst, F.R.S. with Memoirs of His Life and Writings. London: W. Bent.
[edit] External links
- Dick, Malcolm. John Whitehurst: Clockmaker, Engineer and Geologist.
