Derby Philosophical Society

The Derby Philosophical Society was a club for gentlemen in Derby founded in 1783 by Erasmus Darwin. The club had many notable members and also offered the first institutional library in Derby that was available to some section of the public.

Clubs and societies were one of the most important aspects of public and semi-public life in Georgian Britain, although women were excluded from many of the more formal. Many took a keen interest in science, or natural philosophy as it would have been called, and so should be seen as important local centres for the production and dissemination of ideas as part of the European enlightenment. Some were informal associations but others were highly organised with rules and regulations and sometimes their own rooms or buildings. Quite a few acquired collections of books, scientific instruments or natural history exhibits, either through purchase or bequest.

A Derby Philosophical club or society met in the eighteenth century and may have included amongst its members individuals such as John Whitehurst, the Lunar Society member, before he moved to London in 1775. The society was meeting until at least 1779 although other clubs or coteries existed in the town prior to this. Another of these, also associated with Whitehurst seems to have included the artist Joseph Wright, his friend Peter Perez Burdett and Rev. Joshua Winter of All Saints Church.

The Derby Philosophical Society was started by Erasmus Darwin and a group of his associates in 1783 just after he moved to Derby from Lichfield, and after living for a short period at Radburn Hall with his new wife Elizabeth and her family. The club was formally inaugurated in 1784 at Darwin's house in Full Street, Derby. He delivered an address to the members which explained what he hoped the society would achieve, including the acquisition of a library and perhaps the production of publications. It seems that he also hoped the Derby Society would be able to hold joint meetings with the 'Lunatics'.

The purposes of the club were several. However the club did create a notable collection of books and entertained guests, some of whom are listed in the records. Its members participated in a collective translation of the works of Linnaeus from Latin to English. The translation of A System of Vegetables, annotated by the most eminent of them, was the first book where the name of Erasmus Darwin ever appeared.

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