William de Wiveleslie Abney KCB FRS (1843 - 1920)

Born 24 Jul 1843 in Derby, Derbyshire, England

Ancestors

Husband of Agnes Matilda (Smith) Abney — married 4 Aug 1864 in York, Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom

Died 2 Dec 1920 at age 77 in Folkestone, Kent, England

Biography

William Abney KCB FRS was born in Derbyshire, England.

William Abney KCB FRS is Notable.

Notable as an English astronomer, chemist, and photographer.
Captain William de Wiveleslie Abney, Companion of the Bath, Doctor of Civil Law and Fellow of the Royal Society was born in 1843, the eldest son of Rev. Preb. Edward Henry Abney, late vicar of St Alkmund's, Derby.^[1][2]

William married Agnes Matilda Smith, the youngest daughter of Edward William Smith of Tickton Hall, Yorkshire, in 1864.^[3][4] She died in 1888. William subsequently married Mary Louisa Mead.^[5]

William was trained at the Royal Military Academy, and was promoted to Captain in the Royal Engineers. He was an instructor at the School of Military Engineering in Chatham, Kent, where he was in charge of a photographic and chemical laboratory. Here he developed a pioneering interest in the application of photography to astronomy, becoming a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society and serving as the Society's President 1893-95.^[6]

In 1890 William was said to be residing at Willeslie House, Wetherby Place, SW London. He was also a member of the Athenaeum Club.

He died in 1920.

Sources

1. ↑ "England and Wales Birth Registration Index, 1837-2008," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:2NW2-QB9 : 1 October 2014), William De Wiveleslie Abney, 1843; from "England & Wales Births, 1837-2006," database, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : 2012); citing Birth Registration, Derby, Derbyshire, England, citing General Register Office, Southport, England.
2. ↑ "England, Derbyshire, Church of England Parish Registers, 1537-1918," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VNYM-7MK : 30 November 2017), William De Wiveleslie Abney, 10 Aug 1843; citing 10 Aug 1843; citing Christening, St Alkmund's Church, Derby, Derbyshire, England, Derbyshire Record Office, England; FHL microfilm 1,041,160. (Father Rev. Edward Henry Abney of The Firs, Vicar of this parish)
3. ↑ "England Marriages, 1538–1973 ," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NX82-NJN : 10 February 2018), William De Wineleshe Abney and Agnes Machek Smith, 15 Jul 1864; citing York, England, reference , index based upon data collected by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City; FHL microfilm 1,470,663.
4. ↑ "British Newspaper Archive, Family Notices," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QPCL-35F1 : 18 April 2019), Agnes Matilda Smith in entry for William De Wiveleslie Abney, Esq, York, Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom; records extracted FamilySearch and images digitized by FindMyPast; citing York, Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom, 6 Aug 1864, The British Newspaper Archive, Ireland; FHL microfilm.
5. ↑ "England Marriages, 1538–1973 ," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NN25-G86 : 10 February 2018), William De Wiveleslie Abney and Mary Louisa Mead, 1889; citing East Barnet, Hertford, England, reference 2:3SRM5GH, index based upon data collected by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City; FHL microfilm 1,951,786.
6. ↑ Trimble, V., et al., Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers. Springer Science & Business Media, 2007, page 8. Viewed on Google Books 26 Jan 2020.

See also:

• 1890 Kelly's Handbook to the Titled, Landed and Official Classes, database on-line. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012. Original data: 1890 Kelly's Handbook to the Titled, Landed and Official Classes. London, England: Kelly & Co.
• England & Wales General Register Office online index ABNEY, WILLIAM DE WIVELESLIE mother's maiden name STRUTT; GRO Reference: 1843 S Quarter in THE DERBY UNION Volume 19 Page 483
• "England and Wales Census, 1851," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:SGDZ-6P1 : 8 November 2019), William W Abney in household of Edward H Abney, St Werburghs, Derbyshire, England; citing St Werburghs, Derbyshire, England, p. 8, from "1851 England, Scotland and Wales census," database and images, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : n.d.); citing PRO HO 107, The National Archives of the UK, Kew, Surrey.
• "Great Britain, War Office Registers, 1772-1935", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QLYG-KT2D : 21 August 2019), William De Wiveleslie Abney, 1861.
• "British Newspaper Archive, Family Notices," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QPCL-35FL : 18 April 2019), William De Wiveleslie Abney, Esq, York, Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom; records extracted FamilySearch and images digitized by FindMyPast; citing York, Yorkshire, England, United Kingdom, 6 Aug 1864, The British Newspaper Archive, Ireland; FHL microfilm .
• "England and Wales Census, 1871", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:KD89-VTK : 25 April 2019), William Abney, 1871.
• "England and Wales Death Registration Index 1837-2007," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:2JCX-Y69 : 31 December 2014), William De A Abney, 1920; from "England & Wales Deaths, 1837-2006," database, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : 2012); citing Death, Elham, Kent, England, General Register Office, Southport, England.
• "England, Kent, Canterbury Parish Registers, 1538-1986," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QGNG-9BJV : 18 April 2019), William Dewivebeslie Abney, 6 Dec 1920; from " Kent, Canterbury Archdeaconry Parish Registers Browse, 1538-1913," database and images, findmypast (http://www.findmypast.com : n.d); citing Burial, Folkestone, Kent, England, United Kingdom, Citing Canterbury Cathedral Archives, England.
• "England, Leicestershire Parish Registers, 1533-1991," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QP4Q-R2RX : 6 June 2018), Sir William de Wiveleslie Abney, 6 Dec 1920; records extracted by findmypast, images digitized by FamilySearch; citing Burial, Measham, Leicestershire, England, United Kingdom, page , citing the Record Office of Leicestershire, Leicester, and Rutland, Wigston, UK.
• "England and Wales, National Index of Wills and Administrations, 1858-1957," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QPLC-J93S : 17 September 2018), William de Wiveleslie Abney, 24 Jan 1921; citing Probate, Leicestershire, England, United Kingdom, Her Majesty's Stationery Office, Great Britain.; FHL microfilm .
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_de_Wiveleslie_Abney