Some list members may know of P. Fleury Mottelay as the author of Bibliographical History of Electricity and Magnetism (1922), and a translator of William Gilbert's De Magnete, published in 1893 and pre-empting that of Silvanus P. Thompson's (1903).
Whilst a lot is known of Thompson's life (I am speaking at a workshop devoted to him this Friday 16th September in London), I have struggled to find many biographical details for Mottelay. He does not feature in American National Biography Online. This is odd given his literary output and that the doings of his wealthy and well-connected New York family frequently appeared in US newspapers of the time.
I will be grateful for and acknowledge any references, information or leads in my forthcoming talk and associated publication.
Dr Stephen Pumfrey, Dept of History, University of Lancaster, UK.
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