William Herapath (1796–1868) was an English analytical chemist and political reformer.
Life
Herapath was born in
Bristol
Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
, where father was a maltster in St. Philip's parish, and after his death succeeded to the business. He gave it up in order to study chemistry. He was one of the founders of the
Chemical Society of London
The Chemical Society was a scientific society formed in 1841 (then named the Chemical Society of London) by 77 scientists as a result of increased interest in scientific matters. Chemist Robert Warington was the driving force behind its creation.
...
, of which he was a fellow, and also of the
Bristol Medical School
Bristol Medical School was originally a medical institution in England which existed from 1833 to 1893. It later became amalgamated with University College, Bristol the predecessor institution to the University of Bristol.
History
It was built ...
, of which he became professor of chemistry and toxicology on its opening in 1828.
On 13 April 1835, at the trial of a woman named Burdock for poisoning by arsenic her lodger, Mrs. Clara Ann Smith, at Bristol, Herapath was expert witness for the prosecution, and made a reputation by his analysis. He was then retained in other criminal and civil trials, and was frequently opposed to
Alfred Swaine Taylor
Alfred Swaine Taylor (11 December 1806 in Northfleet, Kent – 27 May 1880 in London) was an English toxicologist and medical writer, who has been called the "father of British forensic medicine". He was also an early experimenter in photography ...
. In the case of
William Palmer of Rugeley in 1856, when he was a witness for the defence, he was severely handled by
Alexander Cockburn, who denounced him as a "thoroughgoing partisan".
His other famous cases include an alleged case of infanticide in Bath by a Bristol lawyer and his mistress, known by the pseudonyms Mr & Mrs Slater.
In politics Herapath was a radical at the time of the
Great Reform Bill
The Representation of the People Act 1832 (also known as the 1832 Reform Act, Great Reform Act or First Reform Act) was an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom (indexed as 2 & 3 Will. IV c. 45) that introduced major changes to the electo ...
. He was president of the Bristol Political Union, and acted against the rioting of October 1831. On the passing of the
Municipal Reform Act, he became a member of the town council, and then a
justice of the peace. His radicalism faded, and he lost his seat on the council.
Herapath died on 13 February 1868.
Works
Herapath wrote "instructions" for Clifton Cleve's ''Hints on Domestic Sanitation'', London, 1848; and ''A Few Words on the Bristol and Clifton Hot-wells. Together with an Analysis of the Spa'', Bristol (1854?), which was later part of the ''Handbook for Visitors to the Bristol and Clifton Hotwells'', Bristol (1865?).
Family
William Bird Herapath
Dr William Bird Herapath FRS FRSE FRCS (28 February 1820 – 12 October 1868) was an English surgeon and chemist known for his discovery of Herapathite.
Life
He was born in Bristol, the eldest son of William Herapath, Professor of Chemistry a ...
the toxicologist was his eldest son.
The celebrated English physicist
John Herapath
John Herapath (30 May 1790 – 24 February 1868) was an English physicist who gave a partial account of the kinetic theory of gases in 1820 though it was neglected by the scientific community at the time. He was the cousin of William Herapath, t ...
(30 May 1790 – 24 February 1868) was his cousin.
Notes
;Attribution
{{DEFAULTSORT:Herapath, William
1796 births
1868 deaths
19th-century British chemists
Scientists from Bristol