| Authorised form of name | Hirst; William (- ? 1769); astronomer |
| Dates | - ? 1769 |
| Nationality | British |
| Place of death | His ship was lost at sea after leaving the Cape of Good Hope |
| Dates and places | December 1769 |
| Occupation | Clergyman, Church of England |
| Research field | Astronomy |
| Activity | Education:
School at Hertford; Peterhouse, Cambridge; BA (1751), MA (1754)
Career:
Navy chaplain; Present at the sieges of Pondicherry and Vellore; Sailed to Lisbon after the earthquake (1755); Observed the transit of Venus at Government House, Madras (1761); Chaplain to the factory at Calcutte (1762-1764); Assistant to Nevile Maskelyne at Greenwich for transit of Venus (1769); Chaplain to the Commission of theHEIC to Bengal (1769); he was on board a frigate which left the Cape of Good Hope on 27 Dec 1769 and was never heard of again
|
| Membership category | Fellow |
| Date of election | 20/02/1755 |
| Relationships | Son of William Hirst DD, Master of Hertford Grammar School and Vicar of Bengeo and Rector of Sacomb |
| Sources | Sources:
Bulloch's Roll; DNB; Venn |
| Royal Society code | NA7700 |
Archives associated with this Fellow
| Reference number | Title | Date |
| EC/1754/23 | Hirst, William: certificate of election to the Royal Society | |
| L&P/2/509 | Letter, 'Account of a fireball' from William Hirst to Samuel Mead | 6 April 1754 |
| L&P/4/84 | Paper, 'On the glass mug melted by the discharge of a bomb at Fort St George, Feb 25 1761; and on a stick insect' from William Hirst to Samuel Mead | 25 February 1761 |
| L&P/2/562/1 | Letter, 'Of a new perspective instrument' from William Hirst to Samuel Mead | 18 January 1755 |
| L&P/5/120/3 | Plate, unnamed [Observations of the transit of Venus 1769] by William Hirst | 1769 |
| L&P/4/84/1 | Letter, 'On the glass mug melted by the discharge of a bomb at Fort St George, Feb 25 1761; and on a stick insect' from William Hirst to Samuel Mead | 25 February 1761 |
| L&P/2/562 | Paper, 'Of a new perspective instrument' by William Hirst | 18 January 1755 |
| L&P/4/83 | Letter, 'Of a glass mug melted by the discharge of a bomb at Fort St George, Feb 25 1761' from Ralph Taylor to William Hirst | 25 February 1761 |
| L&P/5/120 | Paper, 'Of the transit of Venus' by William Hirst | 15 June 1769 |
| L&P/5/120/2 | Plate, unnamed [Observations of the transit of Venus 1769] by William Hirst | 1769 |
| L&P/5/120/4 | Plate, unnamed [Observations of the transit of Venus 1769] by William Hirst | 1769 |
| L&P/3/390 | Paper, 'Of the comet May 1759 as seen at Madeira' by William Hirst | 7 May 1759 |
| L&P/5/120/1 | Letter, 'Of the transit of Venus as observed at Norton, near Leicester' from William Hirst to Nevil Maskelyne | 15 June 1769 |
| L&P/4/170 | Letter, 'Of an earthquake in the East Indies and two eclipses observed at Calcutta' from William Hirst to Thomas Birch | 3 November 1762 |