Donald Stephen Lowell Cardwell (4 August 1919 – 8 May 1998) was a historian of science and technology, Professor of the

History of science The history of science covers the development of science from ancient history, ancient times to the present. It encompasses all three major branches of science: natural science, natural, social science, social, and formal science, formal. Pr ...

UMIST The University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology (UMIST) was a university based in the centre of the city of Manchester in England. It specialised in technical and scientific subjects and was a major centre for Research univer ...

from 1974 to 1984 and President of the Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society.

Early life and education

Cardwell was born in

Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...

in 1919, the son of a civil servant from

Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London; it is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater Lond ...

, Surrey. He was educated at

Plymouth College Plymouth College is a co-educational private school in Plymouth, Devon. History The school was established in 1877. In 1896 Plymouth College bought Mannamead School (founded in 1854), and was temporarily known as Plymouth and Mannamead Colleg ...

and gained a First-Class degree in Physics at

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...

in 1939. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he joined the Admiralty Signals Establishment, serving in

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, West Africa and the Middle East. Post-war he returned to

to study for a PhD in Physics working with Bill Seeds, John Randall and

Maurice Wilkins Maurice Hugh Frederick Wilkins (15 December 1916 – 5 October 2004) was a New Zealand-born British biophysicist and Nobel laureate whose research spanned multiple areas of physics and biophysics, contributing to the scientific understanding ...

Academic career

Cardwell worked at

Keele University Keele University is a Public university#United Kingdom, public research university in Keele, approximately from Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, England. Founded in 1949 as the University College of North Staffordshire, it was granted uni ...

for two years c.1955 with the economist Bruce Williams, then at the

University of Leeds The University of Leeds is a public research university in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It was established in 1874 as the Yorkshire College of Science. In 1884, it merged with the Leeds School of Medicine (established 1831) and was renamed Y ...

before joining

as Reader in the History of Science and Technology in 1963. He was promoted to professor in 1974 and retired in 1984. He was involved in laying the groundwork for the creation of Manchester’s Museum of Science and Industry (opened in 1969), and was also President of the

Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society The Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society, popularly known as the Lit. & Phil., is one of the oldest learned societies in the United Kingdom and second oldest provincial learned society (after the Spalding Gentlemen's Society). Promi ...

(1991–93). The Society held a Memorial Lecture in his honour in 1999. Cardwell's papers are held at the

University of Manchester Library The University of Manchester Library is the library system and information service of the University of Manchester. The main library is on the Oxford Road campus of the university, with its entrance on Burlington Street. There are also ten other ...

Personal life

Cardwell married Olive Pumphrey in 1953. They had two sons, one of whom predeceased him, and one daughter.

Select bibliography

* ''The Organisation of Science in England'' (1957). * ''John Dalton and the Progress of Science'' (1968). * ''Turning Points in Western Technology: A Study of Technology, Science, and History'' (1972) * ''Artisan to Graduate'' (1974). * ''James Joule: a biography'' (1989). * ''The Fontana History of Technology'' (1994).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cardwell, D. S. L. 1919 births 1998 deaths Gibraltarian historians Historians of science Alumni of King's College London Academics of Keele University Academics of the University of Leeds Academics of the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society 20th-century English historians Gibraltarian male writers