Biography

ARTHUR BEVERLY

Burial register ID: 10685
Surname: BEVERLY
First name: ARTHUR
Middle names:
Gender: Male
Age: 85 Years
Cause of death: Unknown
Burial type:
Date of death: 25-Oct-1907
Date of burial: 27-Oct-1907

Block: 96A
Plot: 3
Inscription:

In Memoriam

ARTHUR BEVERLEY

Born 22nd March 1822, at Stonehaven

Kincardineshire, Scotland.

Died at Dunedin 25th October 1907

In his 86th year.

Mr BEVERLEY was a self taught, but

profound, mathematical scholar and

searcher after “Truth.”

He was the inventor of the “Planimeter”

now so widely known as

“Amsler’s Planimeter” and for

this invention was on 27th

November, 1865, awarded by the

Royal Scottish Society of Arts

the Makdougall Brisbane Prize,

the highest honour it could bestow.

Mr BEVERLEY bequeathed all his

property to the Otago University

for the advancement of the study

of Physics and Mathematics.

[Monument is a red marble slab carved like logs around the
outside edge of the base. Built by Rogers & Clarkson]

Bio contributor: Dictionary of New Zealand Biography

Son of George Beverly, farmer. Born at Alford, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, 22 March 1822. Educated at home, a parish school, and evening classes. Apprenticed at 14 to a watchmaker and optician. Worked as a journeyman in Aberdeen for eight years. Emigrated to Melbourne, Australia, 1852, and to Dunedin, New Zealand, January 1858, where he set up a watchmaking business and bought property. Member of Dunedin Town Board, 1859–1861. Reported on Gabriel Read’s gold strike. Joined expedition to the West Coast, 1862.

Retired from business in 1864 to devote himself to scientific interests. Acted as consultant on engineering and surveying problems in the goldfields. Judge and exhibitor in New Zealand Exhibition, 1865. Awarded Makdougall-Brisbane Prize by the Royal Scottish Society of Arts, November 1865, for his planimeter. Constructed a three-inch refracting telescope for astronomical observations, and wrote on astronomy for the Evening Star. Also wrote for the Otago Witness. Made transit observations to correct ships’ chronometers. Worked on problem of distance measurement with steel tapes. Died at Dunedin on 25 October 1907, leaving £57,000 to the University of Otago.

From:

Amon, L. E. S. & Hardwicke Knight. ‘Beverly, Arthur 1822 – 1907’. Dictionary of New Zealand Biography, updated 16 December 2003

URL: http://www.dnzb.govt.nz/
Arthur Beverly
Source:

There are 1 Interments in this grave:

Surname First names Age Date of death Date of burial
BEVERLY ARTHUR 85 Years 25-Oct-1907 27-Oct-1907