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The Alfred Russel Wallace Collection
Alfred Russel Wallace (1823 - 1913) was one of the world's most important scientists. His seminal contributions to biology rival those of his friend and colleague Charles Darwin, though he is far less well known. Together Wallace and Darwin proposed the theory of evolution by natural selection in 1858, and their prolific subsequent work laid the foundations of modern evolutionary biology, and much more besides.
Wallace made enduring scholarly contributions to subjects as diverse as glaciology, land reform, anthropology, ethnography, epidemiology, and astrobiology. His pioneering work on evolutionary biogeography (the science that seeks to explain the geographical distribution of organisms) led to him becoming recognised as that subject’s ‘father’. Beyond this Wallace is regarded as the pre-eminent collector and field biologist of tropical regions of the 19th century, and his book The Malay Archipelago (which was Joseph Conrad’s favourite bedside reading) is one of the most celebrated travel writings of that century and has never been out of print. Wallace was a man with an extraordinary breadth of interests who was actively engaged with many of the big questions and important issues of his day. He was anti-slavery, anti-eugenics, anti-vivisection, anti-militarism, anti-Imperialism, a conservationist and an advocate of woman's rights. He strongly believed in the rights of the ordinary person, was a socialist, an anti-vaccinationist (for rational reasons), and a believer in naturalistic, evolutionary spiritualism. He did not come from a privileged background and was largely self-taught. For a brief biography see https://wallaceletters.myspecies.info/content/mini-biography
The Wallace Correspondence Project (WCP) was founded by George Beccaloni in 2010. Its aims are to locate, digitise, catalogue, transcribe, interpret and publish Wallace's surviving correspondence and other manuscripts. About 5,700 letters to and from Wallace are currently known to survive, and they are held by c. 240 institutions and individuals worldwide. Wallace's letters are a biographical treasure trove, which provides a far better picture of the 'real' Wallace than his heavily edited and censored published writings (e.g. his autobiography My Life (1905) and his letters in Marchant's Letters and Reminiscences (1916)). For example, Wallace never even mentions his wife's name (Annie) in any of his published writings, including his autobiography. The letters are also key to gaining a deeper understanding of his scientific and other work: how and why his ideas arose, and how they evolved over time.
The WCP is unlocking this valuable resource by gathering all the letters together for the first time, and transcribing them so that they can be more easily read and information within them discovered using electronic searches for words and phrases. The vast amount of unpublished information which is coming to light will surely form the basis for numerous articles, scholarly papers, PhD theses and perhaps the first definitive biography.
Epsilon is being used by the WCP's as its online archive of Wallace's correspondence. It replaces our previous archive, Wallace Letters Online, which was last updated in 2015. The process of editing the transcripts and associated metadata is a work in progress which will take many years to complete. Our project’s policy is, however, to make the information we have available to users at the earliest possible opportunity, even if it is incomplete and/or imperfect. For a guide to our data, including the protocols we use for metadata and transcriptions, please see https://wallaceletters.myspecies.info/content/epsilon
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ARW talks of his hopes to work on new edition of Wonderful Century after five weeks of visitors; Carroll's Tangled Tales with amusing mathematical puzzles; mysterious drowning of neighbour Monica Briggs in local pond; "The Grange" not yet sold, some people interested in the "Colony" due to view it.
Discusses William viewing six or seven houses for sale near Tunbridge Wells and elsewhere, with details of locations and names of properties, comments on desirability, likely views, gardens, water supply and adjoining land; enclosing orders to view (not present) and a list of essential requirements (not present); report to be sent promptly so that Ma (William's mother Annie Wallace) may view any suitable.
Writes of William's visit to Silchester; houses for sale; disappointment over Compton house; importance of an attractive view; description of a promising property near Beaconsfield; Carter's price restrictions, possibility of Mr Tebb's investing; returning with notes William's article on Badbury Diggings, if rewritten and photos supplied might suit Pearson or Cassell; Roman Britain, Roman coins.
Asks William to purchase some aluminium sheet suitable for plant labels as ARW's copper ones too thin and brittle; visit by Mr Stead.
Instructions to view "The Grange", Beaconsfield, if possible with his sister Violet; enclosing viewing order, a map and a letter from Mr Gurney (none of these present), with instructions for journey by train or bicycle; price of £30,000 may be too high for Carter but Tebb, Swinton or others may invest.
Regarding viewing "The Grange" (at Beaconsfield) near Amersham with his sister and mother, with details of journey, price of land per acre and opinion on suitability; instructions to report on size of rooms, water supply and position; asking for first name of Mr Gurney; possibility of ARW himself going to view; William's coat.
Regarding William's coat; viewing of "The Grange" near Amersham, ARW's decision to go to London and possibly stay at Mr Morse's Spiritualist Hotel near Baker Street station and join William, Violet and their mother in viewing the property.
Regarding inspection of a house (The Grange) near Amersham with a view to buying, enclosing pencil drawing of plan of house, headed: "The Grange, Beaconsfield".
William's new and better position with a "decent and liberal firm"; sending some of his goods including clothes, advice to buy some cellulose collars and cuffs; enclosing letter (not present) from Mr Davies who wants supporters in preserving Godalming Old Market Place and is interested in William's Rowan fields; fears they may lose "The Grange" through lack of investors with enough money, the owner having refused an offer of £14,000, Carter to view property, need to seek a builder with large capital.
Carter's Estates, possibility of buying a new house suitable for use as a dwelling and a school, her brother William's investigation of houses in Cranleigh, Horsham and Basingstoke; Mr Carter's purchase of a large farm near Oxford and his plans to build a model settlement or small garden city on it, including public access to wild land.
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