| Authorised form of name | Sopwith; Thomas (1803 - 1879); surveyor and civil engineer |
| Dates | 1803 - 1879 |
| Nationality | British |
| Place of birth | Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland, England |
| Date of birth | 03 January 1803 |
| Place of death | At his residence 103 Victoria Street, Westminster, London, Englanf |
| Date of death | 16 January 1879 |
| DatesAndPlaces | Burial:
Norwood cemetery, London, England, where there is a "Sopwith Path". |
| Occupation | surveyor and civil engineer |
| Research field | Geology |
| Engineering |
| Activity | Education: Educated privately and apprenticed to his father as a cabinet-maker.
Career: Took employment as a surveyor (1824); studied stratigraphical geology; published A Historical and Descriptive Account of All Saints' Church in Newcastle-upon-Tyne (1826); worked with Richard Grainger in the redevelopment of Newcastle Upon Tyne; collaborated with Joseph Dickinson on a survey of lead mines in the area owned by Greenwich Hospital; built up contracts in London, particularly in the area of geology (c.1830s); wrote two editions of a treatise on the use of isometric projection for drawing surveys (1834 and 1838); was instrumental in inducing the government to found the Mining Record Office (1838); produced a mining survey in County Clare, Ireland (1838); drew attention to the scientific importance of noting geological features exposed in the cuttings of railways, resulting in a grant from the British Association for his initiative (1840); employed on the development of railways in Belgium (1843); appointed agent for W.B Lead Mines (1838-1871); died from heart disease.
Memberships:
FRMS (President 1859-1860)
FGS
Athenaeum Club
Institution of Civil Engineers
Royal Institution
British Association for the Advancement of Science
The Society of Arts
Royal Meteorological Society
Statistical Society of London
Archaeological Institute
Archeological Association
Medals/Awards:
Telford Silver Medal (1842) |
| Membership category | Fellow |
| Date of election | 05/06/1845 |
| Age at election | 42 |
| Proposer | William Buckland; William Henry Fitton; Roderick Impey Murchison; Henry Thomas de la Beche; John Taylor; George Bellas Greenough; Richard Owen; John Rennie; John Edwin Gray; Woronzow Greig; Richard Phillips; Edward Sabine |
| Relationships | Parents: Jacob Sopwith (1770–1829), builder and cabinet-maker, and Isabella, daughter of Matthew Lowes.
Spouse: 1) Mary Dickenson (1828); 2) Jane Scott (1831); Anne Potter (1858)
Children: Jacob Sopwith; Ursula Sopwith; Thomas Sopwith; Olive Sopwith; Thomas Sopwith; Anna Sopwith; Arthur Sopwith. |
| OtherInfo | Early user of three dimensional models both for practical illustration of regional geology.
Wrote detailed diaries between 1821 and 1878 recording daily events of his professional and personal life, including accounts of meeting individuals such as Charles Babbage (FRS 1816), Charles Darwin (FRS 1839), and John Ruskin. The diaries are held in he Special Collections at Newcastle University Library. |
| Related images | Discover a selection of related images in our picture library |
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| Source | Sources:
Bulloch's Roll; DNB; Norwood Cemetery Conservation Plan, Lambeth: London Borough of Lambeth. 2018. p. 80. Retrieved 9 August 2018. |
| Code | NA7643 |
Archives associated with this Fellow
| RefNo | Title | Date |
| EC/1845/17 | Sopwith, Thomas: certificate of election to the Royal Society | |
| MS/710/107 | Letter from Thomas Sopwith, Coleford, Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, to Robert Were Fox, Falmouth, Cornwall | 17 April 1839 |
| IM/Maull/004319 | Sopwith, Thomas | nd |
| IM/004318 | Sopwith, Thomas | nd |
| MC/26/106 | Letter from [John Allen] Harker, The National Physical Laboratory, Bushy House, Teddington, Middlesex, to The Secretaries of the Royal Society | 13 January 1911 |