The first of the series of Memorial Lectures to commemorate the life and work of the late Henry Winram Dickinson, D Eng, MIMechE, was delivered on 12th May 1954 at the Science Museum in London by Professor Charles Singer. H W Dickinson had been a founder member of the Newcomen Society, and was its Secretary from 1920 until 1951, except for the years 1932-34 when he was its President. He was also Editor of the Society's Transactions from the first volume (1920) until a few months before his death. He was author of more than 30 papers in Transactions.
Dr Dickinson was born in 1870 and served an apprenticeship at Park Head Steelworks in Glasgow, joining the staff of the South Kensington Museum in 1895, and rising to the position of Keeper of the Mechanical Engineering Department of the Science Museum 1924-1930. In 1939 he received from Lehigh University in the US the honorary degree of D Eng; he was presented with a gavel (now used by the Society) made from the ancient Lehigh oak.
When the Newcomen Society was founded in 1920 its success and continued existence was due in the main to his enthusiasm - an enthusiasm which inspired others to give of their best - and no-one had done as much as he to prosper its work. Having a wide range of interests himself, he was able to appreciate the enthusiasms of many specialists and to instil in them a sense of proportion, an appreciation of the history of engineering and technology as a whole, and an abiding interest in the surrounding aspects.
The Society is honoured to have entertained some notable speakers; past Dickinson Memorial Lectures include:
| 1954 | The Happy Scholar | Charles Singer |
|---|---|---|
| 1956 | The Development of Iron and Steel Technology in China | Dr Joseph Needham |
| 1958 | Sixty Glorious Years: The Impact of Engineering on Society in the Reign of Queen Victoria | S B Hamilton |
| 1960 | Roots in the Past: Factors in the Rise of the Petroleum Industry | R J Forbes |
| 1962 | Thomas Newcomen's First Steam Engine 250 Years Ago and the Initial Development of Steam Power | Arthur Stowers |
| 1964 | Railway Engineering: its Impact on Civilisation | C E Lee |
| 1966 | The Industrial Monuments Survey | Rex Wailes |
| 1968 | Some Reflections on Engineering Biography | J Foster Petree |
| 1970 | The History of the History of Engineering | L T C Rolt |
| 1972 | The Control of Machine Tools - A Historical Survey | K R Gilbert |
| 1974 | William Chapman (1794-1832), Civil Engineer | Professor A W Skempton |
| 1976 | The Evolution of British Dams | G M Binnie |
| 1978 | Science and the Steam Engine in the Early Nineteenth Century Reconsidered | D S L Cardwell |
| 1980 | Architectura Navalis | Professor A R Hall |
| 1982 | The Engineering Development of Rigid Airships | Sir Alfred Pugsley |
| 1984 | Was there a decline of the industrial spirit in England 1850-1939? | Professor W H Chaloner |
| 1986 | From Cannon to Diamonds - A History of High Pressure Engineering | Professor B Crossland |
| 1988 | Some Steps in the Evolution of Early Iron Arched Bridge Designs | J G James |
| 1990 | The Mulberry Harbours | Sir Alan Harris |
| 1992 | Energy - The Key to the History of Engineering | Sir Hugh Ford |
| 1994 | Torquemeter Applications | R D van Millingen |
| 1996 | The Development of the Linear Induction Motor | Professor E R Laithwaite |
| 1998 | Diversity and Diffusion: the transfer of technologies in the industrial Age | R Fox |
| 2001 | Capturing the Age of Industry | Sir Neil Cossons |
| 2003 | Engineering History or the History of Engineering? Re-Writing the Technological Past | David Cannadine |
| 2004 | Critical Reflections on the Science-Technology Relationship | John Krige |
