The life and works of J.J. Thomson.

Joseph John Thomson was born in Cheetham Hill, near Manchester, England on December 18, 1856. His father was a bookseller and a publisher. Having discovered a liking for physics, he wanted to become an engineer. His family supported him, and so while waiting for an opening in the apprentices at the engineering firm, Thomson was sent to Owens College when he was 14. His father died 2 years later. His mother could not afford the premium, so he gave …

…Merit in 1912 and the Presidency of the Royal Society, which he assumed in 1915. In 1918, he became Master of Trinity. He was married to Rose Paget, one of the first women permitted into advanced university studies, on January 20, 1890, and they had two children; George Paget Thomson (who later became a Noble Prize winner himself) and Joan Padget Thomson. He guided all his affairs with his usually geniality and good sense until he passed away on August 30, 1940.