Conclusion

In 1884 the British Association took its annual meeting outside the British Isles for the first time when it selected the Canadian city of Montreal as its venue. ¹ This move met with considerable opposition from sections of the British membership of the BAAS, but the support of the Governor General of Canada and the precedent of other meetings, including that of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, which met in Montreal in 1848, was sufficient to win the day. ² In the opinion of Philip Lowe, however, it was an indication that the BAAS by this date was struggling to find new stimulus and direction. ³ With British towns now well equipped with museums, libraries and, in some cases, with universities, it was more difficult for the Association to think of itself as an enlightening influence, even in towns at a considerable distance from the metropolis. Consequently there was, according to the editors of The Times, a sense of stagnation about the Association's activities:

It cannot be denied that the British Association is to some extent on its trial at the present time. It is passing through an ordeal such as comes as a matter of course to every established institution at a certain stage of its existence. It has long outlived the attraction of mere novelty, and is compelled in its turn to pay the penalty which attaches to popularity. ⁴