Frederick DuCane Godman
Encyclopedia
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
lepidopterist
Lepidopterist
A lepidopterist is a person who specialises in the study of Lepidoptera, members of an order encompassing moths and the three superfamilies of butterflies, skipper butterflies, and moth-butterflies...
, entomologist
Entomology
Entomology is the scientific study of insects, a branch of arthropodology...
and ornithologist
Ornithology
Ornithology is a branch of zoology that concerns the study of birds. Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and the aesthetic appeal of birds...
.
Godman is best known for co-authoring Biologia Centrali-Americana
Biologia Centrali-Americana
The Biologia Centrali-Americana is an encyclopedia of the natural history of Mexico and Central America, privately issued in 215 parts from 1879 to 1915 by the editors Frederick DuCane Godman and Osbert Salvin, of the British Museum in London.This work is still fundamental for the study of...
(1879-1915) with Osbert Salvin
Osbert Salvin
Osbert Salvin FRS was an English naturalist, best known for co-authoring Biologia Centrali-Americana with Frederick DuCane Godman. This was a 52 volume encyclopedia on the natural history of Central America....
. This is a 63 volume encyclopedia on the natural history of Central America. His other works included The Natural History of the Azores (1870) and a Monograph of the Petrels (1907-10).
Godman was the third son of Joseph Godman, of Park Hatch, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
and was educated at Eton College
Eton College
Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
and Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Trinity has more members than any other college in Cambridge or Oxford, with around 700 undergraduates, 430 graduates, and over 170 Fellows...
. At Cambridge he became acquainted with Alfred Newton
Alfred Newton
Alfred Newton FRS was an English zoologist and ornithologist.Newton was Professor of Comparative Anatomy at Cambridge University from 1866 to 1907...
and Salvin. The custom of these ornithological friends to meet and talk over their recent acquisitions led to the foundation of the British Ornithologists' Union
British Ornithologists' Union
The British Ornithologists' Union aims to encourage the study of birds in Britain, Europe and elsewhere, in order to understand their biology and to aid their conservation....
(BOU) in November 1857. Godman was Secretary of the BOU from 1870 to 1882 and from 1889 and 1897, and President from 1896. A partner in Whitbread & Co., Godman inherited an ample fortune which allowed him to travel the world.
In 1883, Godman went on to become the developer of South Lodge
South Lodge Hotel
South Lodge is a 19th century five star country house hotel set in Horsham, West Sussex in the south of England.The hotel was in the international spotlight in March 2009 as it hosted the world leaders during the 2009 G-20 London Summit...
, a neo-Jacobean style country house estate in Sussex
Sussex
Sussex , from the Old English Sūþsēaxe , is an historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. It is bounded on the north by Surrey, east by Kent, south by the English Channel, and west by Hampshire, and is divided for local government into West...
.