Maurice Hugh Frederick Wilkins CBE FRS (1916 - 2004)

Born 15 Dec 1916 in Pongaroa, Wellington, New Zealand

Ancestors

Died 5 Oct 2004 at age 87 in Blackheath, London, England

Biography

Maurice Wilkins CBE FRS is Notable.

Maurice Hugh Frederick Wilkins CBE FRS was a New Zealand-born British biophysicist and Nobel laureate whose research spanned multiple areas of physics and biophysics^[1]. He is best known for his work on the structure of DNA for which he won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with James Watson and Francis Crick in 1962.

Early Life

Maurice was born on 15 December 1916^[2] in Pongaroa, New Zealand. He was the son of Edgar Henry Wilkins and Eveline Constance Jane Whittaker.

His father was a medical doctor who had come from Dublin, where his paternal and maternal grandfathers were, respectively, Headmaster of Dublin High School and a Chief of Police. He was working for the School Medical Service and his mother was a school teacher^[3]. The family then moved to Wellington where he spent his early childhood. He later described his time in New Zealand as "some of the happiest years of his life, affording the possibilities of exploration and discovery".

The Wilkins family moved to Birmingham, England when Maurice was six so that his father could do further studies^[3]. He attended Wylde Green College and King Edward's School, Birmingham. Then he went to St John's College, Cambridge in 1935 to study Physics^[4]. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1938. His next move was to the Physics Department at the University of Birmingham, studying under John Randall ^[5] for his Ph.D.

In 1939 he was living at 35 Duchess Road, Birmingham, Warwickshire with the Vickers^[6], and his occupation was a university research worker. He obtained his Ph.D. in 1940 with a thesis entitled, "Phosphorescence decay laws and electronic processes in solids"^[7].

Career

His work into the luminescence of solids was of benefit for the Ministry of Home Security and Aircraft Production where he worked after graduation^[3]. He researched ways to improve cathode-ray tube screens for radar. He then spent some time working under Marcus Oliphant on the mass spectrograph separation of uranium isotopes for use in bombs for World War II. He continued this research as part of the Manhattan Project in Berkeley, California^[8].

After the war, he moved to Scotland to become a Lecturer in Physics at St Andrews University with John Randall^[4]. He left there after a year and moved with Randall to King’s College London in 1946 to become a member of the newly formed Biophysics Unit of the Medical Research Council.

It was while working at King's College that he produced the first clear X-ray images of DNA^[1]. This work was presented at a conference in Naples in 1951 at which James Watson was present. Eventually, work by Raymond Gosling and Rosalind Franklin led to the production of a X-ray diffraction image of DNA which provided clear indication of a helical structure^[9]. This information was given to James Watson and Francis Crick, leading to their correctly described the double-helix structure of DNA in 1953. Maurice continued to work on the Watson–Crick DNA model and to study the structure of RNA for several more years.

He became Deputy Director of the Biophysics Unit in 1955^[4], a position he held until 1970 when he became the Director until 1972. In 1963 he was appointed Professor of Molecular Biology. In 1970 he became Professor of Biophysics, and continued in this position until he retired in 1981 when he became an Emeritus Professor.

Personal Life

Maurice was an anti-war activist before World War II^[1]. He joined the Cambridge Scientists Anti-War Group. He was also a member of the Communist Party until the invasion of Poland by the Soviet Army in September 1939.

After the war he became involved with the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament^[8]. He campaigned widely for the socially responsible use of science. He was the founding President of the British Society for Social Responsibility in Science and held that position from 1969 to 1991.

Maurice married twice. He met his first wife Ruth while he was working at Berkeley^[3]; they married in the early 1940s and had one son. After his divorce, he married his second wife Patricia Ann Chidgey with the marriage being registered in the first quarter of 1959 at Marylebone^[10][11]. They had four children, Sarah, George, Emily and William.

He published his autobiography, The Third Man of the Double Helix, in 2003^[12]. The book includes his interactions with Rosalind Franklin who undertook the X-ray crystallography on the double helix. She received very little credit for her role in the discovery as did Maurice himself because of the book written by James Watson, The Double Helix^[13].

Maurice died on 5 October 2004, and his death was registered at Greenwich^[14]. It is not known where he is buried^[15].

Honours and Legacy

Maurice was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1959^[4]. In 1960 he shared the Albert Lasker Basic Medical Research Award from the Lasker Foundation with James Watson and Francis Crick^[16] for the double helical structure of DNA. In 1962 the three scientists shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine^[17] "for their discoveries concerning the molecular structure of nucleic acids and its significance for information transfer in living material".

He was made Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1963^[4]. His former College, St John’s College, awarded him an Honorary Fellow in 1972. He was awarded three Honorary Doctorates - from Glasgow University in 1972, Trinity College Dublin in 1992 and Birmingham University the same year.

In 2000, King's College London opened the Franklin-Wilkins Building in honour of his and Rosalind Franklin's work at the college^[1].

A DNA sculpture called Double Helix created by Charles Jencks (1939–2019) was donated by James Watson to Clare College, University of Cambridge, Trinity Lane, Cambridge in 2005^[18]. The wording is^[1]:

"a) on the base:

i) "These strands unravel during cell reproduction. Genes are encoded in the sequence of bases."

ii) "The double helix model was supported by the work of Rosalind Franklin and Maurice Wilkins."

b) on the helices:

i) "The structure of DNA was discovered in 1953 by Francis Crick and James Watson while Watson lived here at Clare."

ii) "The molecule of DNA has two helical strands that are linked by base pairs Adenine – Thymine or Guanine – Cytosine."

The Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery at the University of Auckland was renamed the Maurice Wilkins Centre in 2006^[19]. It was established in 2002 as one of the seven Centres of Research Excellence established by the Government to underpin world-class research efforts in New Zealand.

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4} Wikipedia contributors, "Maurice Wilkins," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia Accessed 12 Nov 2023
2. ↑ New Zealand Births, Deaths & Marriages Online (Digital Database), Department of Internal Affairs Te Tari Taiwhenua Birth Registration. Accessed 27 Feb 2023

   1917/1090 Wilkins, Maurice Hugh Frederick Mother=Eveline Constance Jane Father =Edgar Henry DOB=15/12/1916

3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3} what is biotechnology? Professor Maurice Wilkins Accessed 15 Nov
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4} St John's College, University of Cambridge: 1962: Maurice Hugh Frederick Wilkins (1916-2004) Accessed 27 Feb 2023
5. ↑ King's College London, King’s People: Sir John Randall FRS FRSE Accessed 12 Nov 2023
6. ↑ Ancestry.com. 1939 England and Wales Register [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2018. Original data: Crown copyright images reproduced by courtesy of TNA, London England. 1939 Register (Series RG101), The National Archives, Kew, London, England.; 1939 Register; Reference: Rg 101/5528d; Line Number: 25; Schedule Number: 123; Sub Schedule Number: 4. Accessed 27 Feb 2023
   • View free Ancestry Sharing Link

   Maurice H F Wilkins (born 15 Dec 1916), University Research Worker, at 35 Duchess Road, Birmingham, Warwickshire, England.

7. ↑ Wilkins, Maurice Hugh Frederick. Phosphorescence decay laws and electronic processes in solids. Ph.D. thesis. University of Birmingham. 1940. Available on uk.bl.ethos.722993 EThOS, The British Library
8. ↑ ^{8.0 8.1} King's College London, King’s People: Maurice Wilkins FRS Accessed 12 Nov 2023
9. ↑ Randall Centre for Cell & Molecular Biophysics: History Accessed 12 Nov 2023
10. ↑ "England & Wales Marriage Index" FreeBMD Entry Information Accessed 12 Nov 2023

    Wilkins, Maurice H.F.

    GRO Reference: 1959 Jan-Feb-Mar in Marylebone Volume 5d Page 710.

11. ↑ "England & Wales Marriage Index" FreeBMD Entry Information Accessed 12 Nov 2023

    Chidgey, Patricia A.

    GRO Reference: 1959 Jan-Feb-Mar in Marylebone Volume 5d Page 710.

12. ↑ Wilkins, Maurice. Maurice Wilkins: The Third Man of the Double Helix: An Autobiography. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 1st edition 2003
13. ↑ Watson, James D. The Double Helix: A Personal Account of the Discovery of the Structure of DNA. New York: Signet Books. 1969. Copy held by Margaret Bailey Allison
14. ↑ "England & Wales General Register Office" GRO Online Indexes - Death Accessed 12 Nov 2023

    Wilkins, Maurice Hugh Frederick (Year of birth: 1916).
    

    GRO Reference: 2004 Oct-Nov-Dec in Greenwich (2291A) Reg A91 Entry Number 207.

15. ↑ Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/9563682/maurice-hugh_frederick-wilkins: accessed 12 November 2023), memorial page for Maurice Hugh Frederick Wilkins (15 Dec 1916–5 Oct 2004), Find A Grave: Memorial #9563682; Burial Details Unknown; Maintained by Foxwolf (contributor 47374189).
16. ↑ Lasker Foundation: Lasker Awards Accessed 27 Feb 2023
17. ↑ The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1962 Accessed 12 Nov 2023
18. ↑ Art UK: Double Helix, Charles Jencks (1939–2019), Clare College, University of Cambridge Accessed 12 Nov 2023
19. ↑ Maurice Wilkins Centre: Our History Accessed 12 Nov 2023

• Biography written by Margaret Bailey Allison who also worked on DNA in the 1960s