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Edward Trusted Bennett was born on July 1, 1831 in London. He was trained as a botanist, as was his younger brother, Alfred William Bennett. He was a Quaker, but after supporting the views of Charles Voysey, a priest in the Church of England who was condemned and then went on to found a theist church, Bennett he was disowned. In his later years, he became very active within the British National Association of Spiritualists and even became the first secretary of the Society for Psychical Research. He was considered to be a dedicated, hard-working and well-liked member. Even after his retirement in 1902, he continued to publish related works, such as On the Direct Phenomena of Spiritualism. Bennett was also deeply invested in his community and, among other things, helped to begin a Saturday night concert series in Richmond, Surrey, which was very well received and attended. He passed away in 1908.
Sir Oliver Joseph Lodge enjoyed a long life filled with many unique accomplishments. Born on June 12, 1851 he worked tirelessly until his passing on August 22, 1940. He is primarily known for his work as a renowned physicist, particularly for his work on electromagnetic radiation, radio and electricity. However, he was also deeply interested in spirituality and telepathy. Lodge over blended his two interests.Arguably, this was influenced by the death of his son, Raymond Lodge during World War I. He wrote a best selling book about his son’s death and his attempts to contact him in the afterlife, entitled Raymond or Life and Death. His belief in Spiritualism strongly influenced his research, causing some debate within academic communities over his scientific findings. Lodge wrote and researched so many subjects that his papers are scattered across numerous institutions. Those seeking further information on his psychical research can find his papers at The Society for Psychical Research in the United Kingdom.
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