William Archer (6 May 1830 (1827?) – 14 August 1897) was an
Irish
Irish may refer to:
Common meanings
* Someone or something of, from, or related to:
** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe
***Éire, Irish language name for the isle
** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
naturalist and
microscopist
Microscopy is the technical field of using microscopes to view objects and areas of objects that cannot be seen with the naked eye (objects that are not within the resolution range of the normal eye). There are three well-known branches of micr ...
especially interested in
Protozoa
Protozoa (singular: protozoan or protozoon; alternative plural: protozoans) are a group of single-celled eukaryotes, either free-living or parasitic, that feed on organic matter such as other microorganisms or organic tissues and debris. Histo ...
and
Desmid
Desmidiales, commonly called desmids (''Gr.'' ''desmos'', bond or chain), are an order in the Charophyta, a division of green algae in which the land plants (Embryophyta) emerged. Or in other words, Desmid, (order Desmidiales), order of single- ...
s.
Life
He was born in Magherahamlet, County Down, the eldest son of Rev Richard Archer, vicar of Clonduff.
He was one of the twelve founder (1849) members of the Dublin Microscopical Club. Between 1858 and 1885 he wrote over 230 scientific papers in the
Quarterly Journal of Microscopical Science
The ''Journal of Cell Science'' (formerly the ''Quarterly Journal of Microscopical Science'') is a peer-reviewed scientific journal in the field of cell biology. The journal is published by The Company of Biologists. The journal is partnered with P ...
, Proceedings of the Natural History Society of Dublin, the vast majority are short notes on
desmids
Desmidiales, commonly called desmids (''Gr.'' ''desmos'', bond or chain), are an order in the Charophyta, a division of green algae in which the land plants (Embryophyta) emerged. Or in other words, Desmid, (order Desmidiales), order of singl ...
collected in Ireland. Sometimes the same article was published in two or more journals.
He was a Member of the
Dublin University Zoological Association and was elected a
Fellow
A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context.
In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements.
Within the context of higher education ...
of the
Royal Society
The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...
in 1875.
He was appointed Librarian of the
National Library of Ireland
The National Library of Ireland (NLI; ga, Leabharlann Náisiúnta na hÉireann) is the Republic of Ireland's national library located in Dublin, in a building designed by Thomas Newenham Deane. The mission of the National Library of Ireland is ...
from 1877 to 1895.
References
Further reading
*Anon, 1898 ''Proc. Roy. Soc''., Vol. 62 (1897 - 1898) Obituary.
*Anon? 1897 . Irish Naturalist 6, 253 Portrait
*Prescott G.W., 1984 ''Bibliographia Desmidiacearum Universalis'' (A Contribution to a Bibliography of Desmid Systematics, Biology and Ecology from 1774-1982). Koeltz Scientific Books, Koenigstein. 612 pp. Full list of papers on desmids.
*
*
External links
NBG
{{DEFAULTSORT:Archer, William
19th-century births
1897 deaths
Irish naturalists
Irish librarians
Fellows of the Royal Society