Sabine, Sir Edward (1788-1883)

The items in this collection are concerned with ornithology. WMS/Amer.109 is a copy of part of William Bartram's work on North American birds, while WMS/Amer.110-111 comprise both transcriptions of ornithological works and Sabine's own observations in the Arctic during Parry's 1819-1820 expedition in the Hecla.

1813-1820

1 volume and 2 files Manuscript; bound and loose papers.

The items are held in chronological order of composition.

Purchased at Stevens', London, 1931

Edward Sabine was born in 1788 and joined the Royal Artillery in 1803. While stationed on the Niagara frontier of Canada he began his studies into natural history, which were eventually to encompass ornithology, meteorology and the study of terrestrial magnetism. The latter study was his particular specialism and led to his attachment to the Arctic expeditions of John Ross (1777-1856) in the Isabella (1818) and Edward Parry (1790-1855) in the Hecla (1819-1820). During his long career he rose to be a General in the Royal Artillery, President of the Royal Society, Knight-Commander of the Bath and a member of the informal "Arctic Council" that advised the Admiralty on Polar exploration. He retired from the Army in 1877 and died in 1883.

At Wellcome Collection: MSS.7404 and 7486, collections of material relating to Polar explorers, contain some letters by Sabine.

Described in: Robin Price, An Annotated Catalogue of Medical Americana in the Library of the Wellcome Institute for the History of Medicine (London: Wellcome Institute for the History of Medicine, 1983).