| Authorised form of name | Pound; James (1669 - 1724); clergyman; East India Company chaplain; astronomer |
| Dates | 1669 - 1724 |
| Nationality | British |
| Place of birth | Bishop's Canning, Wiltshire, England |
| Date of birth | 1669 |
| Place of death | Wanstead, Essex, England |
| Date of death | 16 November 1724 |
| Dates and places | Baptism: Bishop's Canning, Wiltshire, Englnd (2 March 1669)
Burial: Wanstead, Redbridge, Greater London, England |
| Occupation | Clergyman, Church of England |
| Research field | Astronomy |
| Activity | Education:
St Mary Hall, Oxford (matriculated 1687); Hart Hall, Oxford; BA (1694); Gloucester Hall, Oxford; MA (1694); MB (1697)
Career:
Employed by the Honourable East India Company as Chaplain to the Merchants at Fort St George, Madras, India (1699) and Pulo Condore, near the mouth of the River Cambodia; after a mutiny by native troops, he was one of only 11 English residents to escape to Malacca and returned to England (1706); Rector of Wanstead, Essex (1707); Rector of Burstow, Surrey (1720) |
| Membership category | Fellow |
| Date of election | 20/12/1699 |
| Proposer | John Wallis |
| John Woodward |
| Royal Society activity | Pound was elected a fellow of the Royal Society in 1699 (Hunter) and was officially admitted in 1713. He gained a reputation as an astronomer and was invited to the board of visitors for the Royal Greenwich Observatory. He published observations on various astronomical events in Philosophical Transactions, including a total solar eclipse, the occultation of a star by Jupiter, and a lunar eclipse. |
| Relationships | Parents: James Pound of Bishops Canning, Wiltshire, and Mary Pound
Spouse: 1) Sarah (d. 1715), widow of Edward Farmer (14 February 1710); 2) (October 1722) Elizabeth, sister of Matthew Wymondesold of Wanstead; uncle of James Bradley (FRS 1718)
Children: Fist marriage: their firstborn son died at birth and they had a daughter, Sarah, who died unmarried at Greenwich on 19 October 1747. |
| General context | He corresponded with John Flamsteed (FRS 1677), the astronomer royal, who sent him a 3-foot quadrant for observing southern stars. However, due to weather delaying delivery, the quadrant reached Pound in a corroded condition in 1704.
In 1717, Pound used a 123-foot focal length lens from Huygens to mount an aerial telescope in Wanstead Park. He provided data for Sir Isaac Newton (FRS 1672) and other astronomers, and Newton paid him for his services. Pound was instrumental in fostering his nephew James Bradley's interest in astronomy. They conducted numerous observations together and made contributions to the field, including the measurement of gamma Virginis and the search for solar parallax. |
| Sources | Sources:
Bulloch's Roll; DNB; Hunter; Foster
References:
A Cook, 'The end of the affair. The correspondence of John Flamsteed, the first Astronomer Royal, vol 3 (1703-1719) by E G Forbes, L Murdin and F Willmoth' in NR 2003 vol 57 pp 113-116 |
| Royal Society code | NA6741 |