Record

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
Research field	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

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