Letters were once an essential component in natural history research and one of the main means by which men and women actively participated in transforming private ideas into public knowledge.  This talk explores the role of correspondence networks in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, their role in the exchange of specimens and the way that groups of naturalists used them to create and validate results.  Charles Darwin's correspondence is a particularly striking case and this will be compared with the letters of other contemporary figures.

This lecture is held in conjunction with Naturalist Voyagers, a CAS Symposium held in honor of Chip Burkhardt, November 11.

Hosted by: Campus Honors Program, Center for Advanced Study, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Department of History, Office of the Provost, Spurlock Museum