HOOKE (Robert), a very eminent English mathematician and philosopher, was the son of Mr John Hooke minister of Freshwater in the Isle of Wight, where he was born in 1635. He very early discovered a genius for mechanics, by making curious toys with great art and dexterity. He was educated under Dr Bushy in Westminster school; where he not only acquired a competent share of Greek and Latin, together with an insight into Hebrew and some other Oriental languages, but also made himself master of a good part of Euclid's elements. About the year 1653 he went to Christ-church in Oxford, and in 1655 was introduced to the Philosophical Society there; where, discovering his mechanic genius, he was first employed to assist Dr Willis in his operations in chemistry, and afterwards recommended to the honourable Robert Boyle, Esq; whom he served several years in the same capacity. He was also instructed in astronomy about this time by Dr Seth Ward, Savilian professor of that science; and from henceforward distinguished himself by many noble inventions and improvements of the mechanic kind. He invented several astronomical instruments, for making observations both at sea and land; and was particularly serviceable to Mr Boyle in completing the invention of the air-pump. Sir John Cutler having founded a mechanic school in 1664, he settled an annual stipend on Mr Hooke for life, intrusting the president, council, and fellows, of the Royal Society to direct him with respect to the number and subject of his lectures; and on the 11th of January 1664-5, he was elected by that society, curator of experiments for life, with an additional salary. In 1666 he produced to the Royal Society a model for rebuilding the city of London destroyed by fire, with which the society was well pleased; and the lord mayor and aldermen preferred it to that of the city surveyor, though it happened not to be carried into execution. It is said, by one part of this model of Mr Hooke's, it was designed to have all the chief streets, as from Leaden-hall to Newgate, and the like, to lie in exact straight lines, and all the
other cross-streets turning out of them at right angles, with all the churches, public buildings, markets, &c. in proper and convenient places. The rebuilding of the city according to the act of parliament requiring an able person to set out the ground to the proprietors, Mr Hooke was appointed one of the surveyors; in which employment he got most of part of his estate, as appeared pretty evident from a large iron chest of money found after his death, locked down with a key in it, and a date of the time, which shewed it to have been so shut up above 30 years.—
Mr Oldenburg, secretary to the Royal Society, dying in 1677, Mr Hooke was appointed to supply his place, and began to take minutes at the meeting in October, but did not publish the Transactions. In the beginning of the year 1687, his brother's daughter, Mrs Grace Hooke, who had lived with him several years, died; and he was so affected with grief at her death, that he hardly ever recovered it, but was observed from that time to become less active, more melancholy, and, if that could be, more cynical than ever. At the same time, a chancery suit in which he was concerned with Sir John Cutler, on account of his salary for reading the Cutlerian lectures, made him very uneasy, and increased his disorder. In 1691, he was employed in forming the plan of the hospital near Hoxton, founded by Robert Aik alderman of London, who appointed archbishop Tillotson one of his executors; and in December the same year, Hooke was created doctor of Physic, by a warrant from that prelate. In July 1696, the chancery suit with Sir John Cutler was determined in his favour, to his inexpressible satisfaction. His joy on that occasion was found in his diary thus expressed; DOSSULGSSA: that is, Deo, Optimo, Maximo, sit honor, laus, gloria, in secula seculorum, Amen. "I was born on this day of July 1635, and God has given me a new birth: may I never forget his mercies to me! while he gives me breath may I praise him!"—In the same year 1696, an order was granted to him for repeating most of his experiments at the expence of the Royal Society, upon a promise of his finishing the accounts, observations, and deductions from them, and of perfecting the description of all the instruments contrived by him; but his increasing illness, and general decay, rendered him unable to perform it. He continued some years in this waiting condition; and thus languishing till he was quite emaciated, he died March 3d, 1702, at his lodgings in Gresham college, and was buried in St Helen's church, Bishopsgate street; his corpse being attended by all the members of the Royal Society then in London.
As to the character of Mr Hooke, it is not in all respects one of the most amiable. He made but a deplorable figure as to his person, being short of stature, very crooked, pale, lean, and of a meagre aspect, with dark brown hair, very long, and hanging over his face uncut and lank. Suitable to his person, his temper was penurious, melancholy, mistrustful; and, though possessed of great philosophical knowledge, he had so much ambition, that he would be thought the only man who could invent or discover; and thus frequently laid claim to the inventions and discoveries of others, while he boasted of many of his own which he never communicated. In the religious part of his character
Hooker. character he was so far exemplary, that he always expressed a great veneration for the Deity; and seldom received any remarkable benefit in life, or made any considerable discovery in nature, or invented any useful contrivance, or found out any difficult problem, without setting down his acknowledgment to God, as many places in his diary plainly shew. He frequently studied the sacred writings in the original; for he was acquainted with the ancient languages, as well as with all parts of the mathematics.—He wrote, 1. Lectiones Cutleriane. 2. Micrographia, or Descriptions of minute bodies made by magnifying glasses. 3. A description of helioscopes. 4. A description of some mechanical improvements of lamps and water-poizes, quarto. 5. Philosophical collections. After his death were published, 6. Poithumous works collected from his papers by Richard Waller secretary to the Royal Society.