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Records enrolled or filed with the Clerk of the Westminster Quarter Sessions of the Peace, 1552-1885. The records classified as WR/A are concerned with the registration of foreigners; WR/B are records produced by Building Surveyors; WR/F are returns of those eligible to serve on juries; WR/L/P covers the licensing of printing presses; WR/LV relate to Licensed Victuallers; WR/ML are concerned with Militia and Lieutenancy; WR/O are Oaths of Office; WR/P are papers concerning Parliamentary Elections; WR/PLT Land Tax; WR/R contains the records produced from the control and recording of all non-conformists; WR/S contains records concerned with Societies; and WR/U records deposited with the court concerning Public Undertakings.

Note on the Quarter Sessions records: Although Westminster has fewer surviving records than Middlesex, the City's sessions would have produced similar records to those of the County, but they would have been smaller in quantity, and have included less administrative material. Also, as with all Quarter Sessions records, "seeing that the Custos Rotulorum was a private gentleman or nobleman and the Clerk of the Peace an attorney with a private practice it is likely that many county records were (if not lost or destroyed) handed down to their families or their professional successors" and many may still remain to be found in private hands (Emmison and Gray, County Records, 1987). Those records that have survived are often difficult to read or understand because of the handwriting, use of Latin (until 1733), or legal jargon and abbreviations; although standardised legal formats were used and printed pro formas introduced by the nineteenth century.

For the Middlesex and Westminster records there may also be confusion over the records' arrangement resulting from the attempts at classification by previous generations of archivists which have left many records split up into unnatural groupings. Originally they would not have been sorted into any cohesive arrangement. These were records that were "kept for administrative convenience rather than as sources for future generations" (G. Jones, Quarter Sessions records in the Leicestershire Record Office).

Because of this overlapping between many classes of record, any study of the Westminster records should include consultation of those for Middlesex. There was in any case a lot of co-operation between the two courts during the period covered by the records. Judicial (Gaol Delivery Sessions for example) and administrative functions were shared, as were court personnel (including justices). Westminster prisoners could elect to be tried at the Middlesex sessions, as these were held more frequently than their own.

The sessions records are a very useful source for family history, studying trends in law and order, and the life of the City and its inhabitants over a relatively long period of time. The capital was an area with high levels of crime, the natural place for riot and conspiracy, and attracted a wide variety of people from the whole country and abroad. The main record of proceedings at the sessions will be found in the sessions rolls (MJ/SR and the uncatalogued WJ/SR - index in WJ/CB); the (partially uncatalogued) sessions books (WJ/SB, MJ/SB); and the (partially uncatalogued) sessions papers (WJ/SP, MJ/SP). City administrative work is in the records of the County Day sessions (WJ/O), and for one particular type, in the records of the street surveyors (WJ/SS). Records of judicial procedure are in the records of court fines (WJ/E), writs to summon juries (WJ/W), and the trial process (WJ/Y); Lists of prisoners made at various times during the trial process are in WJ/CC and WJ/CP.

Records of the Wetherall family relating to their Castlebar and Castle Hill estates in Ealing, including leases, conveyances, abstracts of title, agreements, plans of the estate, and papers relating to a Chancery case regarding part of the estate.

Papers, 1926-1933, collected by the solicitors in the course of their work, relating to 101 High Street, Plumstead, including leases, assignment, plan and sales catalogue.

Experimental notes, working papers, correspondence and lecture summaries compiled by Charles Wheatstone, 1836-1875, and photographs collected by him in that period. Notably including papers relating to the development and testing of the telegraph, [1836-1960]; descriptions of experiments and test results concerning the measurement of electromotive forces and electrical potential, [1840-1875]; experimental observations on the nature of magnetism, electricity and thermodynamics, including electromagnet design, batteries and dynamos, [1834-1855]; working papers relating to optics including experiments into refraction, colouration of compounds and polarisation, [1850-1875]; drafts of lectures on sound and musical instruments prepared by Wheatstone, [1832-1837]; material relating to the management of the Wheatstone collection of scientific instruments and library, 1890-1992; biographical material relating to the life of Wheatstone, the invention of the telegraph and Wheatstone's musical instrument manufacturing business, with unrelated newspapers, 1757-1975; stereoscopic photographs and glass negatives taken by Roger Fenton, Samuel Buckle, Jules Duboscq and others, featuring landscapes, still lifes, panoramic scenes of cities including Paris and Moscow and the interior and exterior of the Crystal Palace, Hyde Park, Sydenham, 1851, and especially the Exposition Universelle, Paris, 1855, [1850-1901]; artefacts on loan from Department of Physics, King's College London, including telegraph apparatus, a nail fiddle and other prototype musical instruments, [1834-1875]; exhibition of scientific and musical instruments, [1834-1875].

Records of Whitbread Properties Limited, a subsidiary of Whitbread and Company Limited, brewers, including corporate registers, accounts and estate ledgers.

Records relating to the Whitton Park estate, Twickenham, owned by Archibald Campbell, (1682-1761), 3rd Duke of Argyll, including admissions, surrenders, leases, bonds, and extracts from the court rolls of the manors of Isleworth Syon and Twickenham.

Records relating to the Wild family, including mid 18th century presentments at the Manorial Court, assessments for land tax and house tax and deeds and indentures for the manors of Harmondsworth, Harlington, Hamworth, Cranford and Colham dating from 1550 to 1840.

Notes from a course of lectures in law, given in Oxford by Sir William Blackstone.

Papers, 1575-1792, collected by the solicitors in the course of their work, comprising legal documents relating to properties mainly in Edgware, Hendon and Willesden. Documents include bargain and sales, bonds, quitclaim, mortgages, will and probate, covenants and final concords.

Records of courts within Willesden Petty Sessional Division, 1873-1986. Records include court registers for Harlesden Magistrates Court; court registers, juvenile court registers and court minute books for Willesden Magistrates Court; court registers, juvenile court registers and court minute books for Acton Magistrates Court and licensing registers for Willesden, Acton and Chiswick.

Court registers record the date of the hearing, the name of the informant or complainant (often the police), the name of the defendant, a brief note of the offence and the decision of the magistrate. Court minute books or notebooks are rough notes of the proceedings recording the gist of the evidence given.

Records relating to the estate of William Willett, including records relating to properties in Hammersmith, Belsize Park, St John's Wood, Earl's Court, Kensington, Marylebone, Mill Hill, Brighton and Hove; and papers of the trustees of the estate including reports, financial accounts and statements, receipts, and allocation of income.

Records ofWilliam Brass and his estate, comprising accounts, agreements, correspondence and related papers. They were catalogued by a member of Guildhall Library staff in 1987. Ms 22352 includes a schedule of Trust records drawn up in 1954.

Papers, 1825-1932, collected by the solicitors in the course of their work, comprising deeds and conveyances for properties in Chiswick, Wembley, Isleworth, and Greenford.

Papers, 1810-1824, collected by the solicitors in the course of their work, comprising assignment of lease of copyhold ground at Turnham Green, with building thereon called 'King of Boheme', and letters of administration, with will annexed, of Thomas Lewis of Turnham Green.

Records of the Willis family relating to properties in Hackney and Clapton, including leases, marriage settlements, a will, and receipts.

Four wills, details as follows:

1. Probate copy of the will of William Batte of Shoreham, Kent, making 'my loving master John Baker' the overseer of his will, 27 Dec [1615]. Lacking letters of probate and seal.
2. Probate copy of the will of Joseph Wright of Maidstone, Kent, 'practitioner of physick', 12 May 1701. Lacking letters of probate and seal.
3. Copy of the will of John Streatfield of Maidstone, Kent, 12 Apr 1766, with a note of probate on 4 Nov 1768, 'Extracted from the registry of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury. The will mentions bequests to the Charity School of Maidstone and monies to be distributed to the poor of the parished of Maidstone, Hever, Mayfield (Sussex), Tonbridge and Penshurst.
4. Copy of the will dated 11 Oct 1777, with a codicil of 28 Mar 1781, of Robert Streatfield of Burwack [Burwash], Sussex, with a note of probate on 19 Mar 1782. The will was extracted from the registry of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury.

Papers of Samuel Henry Wilson, including will, probate and correspondence; and deeds, insurance policies, reports, and valuations for properties in Fulham, Brompton, and Ratcliff.

Papers of Sir William James Erasmus Wilson, 1845-1888, comprising correspondence with Thomas Stone and the Royal College of Surgeons Of England, and notes on 'Cleopatra's Needle', 1845-1884; Wilson's Will and Codicil, 1882-1883; and correspondence between his executors, solicitors, the Royal College of Surgeons of England, and the accountant charged with organising Wilson's estate on the College's behalf, 1885-1888.

Legal papers, such as court rolls, feoffments, lease and releases, assignments, agreements, bargain and sales, grants, mortgages and common recoverys, relating to properties in Stanwell; Harlington; Cranford; Heston; Uxbridge; Denham, Buckinghamshire; Brentford; Hendon; Hampstead; Cowley; Rickmansworth; Willesden; Tilehurst and Bradfield, Berkshire; St. Margaret's Westminster and Shinfield, Berkshire.

Papers collected by the solicitors in the course of their work, comprising probate of will of Anne Aleyn of Harefield, widow, 1724; papers arising out of Chancery Suit regarding a share in the Shadwell Waterworks Company formerly belong to Robert Bodington, including drafts, correspondence, genealogical notes and involving such families as Pitfield and Bathurst, also giving some account of the history of the company and early shareholders, 1740-1866; documents arising out of trusts under will of Dr Daniel Tuke of Lyndon Lodge, Hanwell, 1924-1934; conveyance and mortgages for West End Farm Estate, Pinner, 1914; mortgages and conveyance for number 2 Palmerston Road, Twickenham, 1929 and 1958; draft wills of Miss Sibyl Thesiger, 1931-1947.

Deeds, 1580-1770, relating to property in Cowley, Edmonton, Enfield, Harefield, Harrow, Hayes, Hillingdon, Ickenham, Uxbridge, Shoreditch and Stepney; including deed of feoffment, bargain and sale, leases, mortgages and bonds.

Papers, 1638-1890, collected by Myers in the course of their work, comprising wills and a bond relating to Palgrave, Suffolk; Hampstead; Kensington (Old Brompton); West Twyford and Bloomsbury.

Papers, 1925-[1960s], of Sir Richard Winstedt relating to his publications, comprising annotated proofs of Malay dictionary, 1960; manuscripts of Malay Dictionary, undated; copy of his An English-Malay Dictionary (1952), with extensive manuscript annotations and alterations [after 1952]; manuscripts and typescripts for his memoirs Start from Alif: Count from One (published in 1969), largely relating to his time in south-east Asia [1960s]; manuscript on philosophy, undated; letter on Malay law to [S G?] Vesey-Fitzgerald, 1945; letter on a Malay manuscript from P Voorholne[?] of the Bibliotheek der Rijks-Universiteit te Leiden, 1951; part of a letter on Raffles College and educational needs in Malaya from an unknown correspondent, 1965; miscellaneous offprints by Winstedt on Malay literature, law, customs and culture, 1925, 1929, 1945, and undated.

Documents relating to Fulham House (also known as Stourton House), owned by Thomas Winter, including bargain and sales; fines; exemplification of recovery; releases; assignments; leases; mortgages; and copies from court rolls.

Papers, 1645-1887, collected by the solicitors in the course of their work, including leases, copies from court rolls of courts baron, letters of administration and copy will and probate relating to property in Ealing, Edmonton, Chiswick and Sutton.

Records of the Wombwell family relating primarily to number 68 Gower Street, Bloomsbury, but also to premises in Pinner, Harrow and Hounslow. The documents include probates, leases, assignments, grants, and mortgages.

Records of the Wood family, comprising 1695 marriage settlement between Edward Wood (son of Thomas and Dorothy) and Elizabeth Bridger of Guildford, mentioning land in Harmondsworth, Stanwell, Littleton, and Yorkshire. Also probate relating to money left by Thomas Wood of Littleton, 1856.

Papers of the Wood family, including records relating to properties in Laleham, Littleton and Shepperton including title deeds, tax assessments, legal papers, rentals, court rolls and plans; family letters, particularly between Edward Wood and his London agent John Pack; family papers such as legal opinions, marriage settlements, wills, and financial accounts; and papers relating to court cases including the Chancery case of Sir Richard Lane versus Charles Wood, 1733, and the Chancery case of Wood versus Wood, 1738-1746.

The material as a whole provides a fascinating picture of the Wood family in the seventeenth century, their personal letters and papers complemented by the deeds of the property they acquired. The material is also interesting from a wider point of view. There are, for example, various references to the Elections of Members of Parliament for Middlesex, including a letter from Henry Spiller of Laleham in 1695 saying, "I have this day sent to particularly and spoken to myself every person in this parish that I thought a freeholder" (March 4th, 1695?). The results of his canvassing are given in detail. Less information has survived on the plague, however, than one might expect. Pack was apparently in the habit of sending down to Littleton the current Bills of Mortality, but unfortunately none of these have survived, although Edward Wood frequently makes pious and sententious comments on them. There are also interesting sidelights on the political scene, including two detailed accounts of the background of the 1688 deposition, and four political and satirical ballads. It is surprising, however, to see how little the family were affected by the enormous political changes taking place. Edward Wood, for example, made his fortune during the Interregnum but did not suffer from the Restoration when he set himself up as a wealthy landowner in Middlesex.

Papers collected by the solicitors in the course of their work, comprising mortgage for the leaseholds on 20, 22, 28, 30, 32, 34, 36, 38, 40 and 42 Whittingstall Road, Fulham, 8 Jan 1897; assignment of the residue of the leasehold terms of 28, 30 and 32 Whittingstall Road, Fulham, 2 Jan 1928; acknowledgement of right of production and delivery of a will 2 Jan 1928.

Records of Woolwich County Court, 1872-1995, including minute book; ordinary summons books; ordinary actions books; judges' note books; bills of sale and court service expenditure ledger.

Records of Woolwich Magistrates Court, 1898-1979, including court registers; court minute books; Married Women Act orders; Guardianship of Infants Act orders and bastardy complaints.

Court registers record the date of the hearing, the name of the informant or complainant (often the police), the name of the defendant, a brief note of the offence and the decision of the magistrate. Court minute books or notebooks are rough notes of the proceedings recording the gist of the evidence given.

Domestic proceedings: A married woman under the provisions of the Summary Jurisdiction (Married Women) Act 1895 and subsequent Acts could go to a magistrates' court and apply for orders which in certain circumstances would enable her to separate from her husband, have custody of any children and receive maintenance from him. Under the Poor Law Amendment Act 1844 a mother expecting a bastard child or who had given birth to one could obtain a maintenance order against the putative father.

Records of the Manor of Worcesters, Enfield, relating to property transactions, including quitclaim, bargain and sales, wills, common recovery, and leases.

Records of the Worshipful Company of Coopers, 1440-1978, including Court minute books; mark books (alphabetical lists of members practising the trade of a cooper with a representation of their marks); financial accounts; title deeds and other papers relating to property; lists of freemen; registers of freedom admissions; registers of apprentice bindings. There are also records relating to the charities of William Alexander, Nicholas Gibson and Henry Strode.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION REGARDING ACCESS: These records are stored at the Guildhall Library site rather than the LMA Clerkenwell site. Researchers wishing to access these records should do so at the Guildhall Library Rare Books table. The Library is open Monday to Saturday, 9:30 to 16:45. Researchers will need to have an Archives History Card or a Library Readers Card. An archivist will be available at Guildhall Library on Thursday mornings to answer any queries.

Records of the Wright family comprising title deeds and related papers for premises in Crouch End, Muswell Hill, Hornsey, and Chiswick.

Letter from James Yates of Lauderdale House, Highgate, London to Samuel [A Thompson Yates], [1861-1871]. Mentioning 5s 6d paid to Mr Sackett for 'the engraving of Baskerville ... A person named Matthews in Birmingham has published a new edition of the view of the houses at Birmingham, which were destroyed at the Riots [of 1791 against Joseph Priestley and other non-conformists]. One of these is a view of Baskerville House. It [the house] was purchased and enlarged by Mr John Ryland, and in that state was destroyed by the mob ...'

Autograph, with signature.

Records relating to property owned by the Earl of Hardwicke on Princes Street, near Drury Lane.

Papers, 1661-1926, collected by the solicitors in the course of their work, including deeds, copies of court rolls, wills, and legal papers relating to the Greenhill family of Northolt; deeds and other papers relating to property in Enfield; deeds and other papers relating to property in Queen's Walk, Kingsbury and various wills and legal papers.