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Collection of books, papers and photographs relating to the Stephens family of Fowley, [1887-1980], comprising unsorted papers, newspaper cuttings, photographs and postcards relating to the Stephens family and their ships. Including the following: Lloyd's Register certificate confirming classification of the LITTLE SECRET, 1887. Bill of lading and charter party documents for the RIPPLING WAVE, 1890-1892. Bill of lading and charter party documents for the ISABELLA, 1894-1908. Statement of general average for the LITTLE MYSTERY, Captain J.H. Greet, from Herring Neck, Newfoundland, to Figueira with a cargo of codfish, 1905. Statement of general average for the R.T.K., Captain Henry Purches, from Batteau, Labrador, to Seville with a cargo of codfish, 1905. Board of Trade Examination of Oath document for Robert Acford, master of the R.T.K., lost after a collision in 1910. Folder of typescript reports relating to damage and loss of cargo during the voyage of the ISABELLA from Newfoundland bound for Oporto, 1911-1912. Last log of the ISABELLA, 22 April to 11 October 1913. Original photographs of the vessels JANE BANKS, LITTLE GEM, LITTLE MYSTERY, MARIA JOSE, OCEAN SWELL, SPINAWAY and others.

Papers of Charles Steevens, consisting of a letter to Steevens from the Nabob of Arcot, 1760, and the draft and printed copy of his life written by his grand-nephew, Nathaniel Steevens. Also in the collection is the plan of learning of the Naval Academy, Portsmouth, 1753, of Charles Stevens, midshipman (1735-1756), nephew of Rear-Admiral Steevens, and a book of jokes, morals and proverbs.

Papers of Thomas Abel Brimage Spratt, consisting of various reports, 1850 to 1884, which include surveys (particularly of the Black Sea area); remarks on Crete and the Cretans; on the coal trade of the Black Sea; on a new harbour at Malta; on an electric cable between Malta and Alexandria; reports submitted to the Teignmouth Harbour Commission and Fishery Commission reports for England and Ireland. Spratt's correspondence consists of a few letters received and some draft replies, 1853 to 1860. The memorandum of his service, 1837 to 1862, contains an account of his part in the Crimean War. His publications are also listed.

Papers of South Western Steam Packet Company. They include Deeds of Settlement (later known as Articles of Association) of the Commercial Steam Packet Company, 1835 to 1837; the South Western Steam Packet Company, 1843; and the New South Western Steam Navigation Company, 1846. These documents give lists of shareholders and their occupations. There is a minute book covering shareholders' meetings of the South Western Company, 1842 to 1845; notices to shareholders and reports of the Commercial and South Western Steam Packet Companies, the New South Western and the London and South Western Railway, 1838 to 1847; mortgage deeds, Bills of Sale and Certificates of Sale. Of technical interest are two contracts of 1855 for a wrought iron steam vessel and a set of engines, and a 'Return of Rolling Stock owned by English, Welsh and Scotch Railway Companies', 1883.

Papers of the South Eastern Gas Board. They consist of a number of Portage Bills and disbursement accounts, 1959 to 1970; a file of the case histories of casualties; certificates issued by Lloyds for engines and boilers, freeboard, anchors and chain cables and classification: a series of Chief Officers' and Chief Engineers' log books, 1961 to 1970: and specification plans and technical data, 1925 to 1959. In addition there is an extensive photographic record of the fleet and a number of charts, surveys of wharves and ships' plans.

Papers relating to the South Africa Conference (1892-1971). The collection consists of a series of volumes dating from 1892 to 1971. SAC/1-4 relate to the various trade routes between Europe and Southern Africa, and consist of minutes of the various meetings held. SAC/6-9 consists of the South Africa Conference major meetings, including meetings with D.O.A.L, between shipowners, committee and joint minutes. SAC/10 is a volume containing various agreements between the conference and the countries it traded with.

Papers of the Society for Nautical Research consisting of: Council minutes, annual reports of the Council and reports from sub-committees, 1926 to 1977; minutes of the preliminary General Meeting, 1910; minutes of Annual General Meetings from 1930, though many between 1940 and 1958 are missing; lists of members, though these appear to have been issued intermittently; statements of accounts for the Society and its different funds, 1910 to 1966; and correspondence relating to the Society's activities from 1911, with a large number of gaps but including papers relating to the Implacable, 1915 to 1946, and to the Victory, 1922 to 1972.

Papers of Sir Luke Smithett, 1825-1854, principally orders, appointments and testimonials.

Papers of Arthur Hale Smith-Dorrien, comprising four volumes of watercolours, photographs, newscuttings and documents covering his career from his schooldays in 1865 until the end of his naval service, together with three volumes of caricatures and sketches.

Papers of Sir William Sidney Smith, consisting of loose letters and notes written between 1790 and 1840 by many of the important naval figures of the day. There are notes on his experiences as a prisoner of the French, a number of letters relating to the Mediterranean, 1799 and some to his brother John Spencer Smith, who was Minister Plenipotentiary at Constantinople, 1798 to 1801. Finally there are many letters received by Smith during his retirement abroad.

Papers of James Joseph Lawson Sisson, consisting of a diary, 1859-1860, logs, 1865-1869 and 1872-1876, family letters received and Sisson's own letters to his father, 1860-1883. There is also some biographical material, a pocket book and sketch book.

Signals: Theory. Included in this small group of documents are a description of Colonel Pasley's telegraph of 1804 and 'Observations on Signal Shapes as applied to the character of Signals Flags', 1818, by Captain Thomas Shortland (1771-1827).

Signals: Foreign. There are three printed sheets of French signal flags, 1766, in this category.

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 William Henry Shirreff. There are three letterbooks for the years 1818 to 1820, one for 1830 to 1837 at Gibraltar, another for 1838 to 1841 and a report on dockyards made to the Admiralty in 1846.

Papers of Francis Henry Eldred Shipton comprising just one logbook kept in HMS DEFENCE 1877 to 1879, NORTHUMBERLAND 1879 to 1880 and CARYSFORT 1880 to 1881.

Papers of James Maurice Shipton comprising a series of logbooks kept by him as midshipman and mate between 1803 and 1809.

This class, consisting of forty-fve volumes, relates to the history, practice and business methods of British, French and German shipbuilding, seventeenth to twentieth centuries. The seventeenth-century volumes include a manuscript on shipbuilding theory by A Symmer, c 1636; a volume of fifty-four documents containing proposals by Sir William Petty (1623-1687) for a double-hulled ship, 1662 to 1685. A disbound volume contains engraved plates by Thomas Fagge, 'the bends of a ship, their various sorts and shapes', undated, together with nine contracts between the Navy Board and contractors, 1649 to 1701, including one for the HAMPTON COURT, 1699, and the WARSPIGHT, 1701; also included in this volume is a Charter Party between the Navy Board and the master of the ANNE AND FRANCIS to transport naval stores from Deptford to Portsmouth, 1701.

There is a copy of Edward Battine's 'The Method of Building, Rigging, Apparelling and Furnishing His Majesty's Ships of War', 1684. Finally, there are two French volumes, one consisting of thirty-four drawings in pen and ink of the construction of a galley, 1685, and the other by Morineau de rochefort, 'Memoire sur la Conaissance et proportions des lois qui composent la construction des vaisseaux de premiere position at liaison', 1698. Among the eighteenth-century volumes are a contract book, 1775 to 1807, and a memorandum book, 1777 to 1801, of John Perry and Company of Blackwall, 1775 to 1808; a book of five contracts of ships built for the Navy by Adams of Buckler's Hard, 1776 to 1797; the notebook of William Wilkins, a shipwright at Chatham dockyard, containing lengths and dimensions of ships as well as methods and theory, 1754; and a pair of notebooks chiefy on mastmaking by two shipwrights John Williams 1720 to 1750, and Richard Reynolds, 1785. French shipbuilding is again represented by two works: 'Les descriptions Geometrique de toutes les pieces qui entrent dans la construction les agrez et les maneuvres d'une Galere', 1721, by Dr Sieur Debenat; and a volume on 'Carte de l'Architecture Navale concernant les proportions de la Mature', 1788, by a Bordeaux shipwright, Of the seventeen volumes relating to the nineteenth century, there is one of drawings and descriptions of the blockmaking machinery desinged by Marc Isambard Brunel (1769-1849) and installed in Portsmouth dockyard between 1802 and 1805; a private account book, 1839 to 1840, of Kelsick Wood (1771-1840), shipbuilder of Maryport, recording details of ships built and the purchase of materials; a book on 'Sailmaking, 1811 to 1840', by W Rutter; and two day books of the sailmakers J Morice and Company of Liverpool, 1883 to 1904. On the subject of steam there is a book of wash drawings and text by Robertson Buchanan of Glasgow, dated 1815, and entitled, 'Memoir respecting the employment of steam vessels for the purposes of war'; and a large volume of drawings and reports on steam vessels, 1870 to 1873, by John Oliver (ca.1820-1883), Chief Inspector of Machinery Afloat. There are a small number of specifications and contracts for twentieth-century ships, and three volumes relating to the German battleship, BADEN, 1904 to 1908.

This class consists of sixteen documents relating to shipbuilding, eighteenth to the twentieth centuries. They include a description of the machine which steered the IPSWICH across the Atlantic after the rudder had been carried away, 1746; the agreement for the building of an East India Company ship, the PRESTON, 1798; a patent for improvement in side propellors for ocean and river vessels, 1865; and papers relating to Admiral Sir Percy Scott's (1853-1924) proposed battleship design, 1911.

Papers of the Shipbuilders and Repairers National Association. Including Shipbuilding Employers' Federation: these records include the minute book of the Executive Committee of the Federation of Ship-builders and Engineers, 1889 to 1898; the S.E.F. minute books, 1899 to 1965; a complete run of circulars, 1899 to 1965, and, slightly less complete, 1966 to 1967, the means by which the central body communicated to the local membership. The bulk of the collection, however, is to be found in the very large number of the S.E.F. files which have survived. They start in the 1930s, although many contain papers gathered before this date, for instance, 'Foremen and Under-foremen retaining union membership, 1920 to 1964'. These files touch on every aspect of labour relations, including wages, bonus payments, piecework rates, nightshift working, allowances, demarcation, apprenticeship, training and safety. In the files are correspondence, memoranda, statistical returns, minutes of meetings and agreements. A selection of the titles of the files gives an idea of the range of subjects: 'Temporary relaxation of existing customs and practices -- national agreement with Boilermakers' Society, 1940 to 1943'; 'District claims for payment of confined space allowance to skilled timeworkers, 1941 to 1967'; 'Complaints against foremen or chargehands by workpeople or unions, 1947 to 1952'; 'Painters, redleaders and cementers, claims for working with obnoxious paints, 1932 to 1953'. The S.E.F. also prepared labour statistics on a weekly and monthly basis, and a quarterly return submitted to the Ministry of Labour on numbers employed. These have been retained, 1936 to 1960; and there are strike returns, 1959 to 1967, 1972 to 1976, and accident statistics, 1963 to 1971.

Dry Dock Owners and Repairers Central Council: the records consist of minutes, 1910 to 1959; circulars, 1910 to 1956. As before, the main part of the collection is the great number of files relating to dry docking. Examples include, 'Dry Docks Tax Allowance', 1950 to 1963; dry dock facilities, 1954 to 1967; dry dock projects, 1953 to 1964. There are several on technical matters, such as those on T2 tankers, 1948 to 1952; on the gas freeing of tankers prior to dry docking, 1959 to 1973. There is also a series relating to the wartime Emergency Repairs Agreement, 1940 to 1946. Shipbuilding Conference: Private Meeting minute books, 1928 to 1945; circulars, 1928 to 1969. As the body within shipbuilding bearing responsibility for all commercial matters, the records of the Shipbuilding Conference and the Shipbuilding Board of the S.R.N.A., touch on almost every aspect of the trading and commercial activities of the industry, including relations with government, the Navy, and on every subject from the 'scrap and build scheme' of the British Shipping Act of 1935 to nationalization, 1974 to 1977. There are files on 'price improvement and tendering expenses schemes', 1935 to 1951; the Inter-Governmental Maritime Consultative Organization, Maritime Safety Committee, 1966 to 1971; Lloyd's Technical Committee, 1956 to 1970; the Shipbuilding Advisory Committee, 1958 to 1960; the Shipbuilding Industry Board, 1965 to 1972; the British Ship Research Association, on whose management committee the shi

Papers of Shaw Savill and Albion Co Ltd. The bulk of the correspondence files belong to the period 1947 to 1965, although the earliest paper is dated 1924. They are concerned with the building and trials of new vessels, ships in service, standard freight rates and routine instructions to masters. There are summaries of passage money and numbers of passengers, 1900 to 1946; analyses of passage money, outward, 1946 to 1960, 1970 to 1972; passage money, homeward, 1965 to 1968. the records cover chartered vessels as well as the Company's own ships. (Although there is some information about individual passengers, this is not a complete record of passengers carried: more comprehensive lists can be found in the passenger lists in the Board of Trade records at the Public Record Office.). In 1969 a series of refrigerator and engine logs, 1956 to 1962, were deposited as well as deck logs, 1944 to 1965.

Papers of Philip Ruffle Sharpe, comprising diaries, 1857-1859, and letterbooks, 1867-1870 and 1875-1877, together with official service documents and a few letters and photographs, Sharpe's own copy of The Voyage of the Rattlesnake, by John MacGillivray (London, 1852, 2 vols), and typescript extracts from an autobiography up to 1849. The letters include one from Sharpe's brother-in-law, William R Hobson, a lieutenant in the FOX, under Captain F L McClintock, describing the finding of relics of the expedition led by Sir John Franklin. There are service papers, three logs and a notebook kept by Commander Philip William Carwithen Sharpe (1884-1957), Sharpe's son, as a midshipman in the MAJESTIC, Channel, 1900 to 1901, DIANA, Mediterranean, 1901 to 1902, and ARIADNE, West Indies, 1902 to 1903. There are also a few service papers of Second Officer Mary Gertrude Sharpe, WRNS (Mrs M G Corran).

Navy Office records belonging to Charles Sergison comprising Navy Board Minutes, 1673 to 1718 (seventy-six volumes), and copies of Admiralty orders to the Navy Board, 1603 to 1717 (thirteen volumes), mostly after 1674. There are also a large number of miscellaneous documents, including lists of ships in Sea Pay, 1660 to 1685 and 1684 to 1718, lists of officers, 1688 to 1716, Instructions for Ordnance, 1660 to 1688, Instructions for the Navy, 1686 to 1688, an abstract of Navy Board Warrants, 1660 to 1717, an abstract of numbers of dockyard workmen, 1686 to 1718, the Ordinary Estimate, 1692, papers relating to a victualling enquiry, 1710 to 1713, and an account of the Select Committee to Examine and State the Debt of the Navy, 1714. Finally there are copies of Hollond's 'Discourse on the Navy' and 'Survey of the South Coast' by Edmund Dummer, Surveyor of the Navy between 1692 and 1699.

Papers relating to seamanship, there are four volumes in this class. The earliest is by Sir Henry Mainwaring (1587-1653), entitled 'An Abstract and Exposition of All Things pertaining to the Practice of Navigation', written in 1623, and consisting of a dictionary of sea terms; it was edited by G E Mainwaring and W G Perrin, The Life and Works of Sir Henry Mainwaring (Navy Records Society, vol.56, 1921). The other volumes contain two drafts of the manuscript of 'The Mariner's Sheet Anchor or Seaman's Practical Expositor' by Darcy Lever, which was published in 1808; and an illustrated dictionary of nautical and seamanship terms, with French, Italian and Spanish translations, c 1870.

Papers of William Dundas Scott, consisting of thirty-five documents; these are mainly letters received by Scott between 1868 and 1870 and there is a letter from Hercules Linton, 1877.

Papers of Reverend Doctor Alexander John Scott, comprising drafts of Nelson's letters in French and intercepted papers and intelligence, 1803 to 1804.

Papers of Adml Sir James Scott, comprising logs, 1834 to 1839, a night order book, pay book, sick book and other documents relating to the running of the PRESIDENT.

Papers of Sir Nowell Salmon, comprising diaries from Nowell Salmon and his wife Emily Salmon, and three diaries from Sophie Saunders. The collection also includes letters belonging to various members of the family between 1857 and 1961.

Papers of Sailors' Home & Red Ensign Club. They consist of: Minutes: Directors monthly meetings, 1841 to 1919, 1934 to 1958, 1934 to 1958, 1961 to 1974; annual general meetings, 1904 to 1973; seamen's church sub-committee, 1845 to 1846; building sub-committee, 1910 to 1922; General Purposes Committee, 1933 to 1974. Correspondence: Secretary's letters, 1841 to 1934 (from 1892 the volumes are indexed); letters to the Secretary, 1910 to 1927; letters to and from the Secretary, 1931 to 1956; general correspondence, 1959 to 1962. Accounts: cashier's records, 1840 to 1964; accountant's records, 1841 to 1960. Within these records is a long series of ninety-three entry books, which record details of each man, age, rating, name of ship and destination between 1877 and 1956. Other volumes record the large number of the sailors' transactions; Secretary's accounts, 1840 to 1847; sailors' money transactions, 1855 to 1966. There are also Institution accounts, 1847 to 1962; departmental accounts, 1871 to 1965, including food and clothing accounts. Superintendents' Records: these consist of seven large volumes, 1870 to 1877, which contain the amount paid by each seaman, the name of his last ship, age, rating, birthplace and destination. There are also staff wages books, 1873 to 1958. There are also a large number of printed reports, appeals and publicity material and loose papers relating to individual events. Although the Destitute Sailors' Fund and the School of Cookery were separate entities, their administration was combined with the management of the Home and references to their activities can be found in the main minutes and correspondence. There are, however, separate groups of records: the Destitute Sailors' Fund, ledgers, 1924 to 1959; annual reports, 1892 to 1898, 1931 to 1941; cash book, 1937 to 1960: the London School of Nautical Cookery, minutes, 1909 to 1956; correspondence, 1948 to 1960; visiting committees' notes, 1907 to 1919. There are also some records of the relief given by the Shipwrecked Fishermen and Mariners' Society, 1896 to 1945.

Papers of the Sailing Boat Association, comprising minutes of the Council, 1888 to 1947; account books, 1888 to 1947; letterbooks, 1925 to 1939; correspondence, 1938 to 1939; rules and sailing regulations, 1932.

Papers of the Sailing Barge Preservation Society. They consist of correspondence, 1955 to 1959; financial statements and accounts, 1955 to 1960; lists of subscribers and records of appeals for funds, 1955 to 1959; accounts and insurance documents relating to the MEMORY, 1958 to 1959.

Naval manuscripts collected by the Royal United Services Institution. The manuscripts almost all relate to the Royal Navy. There are in addition eight personal collections of naval officers which are described in Volume I: those of Altham (entry no.3), Beaver (14), Broughton (31), Burt (34), Henderson (132), Holburne (136), Oliver (217) and Riou (247).
List of ships and officers: In all there are twenty lists of the ships in the Navy, c 1685 to 1880, some giving dimensions, armament and other details; one of 1780 lists His Majesty's armed vessels on the Canadian lakes and the St Lawrence; another of 1880 includes ships in European navies. The lists of naval officers consist of accounts of Flag Officers, 1660 to c 1755; captains, 1660 to 1715, 1688; and a list of french naval officers, 1792. In addition there is a list of naval chaplains, 1626 to 1903.
Orders and Regulations: The earliest of the orders are General Instructions to be observed by commanders of His Majest's ships, 1683, and three volumes of orders and letters to the joint Admirals commanding the fleet, 1693, one of the volumes containing orders from the Admiralty and another those from the Queen. Related to these are the proceedings of the Councils of War held by the Admirals, 1693. There is also an index to the General Naval Instructions, 1803. relating to the management of the fleet are Vice-Admiral Byron's (1723-1786) sailing and fighting instructions, 1778 to 1782; St Vincent's orders and memoranda, 1800 to 1802; and orders received on board the VALIANT, 1807 to 1808. Regulations for the management of ships include Captain (later Admiral) Thomas Graves' (1747?-1814) standing orders for the MAGICIENNE, 1782, and the orders of Captain (later Admiral) Richard Goodwin Keats for the SUPERB, 1804. Also of note are the Port Orders issued in 1811 by the Commander-in-Chief of ships in the River Thames, Sir Charles Hamilton (1767-1849). Logs and Journals: The logs record the voyages of nineteen ships, 1755 to 1837. The earliest were kept on board the TERRIBLE, 1755 to 1756, and the MARLBOROUGH, 1756 to 1757; the others include the logs of the MELPOMENE, 1803 to 1805; the VALIANT, 1810 to 1814; and VOLAGE, 1833 to 1837. of the journals, the earliest was kept by Thomas Lawrie (fl.1757-1759) on board the AMAZON while in the West Indies, 1757 to 1759. There is a copy of the account of the mutiny on the BOUNTY, 1789, by John Fryer (1752-1817); an account of 'a voyage from Batavia in the island of Java' to England on board the BENGAL MERCHANT, 1815; and another of a voyage from Sydney to Pitcairn and Norfolk islands on the MORAYSHIRE, 1856, by Lieutenant George Gregorie of the Royal Marines. There are two journals by naval chaplains: the earliest was kept by Henry Sainsbury in the DEFENCE mainly in the Mediterranean, 1795 to 1797, and the later one by an unnamed chaplain in a ship on the South American station, 1897. More varied in content are the memoranda books of Lieutenant William Bryan Wake, 1782 to 1799.
Letterbooks and Letters: The collection includes a small number of letters and letterbooks, some personal and some official. There are six letters by Nelson, 1794 to 1805; two by Collingwood, 1805 and 1809; two by St Vincent 1789 and 1810; and some letters and papers relating to Sir Charles Douglas (d.1789), 1776 to 1830. Letterbooks include two kept by Captain (later Rear-Admiral) John Bythesea (fl.1846-1906), despatches and orders received, 1846 to 1862, and letters sent, 1856 to 1868; and one kept by Colonel and Chief Staff Officer of the Portsmouth Dockyard Volunteers, 1848. Naval
Administration and Law: Relating to various aspects of naval administration are a number of warrants.

Papers of the Royal Seamen's Pension Fund. Included are minutes of the Governing Body, 1919 to 1977 and the Finance Committee between 1930 and 1977, ledgers 1920 to 1972, reports of the Governing Body and Reports of the Seamen's Advisory Committee 1912 to 1979, including cash books 1920 to 1965, register of seamen's pension 1944 to 1987.

Pendant and vane lists are included in this category; amongst these is a sheet of distinguishing signals issued by Lord Howe, 1794; a number of sheets of signals which were issued in addition to the printed signals, which include two recognition signals issued by the Admiralty for naval vessels and East Indiamen, 1778 and 1780.

The volumes in this class consist of fifty-one watch, station and quarter bills, late-eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, and order books relating to the administration of ships of the Royal Navy. The earliest is an order book of Prince William Henry (1745-1837) in the PEGASUS and ANDROMEDA, 1786 to 1788. The majority of the watch, station and quarter bills date from 1830 to 1860. Some are working pocket books while others are decorative fair copies. An example of the latter is the watch and fire bill of the ISIS, CORNWALLIS and PRESIDENT, 1836; included are ships; plans, instructions for gun exercises, boat signals and copies of orders. The most recent volume is the night order book of the SHROPSHIRE, 1931 to 1934.

This class contains volumes which relate to prize money, including an account book, 1811 to 1816, of Edward Locker, admiral's secretary (1777-1849); and five ledgers of prize accounts, possibly by the naval agents, Messrs Ommaney, 1798 to 1826.

This class contains copy order books of orders received and issued. For order books relating to ship administration see entry no.134. The volumes date from the late-eighteenth to the mid-nineteenth century. They include orders issued by Captain (later Admiral Sir) John Sutton (1758-1825), senior officer in the TAGUS, 1797 to 1801, and memoranda and orders issued by the senior officer at Bermuda, 1808 to 1815.

This class consists of ten contemporary lists of naval personnel. There is usually little detail beyond the lists of names themselves. An exception to this rule is the earliest volume, a list of captains between 1688 and 1696, which gives a number of biographical details; similarly, there are notes in a volume in a clerical hand of promotions for lieutenants for 1801, kept for Lord St Vincent. The most comprehensive is a four-volume copy of the 'Naval General Service Medal Roll, 1793-1840', containing the names of those awarded and the actions in which the medal and bars were won.

This class consists of six notebooks containing information on various subjects, made by naval officers or ratings. An example is a large book, alphabetically indexed, kept by Lord Charles Beresford (1848-1930) on subjects of administrative and political interest, 1900 to 1901; some of the entries are in his own hand.

Records of the Royal Navy Club of 1765 and 1785. They consist of: Minutes: meetings, 1846 to 1888; annual general meetings, 1765 to 1845: Navy Club of 1785, general meetings, 1810 to 1888: United Club, the committee, 1889 to 1924; agenda, 1894 to 1939. Accounts: United, 1895 to 1940. Cash books: 1765 Club, 1830 to 1877; 1785 Club, 1840 to 1873. Donations to Memorialists: 1765 Club, 1824 to 1934. Other records include: Club, 1827 to 1841; United Club, 1889 to 1934. Attendance Books: 1765 Club, 1822 to 1830, 1845 to 1849; 1785 Club, 1785 to 1803; United Club, 1895 to 1903, 1938 to 1954. Subscription Books: 1765 Club, 1797 to 1888; 1785 Club, 1825 to 1841; United Club, 1889 to 1954. Address books: 1785 Club, c 1881; United Club, c 1914 to 1919 and ca.1939 to 1950. There are also nine boxes of loose letters, accounts, reports, correspondence, memorials and copies of the rules relating to the whole range of the Clubs' activities, 1824 to 1927; and a book of pencil drawings, c 1840, by Admiral Robert Patton (1791-1883).

The fifty-nine volumes in this class are mainly official and relate to the central administration of the Navy, 1558 to 1850. They consist principally of instructions, accounts, reports, legal opinions and treatises. There are nine volumes of instructions, 1660 to 1718. Two volumes describe the duties of the Lord High Admiral, 1673; eight contain copies of the instructions to the Navy Board, 1662; six, those to the Victualling Board, 1701 and 1715 to 1718; and two, those to the Sick and Hurt Board, 1684 to 1699 and 1703. A manuscript index of official Admiralty papers compiled ca.1694 contains references to instructions and to other Admiralty correspondence. Among the financial accounts are an early Treasury account book, 1572 to 1573; a report on naval estimates, 1654; and estimate of the charge of the Navy, 1684; and estimates of the naval debt, 1712 to 1720, which details the Treasurers who held money and the amounts invested in South Sea stock. A volume of notes on the office of Treasurer of the Navy, 1650 to 1698, includes an account of permitted perquisites. Accounts relating to the Ordnance Board consist of a 'computation of the ordinary annual charge within the office of his Majesty's Ordnance', 1679; six volumes giving stores issued, received and surveyed, 1576, 1595, 1599, 1635 to 1637, 1644 to 1649 and 1650 to 1651. In addition there is a volume of papers relating to fortifications in the Thames area, 1667 to 1703; and the minutes of the Ordnance Board, 1679 to 1680. Other accounts, dealing with stores, are contained in 'The Boke of Victuellinge', 1558, which details victualling stores issued to ships at sea and in harbour, listed under their ports in a chronological order. There is a contract for victualling the navy 1677 to 1678, and statistics relating to victualling, c 1684. The reports, or volumes related to reports, have a parliamentary origin. They include one of the papers referred to in the investigation into merchant shipping losses by the Lord High Admiral to the House of Lords in 1707; the proceedings of the committee of the House of Commons, 1744, which examined naval officers on the 'miscarriage' of the Mediterranean fleet at Toulon; ten volumes contain the reports produced between 1785 and 1788 by the Commissioners 'appointed to inquire into Fees, Gratuities, Perquisites and Emoluments which are, or have been lately, received in the several public offices'. In addition, there is the appendix to the fifteenth report of the Commissioners for Revising and Digesting the Civil Affairs of the Navy on the proposal for a new eastern dockyard, 1807, which was never printed. The legal opinions consist of judges' 'arguments', 1637 to 1639, relating to the 'ship money' case. Also of a legal nature is an account of the charges against Edward Cecil, Lord Wimbledon (1572-1638), on the Cadiz expedition, 1625. The treatises include a copy, c 1630, of Captain Sir Henry Mainwaring's (1587-1653) 'Discourse' on his piratical activities and a copy, c 1615, of Soveraignty of the Seas of England' by Sir John Borough, Keeper of the Records in the Tower of London (d 1643)

See sub-fonds level descriptions for individual scope and contents.

Royal Navy records relating to local administration. The class consists of twenty-nine volumes, most of which are official. A significant proportion consists of formal letterbooks kept by the dockyard Commissioners or officers recording letters sent to and received from the Navy Board, and warrant books detailing the orders given by the Board. There are ten such volumes for Sheerness, 1757 to 1822. Two letterbooks are unusual; one of them contains letters from a yard commissioner who visited the Victualling yards at Portsmouth, Chatham and Sheerness between 1702 and 1703, whilst the other contains letters specifically relating to sailmaking, 1807 to 1814. There are also account books kept by the Clerks of the Cheque at Gibraltar, 1757 to 1760, and Portsmouth, 1795 to 1800; a 'Timber Expense book' kept by Charles Scammell, a quarterman at Deptford dockyard, 1780 to 1801; a journal kept by the Master Attendant at Portsmouth, 1696 to 1698, is unusual owing to its more personal nature and early date; a private account book of Richard Prowse, Master Attendant at Woolwich Dockyard between 1785 and 1804, contains information on private payments from contractors. From the seventeenth century comes a survey of the fortifications along the Thames, Medway and southern and Cornish coasts in 1623 and an account of the expenses incurred in building the 'citadel' at Plymouth Hoe, c 1670. There are two bound volumes of plans of the dockyards in England and the colonies; the earlier was made in 1774 and includes forty maps and plans including soundings; the other, made in 1831, contains thirty-seven plans. The most recent item is a cashbook containing copies of receipts issued at Haulbowline Dockyard, 1920 and 1921.

Papers of Royal Naval Loan Library. They consist of notices and agenda of committee meetings, correspondence and financial statements, 1946 to 1947.

This class consists of thirty-four volumes of contemporary lists of naval ships, 1633, 1655, 1664 and 1670 to 1900. Many were compiled officially and usually have the same format, listing ships by rate, details of dimensions, numbers of guns, where built and the name of the designer. A few have additional notes on establishments of stores and men and other regulations. The nineteenth century is particularly well represented by ten official volumes of annotated and corrected lists from the 1830s until the 1870s. They give very full dimensions and details of ships over a long period. An example of one of these is that belonging to the Earl of Minto (1872-1859), First Lord of the Admiralty, with details of ships during the 1830s, corrected to August 1841.

Records of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich. The records cover the life-time of the College from its establishment in 1873 to its closure in 1998. The records are varied, but many relate to the staff at the College. They include pay rolls, volumes detailing staff leave and discharge and service registers. There are also accounting records - bills, receipts, expenditure, imprest books etc. One of the more interesting groups of records are the volumes of "reports", covering the period 1877-1922, which include miscellaneous records relating to Sub-Lieutenants passed, awards, sick leave, discharge, stationary demands, applications to join the College, letters to the Admiralty etc. The collection also includes registers of correspondence and letters-out for the period 1873-1947. Relating to the students, there are a few registers of students on courses 1873-97 and also volumes of Acting Sub-Lieutenants' examination results and passing certificates 1873-1911. These records duplicate those held by the National Archives and further records relating to students can be found there. The more modern twentieth century records mainly relate to courses ran by the College. They include lists of students on courses, Board of Studies minutes, course syllabuses etc, but are not complete. The collection also includes a large photographic archive.

Papers of the Royal Mail Steam Packet Company. There are copies of the Royal Charter granted to the Company in 1839 and subsequent renewals: a continuous series of minute books of Directors' meetings, 1839 to 1934 (three volumes); of General Meetings, 1842 to 1933 and a less complete set of Directors' reports, 1850 to 1902. A minute book of the Stores Committee, 1842 to 1843, illustrates the deployment of the very large stocks of coal necessary to maintain the services. The Mail Contracts for the various services are well documented. In- and out-correspondence, 1842 to 1868, with 'Public Departments' (the Admiralty, the Post Office and Board of Trade) is contained in nineteen volumes. A very early letterbook, 1826 to 1828, contains letters from the Post Office to Lieutenant Edward Chappell R.N. (d.1856) who subsequently became Secretary of the Company. A Marine Superintendent's confidential letterbook, 1826 to 1899, casts light on staff selection. General correspondence, 1904 to 1943, both in and out, is largely about the carriage of mail, legal matters and inter-company communications. Four memorandum books (1860 to 1904, 1884 to 1902, 1905 to 1909 and 1915 to 1917) are Directors' 'vade mecum's', containing a valuable cross-section of information about the Company's operations. Route books and 'Details of Service' 1841 to 1920, locate the services geographically. Agency arrangements are dealt with in nine books, 1876 to 1954, containing details of agreements entered into by the Company, including mortgages, leases or purchases of properties, powers of attorney and commissions. The technical part of the collection includes builders' specifications for ships, 1876 to 1954; fleet regulations for officers and engineers, 1850 and 1950; instructions to pursers, 1876; a treatise by Captain Chappell on 'Smith's Patent Screw Propeller', 1840; a Fire and Boat Station Bill for the Avon, 1845; reports on the stranding of the Magdalena, 1949, and a number of early log books, 1842 to 1869. The only account books are two cash books, 1839 to 1849, and some day-to-day cash books from the West End passenger office, 1959 to 1969. There are no service records although there is an album of photographs of captains, 1870, and information about pensions, national health and unemployment insurance. Finally the collection contains a wealth of publicity material of various dates. (Section 3: RMS/: 100ft: 30m) Ships' Plans: consist mainly of linen tracings of general arrangements, profiles and deck plans of nine Royal Mail steamships, 1850 to 1880, and paper prints of cargo spaces on six early twentieth-century vessels.

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.

Papers of Robert Roddam, comprising an almost complete service record from 1746, including a log, 1759 to 1778, together with letter and order books, 1746 to 1783, 1789 to 1792, and two signal books. There is a very full administrative correspondence during the American War of Independence and the 1790 crisis. There are no personal papers in the collection.

Papers of John Charles Gawen Roberts. They consist of logs, 1801 to 1804, 1812 to 1815; letter and order books and ship's general orders, 1812 to 1815.

Papers of Sir Herbert William Richmond, comprising logs, 1887 to 1891 and 1894; diaries, 1886 to 1920; diaries of Lady Richmond, 1914 to 1915; commonplace books on service topics; lectures and lecture drafts; press cuttings; photographs and a large amount of official, semi-official and private correspondence. There are letters written home by Richmond, 1879 to 1900, and 1904 to 1906, and his letters to and from Admiral W.H. Henderson (q.v.), 1912 to 1933. In addition there are some papers of Sir Julian Corbett (1854-1922) the naval historian, which were given to Richmond by Lady Corbett.