Person Collins; John (1625 - 1683); mathematician and scientific administrator Collins John mathematician and scientific administrator 1625 - 1683 British Male Wood Eaton, Oxfordshire, England, Europe 5 March 1625 16250305 Garlick Hill, London, England, Europe 10 November 1683 16831110 Burial: Parish church of St James, London, England, Europe (13 November 1683)

Fenchurch Street, London (1672); Garlick Hill, London (-1683)

Civil servant; Sailor Algebra Arithmetic Career: Apprenticed to Thomas Allam, bookseller, of Oxford; Clerk employed by John Marr, clerk to the Kitchen of the Prince of Wales; served on an English merchant ship used by the Venetians as a warship in the defence of Crete from the Turks (1642-1649); teacher of mathematics in London (1649-1660); accountant to the Excise Office; accountant in Chancery; Secretary to the Council of Plantations; manager of the Farthing Office (1672); accountant to the Royal Fishery Company Married: Bellona Austen Collins worked to publish multiple mathematical works by his peers, e.g. some of Isaac Barrow's works or John Wallis' 'Mechanica' and 'Algebra'. Some of his own works deemed most important were 'An Introduction to Merchants' Accompts' (1652) or 'Geometrical Dialling' (1659). His papers and correspondence constitute a valuable insight into natural philosophy at the time of the Restoration as well as evidence in the well-known dispute between Newton and Gottfried Leibniz (FRS 1673), which started after Collins' death. Fellow 17/10/1667 42 Seth Ward Acted as a correspondent on mathematical topics, e.g. to Isaac Barrow (FRS 1663), Isaac Newton (FRS 1672) and John Wallis (FRS 1663); Communicated and published some papers with the 'Philosophical Transactions' (1670s) Sources: Bulloch's Roll; DNB; DSB; Hunter; ODNB References: Cook, Sir A. 1996. 'The 350th Anniversary of the Birth of G W Leibniz, FRS', in Notes and Records, vol. 50, pp. 153-163 Hall, A R. 1995. 'John Collins on Newton's Telescope', in Notes and Records, vol. 49, pp. 71-78 Lewis, R. 2002. 'The publication of John Wilkins's Essay (1668): some contextual considerations', in Notes and Records, vol. 56, pp. 133-146 Malcolm, N. 2004. 'An unpublished letter from Henry Oldenburg to Johann Heinrich Rahn', in Notes and Records, vol. 58, pp.249-266 Munby, A N L. 1953. 'The Distribution of the First Edition of Newton's Principia', in Notes and Records, vol. 10, pp.28-39 Quarrie, P. 2006. 'The Scientific library of the earls of Macclesfield', in Notes and Records, vol. 60, pp. 5-25 Whitrow, G J. 1989. 'Newton's Role in the History of Mathematics', in Notes and Records, vol. 43, pp. 71-92 International Standard Archival Authority Record for Corporate Bodies, Persons and Families - ISAAR(CPF) - Ottawa 1996 ISBN 0-9696035-3-3 National Council on Archives, Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/action/doSearch?ContribAuthorRaw=Collins%2C+John RCN: 33828 RCN: 33831 RCN: 33832 RCN: 33829 RCN: 33830 https://pictures.royalsociety.org/results?mi_search_type=adv&mi_adv_search=yes&adv_person_id=AUTH1890 5 Mar 1625 - 10 Nov 1683 The past Fellows entries are under continuous revision. If you have queries or additional information to contribute, please contact Library@royalsociety.org. Content in external sources is not controlled by the Royal Society and historical sources may include content that is now unacceptable. Reviewed on 06/06/2022 as part of the Name Authority Project update. NA2898 21/11/2001 Andyg Pmab 28/03/2023 RS_NET\JonathanB Yes http://viaf.org/viaf/57417862 918784ba-36ec-48bb-ba62-c1a6c6ba27db