Records, 1928-1929, of the Anglo-Argentine Tramways Company Ltd, comprising Report of the Directors to the Shareholders and Proceedings of the Forty-Fifth Ordinary General Meeting of the Shareholders.

Agreement, 1903, of the Argentine Railway Construction Company Ltd with Messrs Thomas Skinner & Co.

Liquidation papers of the Bahia and San Francisco Railway Company, 1901.

Papers, 1865-1891, of Charles Stephen Hill, comprising share certificates and related documents for 20 companies (mostly mining companies - gold, silver, copper, lead and tin) in Latin America, the United States, Australia, India and the United Kingdom.

Contract (copy) between the International Ocean Telegraph Company and the India Rubber Gutta Percha & Telegraph Works Company for work on submarine cables between Havana, Cuba, and Key West [Florida], 1873.

Records of the Western Telegraph Company, comprising letter books, 1883-1949; staff lists including European staff books, 1910-1930, and Rio staff list, 1899.

Paper, 'To the Wealth Producing Classes of England', signed 'One of the People.' Written in support of the Co-operative movement. At the end is the following note, 'This was printed in a Maidstone periodical, The Co-operative Miscellany, in 1830. W. L.'

Letter from John Lee of the Traffic Manager's Office, Leeds and Liverpool Canal Company, Old Hall Street, Liverpool to E Hailstone of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal Office, Leeds, 17 Jan 1877. Thanking him for the loan of the Bridgewater Canal Acts 'which I have perused in conjunction with our Leigh Branch Act'. Discusses the matter of tolls leviable by the Bridgewater Canal Company: 'In the case of one of our boats they have charge a much higher rate of toll than I feel disposed to pay, and before settling with them I am desirous to know what their powers really are'.

Written in another hand and signed by Lee.

Letter from Thomas Harvey Hull of the Worshipful Company of Wheelwrights, Guildhall, London to Captain B J Watkins of the Royal Navy, 27 May 1930. Regretting that no company privileges are available to Watkins's friend, Mr Frederick Beetham, despite the fact that his great-grandfather was Master of the Company in 1835-1836. 'For your friend I cam enclosing a little history of the Company, printed and circulated ... in 1928'.

Autograph, with signature.

Manuscript volume containing an account of the respective grants in Parliament for public services in the years 1702-1705, and the money raised from those grants up to Nov 1704. The account was made due to orders by the House of Commons dated 7 Nov 1704 and 8 Nov 1705.

Letters of attorney given by holders of South Sea stock in Amsterdam, The Hague and Geneva to London merchants respecting their stock, 1731-1739.

Typescript copy of the memoirs of Harry Gooding Field entitled 'Adventures in Finance', 21 Oct 1942, detailing his accountancy career working in Canada, the United States, Malaysia and Singapore, with copies of birth, marriage and death certificate and other official documents relating to Harry Gooding Field.

Business papers, articles of agreement, correspondence, tax assessments etc.

This collection encompasses all the main phases of Crosland's career; his education and early career, World War II, his time as a Member of Parliament. It includes personal and professional correspondence, diaries, notes and notebooks, publications, speeches, broadcasts, photographs, and ephemera (including opera, theatre and concert programmes) and comprises the following:
Part I. Education and Early Career, 1930-1950
Section 1) Highgate School (exercise books and certificates); Section 2) Trinity College, Oxford (essays and notes, material relating to student societies, and ephemera); Section 3) War (including diaries, correspondence and notebooks).

Part II. Member of Parliament, 1950-1977
Section 4) Papers; Section 5) Ministerial; Section 6) Labour Party; Section 7) Constituency; Section 8) Official foreign visits.

Part III. Correspondence (personal and professional), 1927-1976:
Section 9) 1927-1949; Section 10) 1950-1966; Section 11) 1967-1970; Section 12) 1971-1976.

Part IV. Various, 1920 - 1980
Section 13) Books, pamphlets, articles, speeches and broadcasts (concerning socialism, economics, and political campaigning); Section 14) Co-operative Independent Commission; Section 15) Profiles and biography; Section 16) Notes, note books, press cuttings and miscellaneous (personal accounts, notes and reflections); Section 17) Susan Crosland's papers (concerning biographies of Anthony Crosland); Section 18) Crosland Additional (photographs and ephemera).

The following sections, describing printed items, have been added to the catalogue as appendices: 1. Printed articles and speeches by Crosland; 2. Pamphlets (collected by Crosland); 3. Opera, Theatre and Concert Programmes.
There are two later accessions of scrapbooks, press cuttings, photographs, war medals and correspondence, c1920-c1980, and a file on the International Monetary Fund, 1976-1987.

Correspondence and memoranda, including letters to Ignaz Jastrow; 1896-1934; letters relating to British and Irish rail companies 1889-1910; letters concerning the grain trade, 1795; letters to Albany Fonblanque from Jeremy Bentham, Francis Place and Charles Pelham Villiers, 1827-1834; letters to Henry Dunning Mcleod relating to his Dictionary of Political Economy, 1862; letters to Graham Wallas 1898-1903; letters from Arthur Young, Claude Henri de Rouvroy and William Boyne 1814-1866; letters concerned with the families of John Frederick Denison Hare and John Sterling 1836-1913; letters to Sir William Mitchell Acworth 1889-1899; and letters to Henry William Macrosty 1934-1939.

The collection of primarily bound volumes comprises the business documents of Robert Newman and Co., and related companies, 1774-1955. The documents themselves include letter books, journals, ledgers, account books, memorandums and ship registers, and relate chiefly to trading in Newfoundland, Canada. Many of these internal working documents were originally intended to serve as permanent records. They can provide the researcher with a general overview of the financial and statistical history of the firm, giving a record of transactions as they occurred. In addition, they offer a degree of descriptive information, showing the development of codes and ciphers used by the firm, an insight into labour relations, and a detailing of the raw materials used for trade.

The records relate to the following company names; Hunt Newman Roope and Co; Hunt Roope and Co; Hunt Roope Teage and Co; John Newman and Co; Newman and Co; Newman Hunt and Co; Newman Hunt and Lyon; Newman and Land; Newman Land Hunt and Co; Newman and Roope; Robert Newman and Co.

Volumes 2 and 102 are missing from the collection and number 91 was not originally used when the items were acquisitioned.

Ledgers of London stockbrokers Oakley Norris Bros, 1880s-1940.

Notes, correspondence and other papers relating to Piercy's time at the Ministry of Munitions; at the British Ministry of Food in the USA; as General Trading Manager of Harrisons and Crosfield; as Joint Managing Director of Pharaoh Gane and Co Ltd; as a partner in the stock broking firms of Capel, Cure and Terry, and Fenn and Crosthwaite; as leader of the British Petroleum Mission; at the Ministry of Production; as personal assistant to Clement Attlee; as Chairman of the Industrial and Commercial Finance Corporation; and his official appointments. Personal letters and biographical material, including the records of the Evelyn Trust and Chichester Estate Trust; essays, notes and other material relating to Piercy's education and lecturing; and material relating to Piercy's involvement with educational institutions, the Wellcome Trust, and his various other interests.

Records, 1966-1993, of Christian Concern for Southern Africa (CCSA), comprising papers on the constitution of the CCSA; its Executive Committee and Annual General Meeting papers; finance papers and examples of many of CCSA's publications and reports. Also included are files of correspondence between CCSA and churches and religious organisations, affiliated support groups and British companies in South Africa. Papers also include those of the Oil Working Group, which contain material on the Royal Dutch/Shell Group; the mass lobby of Parliament (17 June 1986) for 'Sanctions against Apartheid' organised by CCSA; and the Ethical Investment Research Service, founded as an independent offshoot of CCSA.

Records, 1869-1967, of John Swire & Sons Ltd, comprising the bulk of known surviving material stored in the London Office, covering the development of the firm from about 1870 to 1947, and including series of correspondence coming in and out of the London Office; legal material including original deeds and leases; accounts; organisation papers; and photographs. The importance of the collection lies in the comprehensiveness of the nineteenth and twentieth century correspondence in illustrating the development of the firm and its subsidiaries from the London side where policies were decided, and from the Eastern side where they were implemented. It also gives a good picture of leading figures and firms involved in the Far Eastern trade at that time such as Jardine, Matheson & Company, the China Merchants Company and Holt's, and reveals aspects of Chinese trade and British business philosophy at the end of the Victorian era.

Ten original letterbooks, 1862-1889, of David McLean, containing copies of his family and official business correspondence during his career with the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank. They provide an insight into the work and dealings of a British banker involved in trading with the Far East. The business correspondence is concerned with the condition of stocks and shares of various companies. The family letters are about personal financial matters.

Records, 1909-1932, of Serdang Central Plantations Ltd, comprising Articles of Association, correspondence, annual reports and agreements relating to the voluntary liquidation and reconstruction.

Cassette copies and transcripts of recordings of unedited interviews assembled, 1972-1974, for the radio series 'Plain Tales from the Raj', including material not included in the broadcast programmes, and comprising c200 hours of material. The 82 subjects interviewed, including men, women, adults and children, lived and worked in India from the late 19th century to Independence (1947) and the interviews cover a wide range of civilian and military experience between 1876 and 1949. Military personnel range from the Commander in Chief of the Army in India to Army privates. Civil servants of various ranks and members of the business and commercial world, for example tea planters, are also included. Women mainly comprise wives and daughters, but also include a few nurses and governesses. The project covered the lives of the British in India and, although the material touches upon the effect of the Raj on India and its indigenous inhabitants, only a small number of Indians and Eurasians were interviewed. Subjects covered include accommodation and living conditions; daily routine; social life and recreation; health and sanitation; the effects of India postings on family life; relations between the British, other Europeans, Indians and Eurasians in social and work environments; events such as riots and earthquakes; the fauna and landscape of India; and political events. Full typescript transcripts (including inaccuracies in some cases) exist for most, but not all, of the recordings.

Drafts, research notes and correspondence relating to various aspects of the career and life of Professor Theodore Barker, [1950-2000]; including correspondence and papers regarding the glass manufacturing industry, most notably the companies Pilkington and Triplex, airports and research material relating to various aspects of transport history, including correspondence with the Transport History Research Trust. Also includes research material concerning St Helen's, Liverpool, used by Barker in preparation for his PhD thesis and later publication on the area. The papers also contain various conference material and drafts and offprints of papers by Barker and others.

Share records of Cattle Traders' Insurance Company Limited comprising share certificates book, annual return of shareholders, and registers of directors' shareholdings.

Shares records of Eagle Insurance Company including returns of shareholders and assignees of shares; receipts for shares; Fenn and Crosthwaite monthly list; and statutory returns.

Staff records of Eagle Insurance Company including working papers of Charles Jellicoe, Henry Porter Smith and Francis Ernest Colenso.

Financial and accounting records of Eagle Star Insurance Company, including revenue results books; close of year books; papers, reports, minutes and statements of accounts committee; actuarial valuations and close of year files; actuarial correspondence; papers relating to development of mechanised accounting, introduction of computers and decimalisation; and annual management reports.

Shares records of English and Scottish Law Life Assurance Association Limited comprising register of transfers.

Financial and accounting records of English and Scottish Law Life Assurance Association Limited including ledger, schedule of assets, actuary's and directors' committee's reports.

Business records of the National Mercantile Life Assurance Society including policies and related papers.

Business records of Sceptre Life Association Limited including policy registers, propectuses, policies issued, copies of Married Women's Property Act and report of related legal case, agency appointment and correspondence, and papers relating to fund.

Financial records of Star Assurance Society Limited including ledger, cash book, and bank statements.

Records of Bunhill Fields Committee, Court of Common Council, comprising minutes and committee papers, 1865-1869.

Records of the Mayoralty Visits Committee, Court of Common Council, including minute book, 1969-1989; minutes and correspondence received by the Town Clerk, 1958-1965 and 1976-1979; resolutions of greetings, 1969-1979; reciprocal hospitality (state visits by the mayor), 1961-1975; mayor's overseas visits, 1952-1979 and 1982-1983. Please note that some of these records are closed.

Documents relating to the premises of the Lorival Manufacturing Company, 1840-1927, comprising conveyances, mortgages, leases for premises in Norwood, including Norwood Court; powers of attorney, agreement, release and discharge relating to the dedication of piece of land for widening Norwood Road and copies of Court Roll and conveyances for property in Heston, part of the premises of the Lorival Manufacturing Company.

Declaration of trusts of £2,400 capital stock (being 24 shares) in the West Middlesex Water Works, assigned for securing £1,400, for Charles Lestock Boileau of Castleneau, esq. and William Tierney Clark of Hammersmith, engineer, 1841; with absolute assignment of the same for £1,120, 1843.

Records relating to the Paddington to Wapping Canal, comprising letters applying for stock, 1802; 27 sheets recording a canvass of persons affected asking them whether they were for or against a canal or a canal and railway; and bills of expenses in connexion with the above.

London Electricity Consultative Council, 1947-1990, comprising minutes; reports, including annual reports, complaint reports and general reports; papers relating to conduct and operations, including rules and regulations; correspondence of the policy working party; minutes and correspondence of the district committees; nominations and appointments to council and district committees; Chairman's meetings and correspondence; correspondence and administrative papers of the Electricity Consumers Council and Area Electricity Consultative Councils; correspondence and reports of the National Consumer Council; correspondence and reports regarding electricity supply industry reorganisation; reports and papers regarding accountability and performance indicators; research and publicity; papers relating to tariffs; correspondence and reports of the London Electricity Board and Central Electricity Generating Board; correspondence, papers and statistics relating to consumer complaints; minutes, correspondence and papers of the Fuel Poverty Group; pamphlets and correspondence relating to methods of payment and meters; papers regarding appliances, retailing and other issues; general correspondence.

Papers of Adam and Company Limited covering the period 1825 to 1914. They relate to the sugar trade and import merchanting, including in-letters, bills of lading, charter parties, invoices, account sales and disbursements accounts; to ships' agency work, in particular that of the Clan Line; to insurance matters, consisting of policies and claims; to marine casualties, notes of protest and particular and general average statements and survey reports. There is a great deal of detailed information about the employment of immigrants and the conditions relating to their welfare. There is also a census of slaves employed on the Pipon estates in 1826 ('Greffe de l'Enregistrement des Esclaves'). Note that this collection is uncatalogued and there is no detailed list available.

Papers of Edward Bates and Sons. The major part consists of carbon copies of the daily letters written privately between 1878 and 1902 by Edward Percy Bates from Liverpool to his father Edward Bates in Hampshire and his brother Sydney in London. When he was away from Liverpool the letters were written by another brother (usually Gilbert Bates) and later by his son Edward Bertram Bates. The letters contain information on all the family's business interests, including ships' movements and cargoes, the sale of cargoes and the state of the various markets. As well as personal matters, the correspondence reflects the close-knit circle of shipowners in Liverpool during this period. Records of ships include: a disbursement book, 1902 to 1914; a movements book with details of cargo, 1908 to 1916; cargoes, 1870 to 1896; ships' expenses at different ports, 1869 to 1902. In addition there are copies of correspondence between Gilbert Bates and Edward Percy Bates while the latter was on a trip to India, 1887 to 1888; a small duplicate letterbook records the business and personal letters written by Gilbert Bates 1880 to 1881 (including a visit to India) and continued by Edward Percy Bates, 1883 to 1884, when most of the letters were written to Sydney while be was on a visit to India; copies of letters sent from Liverpool to Bombay, 1879 to 1881; a few loose letters addressed to Edward Bates during the period, 1852 to 1867; by the Bombay office, 1861 to 1865, and by masters of the ships, 1862 to 1877. There are the carbons of letters written by Colonel Denis H Bates (1886-1959), mainly to Sydney E Bates, Percy E Bates and Aubrey Brocklebank, 1919 to 1924. There is a carbon copy of a diary of a visit to India kept by H G Wilson, chief accountant of Brocklebank's, and sent to Colonel Bates; carbons of reports sent by Wilson from India to Brocklebank's, the Anchor Line and Ellerman's, 1920 to 1921; and a few papers of Sir Percy Elly Bates on shipping and transport, 1916 to 1919.

Records of the parish of Saint Mary, Sunbury on Thames, including registers of baptisms, confirmations, banns, marriages and burials; service registers; papers relating to endowments; papers of the churchwardens including accounts, rates, and papers regarding the maintenance of the church and churchyard; Vestry meeting minutes; Overseers of the Poor financial accounts; papers relating to parish charities; papers relating to Sunbury National Schools including minutes; papers of Sunbury Parochial Committee; papers of the Church Rebuilding Campaign; papers relating to the cemetery; Enclosure Acts and awards; and maps of the parish.

Ships' logs from Merchant Shipping. There are some examples of logs kept by commanders, but the majority for which the keeper can be established are by other officers or by midshipmen; there are also five kept by pursers and two by passengers. The format of the logs varies but many from the late-eighteenth century are written on a standard printed form incorporating the arms of the Company. A few are illustrated, notably that of the DUTTON, 1791, kept by Captain James Hamilton, which has daily coloured sketches of the ship showing the set of the sails. Many include lists of the ship's company, passengers and troops. The earliest volume contains copies of logs of several ships between 1659 and 1687 and bears the inscription 'John Ouldham His Book 1697/8'. Another early example is the log of the UPTON GALLEY, 1701 to 1703, to Bengal and back, kept by her commander, John Camell. In some cases a series of logs covers the career of an officer from midshipman to chief officer or commander such as that kept by Henry Wise (fl 1819-1833) in seven volumes on the CASTLE HUNTLEY, from 1819 to 1829, and in the ASTELL, 1830 to 1831, and EDINBURGH, 1832 to 1833, during which time he rose from midshipman to chief officer; and six volumes kept by Searles Wood (fl 1783-1808) between 1783 and 1785 and 1791 and 1802 on various ships, rising from fourth mate to commander.

The latest log is that of the EARL BALCARRES, 1835 to 1837, by the purser, Richard Binks, which includes copies of estimates for rigging, sails, painting and plumbing and stores, together with dimensions and deck plans. In this section there are also five volumes relating to the Bombay Marine and Indian Navy including the log of the SCORPION, a Bombay Marine snow, 1793 to 1794, kept by Captain William Selby which includes a letter and a memorial relating to the capture of the SCORPION by the French in 1794; and two volumes kept by William H Carpendale, midshipman, on various ships of the Indian Navy between 1846 and 1851.

Papers of Orient Steam Navigation Co Ltd .Most of them are post-Second World War; the majority of the earlier records were destroyed when the company's city offices were bombed in the early part of the war. For Anderson, Green and Company Limited, surviving material includes the minutes of the Directors' meetings, 1941 to 1969; the Reports of the Directors to the Annual General Meetings of the Shareholders, 1941 to 1969; the Register of Directors and Secretaries, 1919 to 1969; files containing items for Secretary's Agenda, 1960, and miscellaneous correspondence, 1960 to 1965. Among the Orient Steam Navigation Company papers are minutes of a committee of the Directors, 1946 to 1948; minutes of the Directors' meetings, 1948 to 1964; Annual Reports from the Directors to the Shareholders, 1945 to 1960, together with balance sheets, profit and loss accounts and newspaper cuttings. The company Seal Register, 1959 to 1965, is also present and there are copies of the Memorandum and Articles of Association of the company, with amendments, 1900 to 1965. The shareholders' records include lists of dividends paid to shareholders, 1954 to 1964. There is also a file containing some correspondence and other documents on the offer made by the P&O Company to Orient Line ordinary shareholders, 1960, together with acceptance forms for the sale of shares, and similar for preference shareholders, 1965. Few book-keeping records have survived, but there are some working papers on cash accumulations and analysis of receipts and payments, 1937 to 1940 and 1949 to 1953; private ledgers, 1933 to 1948, 1955 to 1959; journal, 1953 to 1966; analysis of passenger embarkations and passage earnings, 1959; and steamers' ledgers, 1947, and 1958 to 1959, together with a cash book analysis ledger, 1960; investment ledgers, 1924 to 1959. There are several files containing display advertising samples, 1931 to 1940, 1949 to 1953, and a number of copies of the Orient Line Guide, which went through several editions, 1888 to 1901 Records of ships include a selection of ship files, 1936 to 1954, including voyage reports, ship sinkings in the Second World War, newspaper cuttings, etc; some material on schedules, 1956 to 1958; passenger earnings, 1956; and a box of papers on migration, 1947 to 1956. Books of Instructions, to commanders on the carrying of mails, 1911; pursers, 1931; surgeons, 1947; and officers, 1960, have also been retained, together with a copy of Uniform Regulations, 1958. Staff records include a volume containing Reports on Character, Stewards' Department, ca.1913 to ca.1925. Finally, there are several copies of the Articles of Association of P&O/ Orient Lines Passenger Services Limited. (Section 3: OSN/: 45ft: 1,372cm) Ships' Plans: these were deposited on loan in 1963, 1969 and 1970. This collection comprises prints and linen tracings of six typical Orient liners, 1917 to 1937. Lines, general arrangements and hydrostatics are included as are 'as fitted' drawings and specifications.

Papers of the Rope family of Blaxhall, Orford and Leiston, relating mainly to the activities of Mingay and Rope in the mid nineteenth century, although there are earlier papers for a Thomas Rope, and later ones when George Rope was trading on his own. They include bills of sale for vessels owned by the firm, receipts and bills incurred during trading, as well as letters from Rope to Mingay, reporting on vessel's movements. There are also letters from vessel's masters reporting on their progress.

Signals Collection comprising two East India Company signal books. The first is a printed signal book of 1783 entitle 'A Collection of Signals for the use of the ships in the Service of the United East India Company'; a sheet of coloured flags has been loosely inserted, but the book was not issued. There is also a manuscript volume of signals issued by Captain Alexander Montgomerie to the fleet under his command, St Helena to England, 1794.

153 volumes of sailing and fighting instructions include the majority of those listed in Sir Julian Corbett, Signals and instructions (Navy Records Society, 1908). In addition, there are many examples of those issued to smaller squadrons rather than fleets. The earliest is a printed copy of 1673 issued to James Duke of York (1633-1701). There is a copy of 1691 by Admiral Russel (1653-1727), issued in 1702. Subsequent sets show the development which took place up to the Seven Years War. From 1756 onwards additional and supplementary instructions became more numerous. The collection also contains several versions of instructions for ships in convoy, 1708 to 1815. In addition to these single items, there are sets in the personal collections. The most extensive, of thirty-four volumes, is that of Admiral Duncan (q.v.), 1760 to 1799, including signals and instructions issued during the American War, convoy instructions for 1782 and a number of sets from the 1790s. Other sets of significance include those of Vice-Admiral Duff, 1748 to 1762, including convoy instructions, 1756 and 1758, and printed instructions for disembarking and re-embarking troops, which were issued by Admiral Rodney (1719-1792) for the landings at marinique, 1762; of Rear-Admiral Clements, 1758 to 1770; and of Captain Lord Longford, 1779 to 1780.

120 printed and manuscript signal books and signal logs. 1711 to 1816. The earliest signal book is a manuscript volume compiled between 1710 and 1711. This contains additional signals made by Sir John Norris (c 1670-1749) in the RANELAGH. The format of this volume is very similar to the printed signal book of 1714 by Jonathan Greenwood. There are some manuscript examples produced privately by individual officers usually with a thumb index for quick reference, dating from the mid-eighteenth century. There are also printed signal books for 1790, 1793, 1795, 1798 and The General Signal Book of 1799, 1808 and 1816. During the 1790s the printing of signal books became general practice. There are various examples (which include day and fog signals), night signals, instructions and additional instructions, which were usually issued in sets. For example, the collection has a set issued in 1793 by Admiral Lord Hood to the Mediterranean fleet. There is a similar set issued by Sir John Jervis in 1794 while in the West Indies. Most of the printed books which were issued have additional signals inserted in manuscript. The manuscript signal books are copies kept by officers who were not issued with a printed signal book, and preferred their own copy for easy reference; they are therefore usually pocket size. This practice was forbidden because of the danger of the code falling into enemy hands. However, there are a number of these in the collection and they often contain additional information, such as orders of battle and sailing, keys to both the British and French systems of coastal signals, pendant lists, etc. Many are finely executed and some are illustrated. There is a manuscript signal book used at the battle of the Nile, based on the 1795 edition entitled 'Day and Night Signal Book, Horarry, Fog etc.' by Midshipman (later Commander) Charles Claridge (fl 1798-1823) in the DEFENCE. This has a short diary at the back of the volume describing the battle and an order of battle and an order of battle and sailing. A manuscript copy of Lord Howe's (q.v.) code of 1793 is also included; this contains a list of signals for identifying coasts and headlands, caricatures, a sea song and drawings of naval vessels. The collection contains a group of signal books issued for use in a particular area; they include volumes for Barbados, 1820, Plymouth, 1797 and St Helena, 1817. There are also three signal logs, one of which was kept in the VICTORY, 1804.

Over half the signal books in this category are French; the other nations represented are Spain, the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, Sweden and Turkey. There are eighteen volumes, 1754 to 1885, the majority of which are printed with manuscript annotations. Of the French volumes, the earliest is a signal book kept in 1754 by the pilot of LA ROSE, in the squadron of Le Comte de Gallissoniere (1693-1756). The volume has a thumb index of coloured flags and is illustrated with watercolours of fleet manoeuvres. There is also an English translation of the signal book issued by the Comte D'Ache (1700-1775) to his fleet while in the East Indies in the ZODIAQUE, 1757 to 1759; a signal book issued by the Comte D'Orvilliers (1708-1792) in 1779; and a printed signal book of 1787 issued by the Marquis de Nieul, in which the names of the vessels in the squadron have been scratched out, but the twenty flags and ten pendants have been coloured. The Revolutionary War period is represented by three signal books issued for the navy of the Republic in 1799 and 1801. Only one has actually been issued and gives a key to the flags. In addition, there is a handbook for a coastal semaphore between Bayonne and Flushing; published in 1807, the system was invented by an artillery officer named Depillon and built ca.1803. The category also includes two signal books for the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies; one was issued in c 1784 by John (later Sir John) Acton (1736-1811), the other in 1816; a Spanish book of signals and instructions printed in Cadiz in 1765 and issued by the Marques de la Victoria; another Spanish volume for 1781 for the fleet of Don Luis de Cordova; and two Swedish volumes, 1795 and 1796. The Turkish signal book is naval, 1885, and the format is similar to a French or an English volume. There is also a Dutch volume of flags rather than signals which was compiled c 1687; it is described on the title page as 'The Flagbook of Captain Paulus van der Dussen' (1658-1707).

Seven volumes concerned with naval signalling, telegraphic and merchant shipping codes, 1787 to 1822. The earliest volume is by Captain (later Admiral) Phillip Patton (1739-1815); in 1787 he published 'A system of signals combining the method commonly used in theBritish Navy...with a numerary method'. As far as is known this was never used, since preference was given to the code invented by Lord Howe. Patton employed two methods: one was the old idea of the meaning of the flag being governed by the position of the hoist and the other gave each flag a fixed numerical value. A new arrangement of Howe's day and night signals and instructions was made in 1792 by John McArthur (1755-1840), while secretary to Lord Hood, and printed in 1793. McArthur also published a comprehensive plan in c 1804, entitled 'Thoughts on several plans combining a system of Universal Signals by day and night', of which there is also a copy. There is a lithographed copy, made in 1822, of 'Practical Rules for making Telegraphic Signals with a description of the two-armed telegraph invented in 1804' by Lieutenant-Colonel Pasley (1780-1861); he put forward a system of sending messages by land using a pole with two moveable arms. A similar manuscript of ca.1820 is by Lieutenant (later Commander) Poynter Crane (1782-1879).

Papers of Frank Clarke Strick comprising minutes of the Board of Directors' and General Meetings, profit and loss accounts and annual returns of the numerous companies which made up the Strick group, 1896 to 1974. These include Frank C. Strick and Company Limited, 1903 to 1965; Anglo-Algerian Steamship Company (1896) Limited, 1896 to 1922; London, Paris and Marseilles Steamship Company Limited (later London and Paris Steamship Company Limited -- later London and Paris Steamship and Investment Company Limited), 1920 to 1965; Strick Line Limited, 1915 to 1970; Strick Line (1923) Limited, 1924 to 1958; the Shahristan Steamship Company Limited, 1923 to 1971; the Dwina Limited, 1908 to 1965; Strick, Gorchs and Company Limited, 192] to 1965: the North Devon Steamship Company Limited (later Frank Strick and Company (South Wales) Limited), 1923 to 1965; United Ship Supplies Limited, 1930 to 1965; Strick, Scott and Company Limited, 1921; Frank Strick and Company (Glasgow) Limited, 1920 to 1971, (Newcastle) 1931 to 1976 and (Liverpool) 1954 to 1974. There are ships' voyage accounts and cargo documents for a number of ships from 1969 to 1971; six freight contracts of 1914 and the 1922 management agreement between Strick's and Gray Dawes; and two letterbooks with out-letters to Government Ministries and Departments, 1909 to 1918. Finally, there are some technical records and publicity and personal material relating to Strick; included here is a memorandum on 'Ormuz' Red Oxide ore which gives details of rates and shipments, 1906 to 1942.

Papers of the Trinder Anderson and Co Ltd., comprising general ledgers, ledgers, voyage ledgers, charter books, letterbooks, cash books and miscellaneous accounts c 1900-1970. Includes company records Trinder Anderson and Co Ltd. were managing. These companies are Avenue Shipping, New Zealand Shipping and Co Ltd and Australind Steam Shipping Co Ltd. Also included are the business records for the Australind Steam Shipping Co. Ltd seperately presented in 1981 by Mr D Eunson. Includes journals, cash books and ledgers c 1900-1970.

Papers of the London Regional Passenger Committee, including minutes, 1986 - 1992; reports, 1987 - 1992; press releases, 1988 - 1992; Quality of Service sub-committee minutes, 1986 - 1990; Information and Facilities sub-committee minutes, 1987 - 1992; minutes of advisory panel on public transport for people with disabilities, 1987 - 1989; Service Provision sub-committee minutes, 1986 - 1990; Performance Monitoring sub-committee minutes, 1986; annual reports, 1987 - 1992; correspondence regarding London Transport appeals, 1984 - 1991 and British Rail appeals, 1985 - 1989.

Also minutes of predecessor body the Transport Users Consultative Committee for London, 1950 - 1984 and annual reports, 1951 - 1961; and minutes of the Transport Users Consultative Committee, 1950 - 1984.

Records of Falk Stadelmann and Company Limited, manufacturers of heating and lighting equipment, 1887-1980. The records include minute books, resolutions/declarations, reports/accounts, registers, letter books, ledgers, catalogues and brochures, journals and newsletters, historical notes, memorandum and articles of association/related papers, a signature book, and annual returns.