SHNH Patron
Sir David Attenborough OM CH FRS. Awarded the Founders' Medal 2011.
SHNH Meetings 2012
Saturday 19th May
Spring Meeting and AGM. The natural history of the Terra Nova expedition.
Thursday 27th September
The remarkable nature of Edward Lear.
4-9 November
Mark Catesby's third centennial in America - celebrating his impact on our world.
The Society for the History of Natural History
The Society for the History of Natural History is a friendly international society for everyone who is interested in natural history in the broadest sense. This includes botany, zoology and geology as well as natural history collections, exploration, art and bibliography. Everyone with an interest in these subjects – professional or amateur – is welcome to join. For a brief history of the society, click here.
SHNH is known for its friendliness and provides a focal point for the history of all aspects of natural history. It has a thriving international membership and regional representatives organise local meetings. An international meeting is held at regular intervals, the next being in the United States in November. A number of meetings and events are scheduled for 2012 so do visit the Meetings and Events pages for more information. Of especial interest will be our Spring Meeting at the Scott Polar Research Institute in Cambridge on "The natural history of the Terra Nova".
The Society's main publication is Archives of natural history, produced twice a year, and distributed free to all members. It contains refereed, illustrated papers and book reviews and is published for the Society by Edinburgh University Press. All volumes published from 1936 are now available online.
From time to time, the Society also publishes other works of interest. To celebrate SHNH's 75th anniversary in 2011, we published History and mystery, an anthology of the most interesting, bizarre and entertaining notes and queries from the Society's newsletters. Other publications include: Darwin in the Archives and A Century of Discovery.
An informal Newsletter is produced three times a year and distributed free to members. It contains details of forthcoming meetings, news of other events, a lively Notes & Queries section, members’ news and new publications.
On this site you will find information about the Society, its activities, publications and how to join us. You will also find news and up-to-date information as well as links to useful resources and further information.
Message from SHNH President Geoff Moore December 2011
Our URL is www.shnh.org.uk
Latest News
Monday 14. of March 2011 William Turner in the 1540s: a weekend conference in Morpeth, Northumberland
The natural historian and physician William Turner (c. 1508 -1568) was born in Morpeth. His life’s work became the cornerstone for British botany as he provided over 300 first identifications of English native plants. He...
Wednesday 09. of March 2011 The Grant Museum Reopens: First Chance to See
Tuesday 15th March, 1-8pm
After eight months of packing, design, construction, unpacking, screwing skeletons together and reorganising 68000 dead animals, the Grant Museum of Zoology opens the doors to its new life in an...
Sunday 06. of March 2011 2nd Notes and Records Essay Award
This is open to researchers in the history of science who have completed a postgraduate degree within the last five years. The unpublished essay, based on original research, should relate to aspects of the history of science...