Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society

"M. L. & P." redirects here. For other uses, see MLP (disambiguation).

Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society
Formation28 February 1781; 243 years ago (1781-02-28)
TypeLearned society
Registration no.235313
Legal statusCharity
PurposeThe Manchester Lit and Phil was established in 1781 with the object of promoting the advancement of education and public interest in any form of literature, science, arts or public affairs.
HeadquartersManchester, UK
Region served
Membership
400
Official language
English
Activities
  • Research
  • Publications
  • Lectures
  • Events
Collections
  • Library
  • Archives
President (98th)
Peter Wright
Websitewww.manliphil.ac.uk

The Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society, popularly known as the Lit. & Phil., is one of the oldest learned societies in the United Kingdom and second oldest provincial learned society (after the Spalding Gentlemen's Society).

Prominent members have included Robert Owen,[1] John Dalton, James Prescott Joule, Sir William Fairbairn, Tom Kilburn, Peter Mark Roget, Sir Ernest Rutherford, Alan Turing, Sir Joseph Whitworth and Dorothy Hodgkin.[2]

  1. ^ Manchester 1786–1799, Robert Owen Museum, archived from the original on 13 January 2023, retrieved 26 August 2011
  2. ^ About us, Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society, archived from the original on 28 April 2009, retrieved 10 January 2010