Antiquarianism, science and networks of knowledge: The archives of the Spalding Gentlemen's Society, 1710-1760

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Whilst some of the Spalding Gentlemen's Society's (SGS) records have been published, and research undertaken into certain aspects of the its life, much is yet to be discovered about how the SGS saw itself in relation to London societies and those groups closer to home (notably the Peterborough Gentlemen's Society, the circle who supported Wisbech Town Library, and collectors and antiquarians at Cambridge). Maurice Johnson's personal papers (scattered between a number of institutions) will provide further evidence of the exchange of antiquarian knowledge during this period and will tell us much about the inter-connected nature of early eighteenth-century antiquarianism. What, too, can they tell us about the conflict between the public and private aspects of members' involvement with the SGS; although correspondence was read aloud at meetings it is clear than some members wanted private letters to remain just that. Does the role of such correspondence take on a new significance bearing in mind that the SGS - unlike some of the London societies - did not publish its research? The role of the Society's two tangible collections - of books and objects - would be key to my research, given my interests in the history of books and collecting. What place did books have in the exchange of knowledge both within the SGS and between societies; new publications were acquired from London, members were asked to give money for the purchase of books and discussions were had with other societies on the best ways to manage the growing collection. Gifts of books, and the copying of historic documents, also cemented friendships, forging links between societies and their members. How did the SGS's collections further their objectives as a learned society, and were these similar to those of comparable collections like those of the Royal Society (did their 1681 catalogue influence how the SGS organised their own objects, for example?). Furthermore, what similarities are there, if any, between the ways in which the SGS and London coffeehouses operated, particularly in the field of gathering news; the SGS began its life in the coffeehouse, and knowledge exchange, books and camaraderie were key to the existence of both institutions. In addition to improving our knowledge of the workings of one of the most significant provincial learned societies of the period, and situating it within broader trends of eighteenth-century antiquarianism, my research into Maurice Johnson and the SGS will have wider implications for a number of fields, including the history of science (many of the Society's interests are what we might today classify as scientific), museum studies, social history (especially in the development of epistolary networks between town and country) and local history.