William Thynne Lynn

William Thynne Lynn
Born(1835-08-09)August 9, 1835[1]
London, England
DiedDecember 11, 1911(1911-12-11) (aged 76)[2]
Blackheath, London[3]
Resting place
Lee cemetary[3]
EducationB. A., University of London
Scientific career
FieldsAstronomy
WorkplacesGreenwich Observatory

William Thynne Lynn (9 August 1835 – 11 December 1911)[2] was an English astronomer and author.

Biography

He was born at his family's home on Sloane Street in London, England,[3] the eldest son of William Bewicke Lynn and Ellen née Thynne.[4] His father had served in the 5th Fusiliers as a surgeon during the Peninsula War,[5] then with the Allied troops that occupied Paris following the Waterloo campaign, before becoming senior surgeon at Westminster Hospital.[4] The young William spent his youth in Claygate, Surrey, where his father would retire from service.[6] Lynn received a private education in Esher, Surrey.[7]

In April 1854, Lynn gained a position as a supernumerary computer at the Royal Observatory, Greenwich.[6] The following year, the Astronomer Royal, George Biddell Airy,[1] recommended him as an assistant at Cambridge Observatory,[8] under the direction of James Challis.[7] After eighteen months, he returned to Greenwich and was appointed assistant in September 1856, reducing meridian zenith-distance observations.[3] Following the death of H. Bean in 1859, Lynn was named superintendent of supernumerary computers, working on the annual volume,[6] Greenwich Observations.[9]

While employed at Cambridge, Lynn found time for private study.[6] He was educated at King's College in London. Lynn graduated with a B.A. from the University of London in October 1861,[4] after passing the required exams in 1860 and 1861. He was elected an associate of King's College in 1862.[7] On 14 February 1862 he was elected a fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society.[10] At Greenwich, Lynn was named second class assistant in 1871, then first class assistant in 1875.[8]

In 1880, he retired from the Royal Observatory due to poor health perpurtedly brought on by constant exposure to the nighttime conditions.[1] He was granted a pension by the Admiralty.[3] Following this, he was admitted as a lay reader at the Rochester diocese. In 1884, he published a work titled Celestial Motions: a Handy Book of Astronomy, which proved popular and went through multiple editions. The 9th edition would provide the foundation for a larger volume titled Stars and Telescopes by David P. Todd.[6][11] Lynn wrote on other topics in astronomy and Christian religion,[1] including numerous short notes on astronomy published in The Observatory.[12] He joined the British Astronomical Association in 1900, and contributed papers to its journal.[13]

After a stroke,[3] Lynn died 11 December 1911.[13] He was survived by two sisters.[3] (4358) Lynn, a minor planet discovered in 1909, was named in his memory.[12]

Bibliography

Lynn published several works:[13][3]

  • The First Principles of Natural Philosophy (1863)
  • Celestial Motions: a Handy Book of Astronomy (1884)
  • Bible Chronology: Brief Lessons on the Parables and Miracles of Our Lord (1889)
  • Eminent Scripture Characters (1891)
  • Short Catechisms of English Church History (1892)
  • Brief Lessons on Astronomy (1893)
  • Remarkable Comets (1893)
  • Remarkable Eclipses (1896)
  • Astronomy for the Young (1898)
  • The Penny Chronology (1902)
  • Studies in the New Testament, Expository and Practical (1909)

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Kellogg, Day Otis; Baynes, Thomas Spencer, eds. (1903), New American supplement. A-ZUY, The Encyclopædia Britannica, vol. 27 (20 ed.), Werner, p. 651.
  2. 1 2 William Thynne Lynne, Royal Astronomical Society, retrieved 2026-07-25.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Hollins, H. P. (1912), "William Thynne Lynn", The Observatory, 35: 47–49, 61.
  4. 1 2 3 "William Thynne Lynn", Journal of the British Astronomical Association, 22 (2): 103–104, November 1911.
  5. ↑ "Lynn, William Bewicke (1786 - 1878)". The Royal College of Surgeons of England. Retrieved 2026-07-27.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 "Obituary Notices : Fellows :- Lynn, William Thynne", Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 72: 249, February 1912, Bibcode:1912MNRAS..72Q.249., doi:10.1093/mnras/72.4.249a.
  7. 1 2 3 Plarr, Victor (1899), "Lynn, William Thynne", Men and Women of the Time: A Dictionary of Contemporaries (15 ed.), G. Routledge and sons, limited, p. 685.
  8. 1 2 Dolan, Graham, People: William Thynne Lynn, The Royal Observatory Greenwich, retrieved 2026-07-25.
  9. ↑ "Observations and associated catalogues, Annals, Bulletins and Circulars". The Royal Observatory Greenwich. Retrieved 2026-07-27.
  10. ↑ List of the Fellows of the Royal Astronomical Society, Spottiswoode & Company, 1890, p. 14.
  11. ↑ Todd, David Peck (1899). Stars and Telescopes: A Hand-book of Popular Astronomy, Founded on the 9th Ed. of Lynn's Celestial Motions. Little, Brown.
  12. 1 2 Schmadel, Lutz (2003), Dictionary of Minor Planet Names, Physics and astronomy online library, vol. 1, Springer Science & Business Media, ISBN 978-3-540-00238-3.
  13. 1 2 3 "Notes", Nature, 88 (2198): 221, December 14, 1911.

Further reading

  • "The Late W. T. Lynn", Country-side: Monthly Journal of the B.E.N.A., 4 (1), British Empire Naturalists' Association: 10, January 1912.
  • Royal Greenwich Observatory (1871), Astronomical Observations, H. M. Stationery Office, p. 1.
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