Study of the past relies heavily on historical documents. This means ensuring that important documents and other materials are in repositories where they can easily be accessed and are protected for future generations. Wellcome Trust funding helps to achieve both these aims.

no text

Robert Hooke is a neglected figure in science history – partly because of a feud with Isaac Newton, who downplayed his achievements. But Hooke did become secretary of the Royal Society.

Strangely, his records of Royal Society meetings went missing – but turned up this year, having lain in a dusty Hampshire attic for half a century. Donations from the Wellcome Trust and others enabled the Royal Society to buy the manuscript.

The donation to the Royal Society was a one-off, in recognition of the huge importance of the material to the nation's scientific heritage. The ongoing Research Resources in Medical History scheme helps to preserve and open up key resources.

Some 90 projects have been funded to date, covering material such as the archives of Broadmoor Hospital, the papers of R D Laing and César Milstein, and records at Great Ormond Street Hospital.

Image: Robert Hooke's notebook; Royal Society