Manchester Microscopical & Natural History Society
John Benjamin Dancer
1812-1887
19th Century Manchester Instrument Maker & Inventor of Microphotography
- 1812, born on October 8th in London. Son of Josiah Dancer (1779-1835), grandson of Michael Dancer (d 1817), great grandson of Daniel Dancer (d 1794), manufacturers of philosophical, optical and nautical instruments who had apprenticeships with Ramsden, Dollond and Troughton.
- 1818, family moved to Liverpool where Josiah helped found the Lit & Phil and Mechanics Institute and JB assisted in giving public lectures.
- 1835, inherited the family business at 23 years of age and carried on the public lectures.
- 1837-1870, numerous inventions but no patents! (see below)
- 1839, produced photographs and early microphotographs using the new invention of Fox Talbot and Daguerre. Set up development & processing service.
- 1840, showed first photographic pictures of Liverpool
- 1841, formed partnership of Abraham & Dancer and family moved to Manchester (13 (later renumbered 43) Cross Street - Optical, Mathematical & Philosophical Instruments). Family lived for various periods at Cheetham Hill (6 Limefield Terrace - where he erected an Astranomical Observatory), Ardwick (Old Manor House, Tipping Street) and Greenheys (11 Greenhill Street). He married Elizabeth (in Everton, Liverpool) and had 5 sons and 3 daughters. He was also musical, could sing, play the piano and was an able conjuror. (His son Mr William Dancer BSc (d 1928) was an early Owens graduate)
- 1841, introduced photography to Manchester and took first pictures of the city
- 1842, involved in superintending the first telegraph wires being installed in Manchester
- 1845, separated business from Abraham and concentrated on manufactor of improved achromatic microscopes, 'high quality but affordable'.
- 1850s, used the new fine grained collodion process to make the first lantern slides, and improved microphotographs (277 images ranging from buildings and famous people to the Lord's prayer). Copies presented to Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, and by Sir David Brewster to the Pope and in Florence, Rome and Paris.
- made accurate thermometers for JP Joule's experiments on heat. Supplied equipment to Dalton, Williamson, Sidebotham. Colleague also of Sturgeon, Nasmyth, Roscoe, Herschel, Carpenter and Binney.
- 1855, elected a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society
- 1857, appointed Optician to Her Majesty's Royal Commissioners
- 1857, quoted by Brewster in the 8th edition of Encyclopeadia Britannica regarding microphotography
- 1861, exhibits binocular microscopes at British Association Meeting in Manchester
- 1862, awarded a Prize Medal and Honourable Mention at the Great Exhibition
- 1868, studied airborne particles microscopically
- 1869, appointed Optician in Manchester to HRH The Prince of Wales
- 1870, diagnosed as having diabetes and glaucoma
- 1877, wrote a paper on subsoil transfer by worms which was quoted by Darwin
- 1878, ill health and failing eyesight forced retirement and business passed to his two daughters
- 1880, amongst first members of the newly formed Manchester Microscopical Society
- 1884, honorary member of Manchester Lit & Phil
- 1885, dictated his autobiography to granddaughter Eleanor Elizabeth Dancer (b1871), (refound by Miss Wilkie her daughter in 1958 following an MMS meeting). Moved to Birmingham (53 Hampstead Road, Hamworth) to stay with family.
- 1886, article by Joule praising Dancer's talents and achievements
- 1887, died November 24th aged 75. Buried at Brooklands Cemetery, Sale, Cheshire.
- 1896, business sold to Richard Suter for only £50, photographic plates re-discoverd in 1959
- 1960, posthumously awarded a Medal of Meritorious Service by the National Microfilm Association of USA
- 1841-1845, single pillar achromatic microscopes. Made microscopes and equipment also for Dalton, Joule, Whitworth and Tyndall
- 1845, single and double pillar microscopes
- 1850, made microscopes of similar style to Smith & Beck
- 1860, made binocular microscopes of own design
- 1840, showed first photomicrograph of Flea in Liverpool, and made microphotographs
- 1852, produced first of higher quality (277) microphotographs, later 512 negatives passed to Richard Suter. (The Departure, Second Class No 57; The Return, First Class No 59; Full Moon No 344, Suter)
- 1855, co-founded the Manchester Photographic Society
- 1861, exhibited microphotographs at British Association for the Advancement of Science
- 1870s, Microfilmed messages used in Franco-Prussian War
- 1837, established use of lime-light for magic lantern lectures
- 1838, first use of porous glazed jars for voltaic batteries
- 1838, improved induction coil for medical use by adding a spring contact breaker or interruptor, a forerunner of the electric bell
- 1838, introduced shellacked cardboard insulators
- 1839, electrolysis for electroplating silver and gold
- 1839, discovered ozone
- 1840s-1850s, produced the first microphotographs
- 1840s, designed corrugated battery plates
- 1852, invented stereoscopic camera (patent 2064)
- modified magic lantern and introduced slide-dissolve
- made the first photographic lantern slides
- invented the Victorian 'Fairy Fountain'
- made micrometers for telescopes
- built a swivel aspirator for testing the air
- improved the anemometer and rain gauge, surveyors level, and rifle barrel tester
- made a new form of spring based contact breaker - the interruptor
- 1870, invented Davis shutter which improves depth of focus in microscope
Manchester Literary & Philosophical Society (est 1781)
- 1842, JBD joined (nominated by Dalton) and supplied numerous microscopes for exhibits and meetings. This was the 'University' of the time and preceded Owens College (1851) and the Victoria University of Manchester (1903).
- 1860, helped found the Microscopical section of the society (a forerunner of the MMS)
- contributed 27 formal papers, 15 minor contributions, 26 exhibits
- 1884, made an Honorary Member
- Ardern LL (1956) JB Dancer. The Manchester Review, Spring, page 339.
- Ardern LL (1960) John Benjamin Dancer. Occasional Papers No 2, Library Association, London.
- Barron ALE (1966) John Benjamin Dancer (An Autobiography). Book Review, J Queckett Microscopical Club, 30.155
- Bracegirdle, Brian & McCormick, James B (1993) The Microscopic Photographs of JB Dancer. Science Heritage Ltd, Chicago.
- Browning W (1964) The Autobiography of John Benjamin Dancer, F.R.A.S. 1812-1887: An autobiographical sketch dictated by Dancer to his granddaughter in 1885., Elizabeth. Manchester Memoirs, Proc Manchester Lit & Phil, Vol 107 (1964-1965) pages 115-142.
- Butler, Stella; Nuttall, RH, Brown, Olivia (1985) The Social History of the Microscope. Whipple Musuem.
- Davies George E (1882) Practical Microscopy, page 124 refers to JBD objective shutter.
- Duckworth EH (....) John Benjamin Dancer 1812-1887: Inventor of Microphotography. North West Museum of Science & Industry
- Garnett, Henry (1928) John Benjamin Dancer; Instrument Maker and Inventor. A paper read to the Manchester Lit & Phil Society 16th October. Manchester Memoirs Vol lxxiii (1928-1929) No 2. pages 7-20.
- Henderson, Herbert S (1977) The History of Microphotographic slides. Quekett Journal 'Microscopy' 33, pt 3 pages136-141
- Henderson, Herbert S (1977) The development of slide projectors. Quekett Journal 'Microscopy' 33, pt 3 pages193-201.
- Henderson, Herbert S (1978) John Benjamin Dancer. Quekett Journal 'Microscopy', 257-263.
- Kitchen, Rachel (1992) The contribution of JB Dancer to nineteenth century science in Manchester. Dissertation, University of Manchester (Supervisor M.Mahon : Biological Sciences)
- Kocher, Clive (1981) Microphotographic slides and their origin. British Journal of Photography. May 29th, p557.
- Logan, Gerrard (1989) John Benjamin Dancer FRAS - Microscopical, Optical and Instrument Maker and Photographic Pioneer. Lancashire and Cheshire Photographic Union.
- Luther F (1992) John Benjamin Dancer (1812-1887) A family history. History of Photography vol 16. pages 123-134.
- Marton, HB (19..) John Benjamin Dancer. NW Museum of Science & Industry
- McLeod A (1973) John Benjamin Dancer, Originator of Microphotography. British Journal of Photography, 141, 16th February, page138.
- Milligan H (1972) A new light on JB Dancer. Manchester Lit & Phil Memoirs & Proceedings, 115.80.1972-3.
- Nuttall RH (1980) Microscopes for Manchester. Chemistry in Britain 16,3. 132-135.
- Stirling JF (1938-1939) A forgotten genius. Watson's Microscopical Record, vols 44,45,46.
- Tither R (1969) An achromatic microscope by Abraham & Dancer. Microscopy 31, 150-158.
- Weiss FE (1930) Microscopy in Manchester. Manchester Microscopical Society Annual Report for 1929, pages 37-38.
- Warren SE (1997) Dancer and the annual general meeting of the British Association in Manchester. Supplement to Micro Miscellanea, January 1997.
- Wetton, Jenny (1991) John Benjamin Dancer: Manchester Instrument Maker. Bulletin of the Scientific Instrument Society, No 29, 4-8.
- Wetton, Jenny (1993) Scientific Instrument Making in Manchester 1790-1870. NW Museum of Science and Industry (and Manchester Memoirs, 130, 1990-1991).
- Winsby, Roy (1990) John Benjamin Dancer. Manchester Microscopical Society Newsletter 15.
I am indebted to the enthusiasm generated by Stuart Talbot, trader in antique microscopes in the Portobello Road, a permanent exhibition in the old railway station at the Manchester NW Museum of Science and Industry and to Roy Winsby of the Manchester Microscopical Society for the interest leading to the production of these pages. I also gratefully acknowledge the excellent research involved in the referenced articles. I only hope JBD would approve of shrinking his images even further and transmitting them electronically over the internet!
Mike Mahon, School of Biological Sciences, University of Manchester
Created February 1997 / Last Updated January 2006
MM
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