Showing 151 results

Papers of the British India Steam Navigation Company Ltd, comprising minute books: Calcutta and Burmah Steam Navigation Company Limited, 1856 to 1862; British India Steam Navigation Company Limited, 1863 to 1961. The annual reports cover the years 1865 to 1970. Accounts: ships' accounts, 1927 to 1958; general journals and ledgers, 1935 to 1959; specialized accounts for supplies, repairs and stevedoring, pay and pensions, 1938 to 1969; Calcutta office's general accounts with London, 1935 to 1955; Passage Books, 1951 to 1969, summarizing passenger carryings on the various services. British India owned a great deal of property (godowns, wharves, repair yards, office and staff accommodation) in India and elsewhere, which are documented in a register of properties, 1889 to 1965, with supporting files. Information about ships' voyages, portage accounts, etc exists only for the period 1960 to 1970. British India operated a fleet of landing craft for the Ministry of Transport and there are files and log books for these, 1966 to1970. Correspondence: letters to and from the Secretary, 1865 to 1900; files relating to mail contracts, trooping, relief expeditions, 1863 to 1962. Some confidential correspondence is included in the collection; three of Lord Inchcape's letterbooks, 1912 to 1932, and two confidential letter files, 1885 to 1893. Staff Records: records of commanders, officers, engineers, cadets and stewards, 1868 to 1957, are contained in forty volumes and there are extensive pension fund registers. Technical Records: technical files, 1958 to 1967 relate to major maintenance and repair work and new buildings. British India issued a yearly handbook containing detailed information about the fleet, the various liner services, rates of freight and passenger fares and the company 5 agents; there is a bound set, 1866 to 1939 and 1949 to 1969. Parallel with these, although more recent, are copies of the British India house magazines and news letters. There is also a file of press cuttings on the occasion of the Company's centenary in 1956.

Papers of William and Dugald Dawson comprising 80 letters from Dugald Dawson (dated 1823-1840) and 64 letters from William Dawson (dated 1828-1843). Also included are 38 letters (including two private journals) from Captain William Dawson, addressed to his wife Barbara (dated 1849-1858), and a number of other letters and papers, chiefly of William's family.

Papers of Eastern and Australian Steamship Co Ltd, containing a copy of the 1873 mail contract with the Government of Queensland: the Memorandum and Articles of Association of the third company (1894) and some early account books, 1894 to 1898. Later accounting records include company returns, 1920 to 1969, and there are minutes of Board meetings, 1906 to 1969. Included in the tonnage data, 1948 to 1969, are the contract and hull specification for the ARAFURA, 1952 to 1953.

Papers of Samuel Grant, consisting of detailed diaries, 1793 to 1803 (some of them in shorthand), and correspondence and naval papers connected with his work as a purser, 1781 to 1803. These include passes, indentures for a clerk, certificates, financial papers, lists of stores and lists of ships There are also some financial and legal papers relating to the family property in Pembroke.

Letter from John Taylor of the Cannon Coffee House, Charing Cross to Alexander Dalrymple Esq, 17 Feb 1795. Covering letter to a 1794 proof copy of Captain Taylor's Considerations on the practicability and advantages of a more speedy communication between Great Britain and her possessions in India [advocating the superiority of the overland route above the usual sea voyage]. 'I hope I have profited by the advice you was kind enough to give me some time ago in regard to the accompanying plan ... I have ... condensed the subject and am now busy in arranging what authorities I have been able to collect ...'.

Autograph, with signature.

Mainly letters written and received between 1770 and 1835 by Simon Taylor, his family and heirs, and his friends, agents and business partners, relating to their Jamaican estates and business interests. Over a quarter are contained in Simon Taylor's letterbooks. Though the majority of the correspondence consists of letters either to or from Simon Taylor up to his death in 1813, there is also correspondence of other family members, like his brother Sir John Taylor (1741-1786) and his widow Lady Elizabeth Haughton Taylor (1758-182[?2]), their son and his heir Sir Simon Richard Brissett Taylor, and his cousin and business partner Robert Taylor. Subject matter ranges from the domestic (illness, family quarrels, disinheritance, bigamy) to business (slaves, sugar, trade and shipping, the effects of hurricanes, the introduction of a steam engine on an estate), to the Maroon and French wars and the politics of Abolition. The collection also includes correspondence of George Watson Taylor, 1815-1819, and detailed reports on the estates made for Anna Susannah Watson Taylor in 1835. Genealogical tables for the Taylor, Haughton, Brissett and Hibbert families have been added to the collection at a later date.

Correspondence, 1819-1825, between Francis Place and his daughter and son-in-law, Elizabeth and William Adams, concerning their travels in South America (including Buenos Aires and Chile).

Letter from Richard Smith of 'Bordeaux River', [France] to Seth Barton, merchant, Baltimore, [USA], 1794. Giving the terms of a charter party between James Swan and Co and Thomas Harris, on the London Packet (c 260 tons), which was to take on a cargo of wines and brandy at Bordeaux, to carry to Baltimore; discussing expenses and asks Barton to take out £400 insurance for him.

Autograph, with signature.

Printed bill of lading, 1799, completed in manuscript for the schooner Pearl bound for Demerara (British Guiana) from Stonington, Connecticut, USA. Cargo includes mess beef and pork, prime beef and pork, mutton, bass, codfish, mackerel, horses, mules and cattle.

Medical log of the slave-ship LORD STANLEY, kept by Christopher Bowes the ship's surgeon between 23 March-26 July 1792. The ship traded between the African coast and the Isle of Grenada, West Indies. Of the 389 slaves on board, 16 died. The log gives the daily sick rate and there are brief notes of the cases and treatment.

At the end of the manuscript, Christopher Bowes states it is a "just and true journal" which he then presents to Custom House, at St George, Grenada in 1792. This is witnessed and signed by George Ferguson [Possibly George Ferguson, Governor of Tobago c1781]. The next page of the volume contains a statement signed by George Ferguson, saying that this is a "true copy of the original journal", and is dated September 5th 1792. Therefore it is likely that this manuscript is a copy of the original journal, which was perhaps retained in Grenada.

At the front of the volume is a letter to Arthur Bowes Elliot (grandson of Christopher Bowes) dated 5th October 1911, from Sir Ronald Ross (FRCS) 1857-1932, regarding the contents of the volume, and the diseases the slaves were suffering from.

Papers of Sir Allen William Young, 1857-1920, including ship's logs of the voyages of the PANDORA and the HOPE to the Arctic and the COROMANDEL and the MARLBOROUGH to India; journals kept on the FOX (the search for Sir John Franklin) and other voyages; nine scrapbooks of press cuttings entitled 'Shipping' and miscellaneous items.

Six personal letters of Belcher, 1864-1865 with some reference to Arctic matters. Record deposited at Arthur Strait in 1853 and recovered by Sverdrup expedition 1899-1902. Table of latitudes from west coast of America and Pacific determined on board HMS Sulfur, 1837-1842. Geographical subject headings: 1) ARCTIC 2) CANADA 3) UNITED STATES 4) PACIFIC OCEAN.

Typescript transcript of letters and extracts of letters, and some photocopies of original letters, 1818-1821, from Thomas and Abigail Beighton to family and friends, recording problems encountered on the journey from England to Madras; local customs; and missionary work in Malacca and Penang, particularly their work in education; also including much discussion of family matters and of relationships among the missionary communities.

Personal, estate and business papers, c1820-1893, accumulated by Sir William Mackinnon, predominantly during the latter half of the nineteenth century. The material covers a wide range of commercial, imperial and humanitarian topics, and includes correspondence and papers relating to the Imperial British East Africa Company, the British India Steam Navigation Co. and the City of Glasgow Bank.

Records of W Barnett and Company, including letter from Messrs Dale and Stretton, Gray's Inn Square, inviting applications for debenture stock of the London Bridge Land Company, Ltd. secured on the freehold estate of the Company at London Bridge, 1865; sales particulars of 9 Fleet Street with rear premises abutting on Hare Court, Temple, 1878; poster and handbill issued by W. Barnett and Company, advertising passages to Australia and other destinations, c 1850-1860.

Bills of lading relating to William Brooke's consignments from London to Barbados, and occasionally to Bermuda and Rotterdam; with names of ships, masters and consignees and descriptions of cargoes.

Papers of John Motteux and Company, merchants, comprising letters from the company's agent in L'Orient (Brittany) and Paris.

Records of the Coal Factors' Society, beginning in 1761 and consisting of minutes, attendance books, letter books, rules and regulations, an account of market dues at the Coal Exchange, financial records including ledgers and cash books, factors' day and entry books, factors' and meters' postage books, an alphabetical list of ships giving gross and net tonnage, lists of named ships with total monthly cost to each factor, comparative lists of the highest prices of best house coals taken for each, contracts made with various persons for the supply of barges, beams, weights, a Tilbury signal code book, and newspaper cuttings. There are no records for the period 1790-1831.

The collection also includes a register of names, destinations and owners of ships, and weight of coal shipped from Newcastle, 1702-4, Ms 30689, which had been found amongst the archives of the Coal Factors' Society and Coal Meters' Committee. It predates both bodies and appears to have been collected as a curio.

Records from the Marine Department of the Edinburgh Assurance Company Limited, comprising registers of vessels, casualty books, loss report books, and salvage books.

Records of Gray, MacKenzie and Company Limited, general merchants and agents in the Persian Gulf, including partnership agreements; articles of association; correspondence; legal papers; financial accounts; annual reports; papers relating to property; historical notes; papers relating to Euphrates and Tigris Steam Navigation Company Limited, Bahrein Slipway Company Limited and Dilmun Navigation Company Limited.

Records of the India General Navigation and Railway Company Limited, including articles of association; papers relating to annual general meetings; notices to shareholders; financial accounts; fleet lists; papers regarding ship repairs; and photograph of steamer 'Nagpore'.

CLC/B/123/MS38763 (staff list) is subject to a 70 year closure period.

Mackay and Company Limited records comprise: memorandum and articles of association, 1914-23 (Ms 27788); resolution of EGM, 1928 (Ms 27789); accounts, 1923-7 (Ms 27790) and correspondence, 1914-30 (Ms 27791-2).

This series consists of a series of quarterly accounts of salaries and allowances due and payable by incidents to the officers, clerks and tradesmen employed by the General, Twopenny and London District Post Offices (the Twopenny Post was replaced by the London District Post in 1844). Items 6/4-6, covering 1794-1799, also include separate quarterly accounts of tradesmen's bills and incidental warrants paid out of the revenue of the Bye and Cross Road Letter Office. Accounts cover a wide variety of items and are arranged under general subject headings, such as 'pensions', 'packets', 'tradesmen' and 'rents'. Entries include what the bill is for, name of person owed and the amount. The date of the Treasury warrant authorising payment is often included at the end of each quarterly account. Volumes are not indexed. The accounts include bills for:

• Pensions, salaries and allowances to chief and senior officers, clerks, sorters, messengers and servants working in London headquarters departments, including offices of the Secretary and Accountant General, and the Foreign, Inland, Express, Mail Coach, Dead Letter, Ship Letter and Bye Letter offices; packet agents; surveyors; postmasters inspectors of mails, letter receivers and carriers and packet ships; commanders and mates of packet ships, or their widows; letter receivers and carriers in London; and mail guards

• Expenses for mail conveyance by sea, including costs incurred by packet ships operating from Falmouth, Harwich, Dover, Whitehaven, Donaghadee, Weymouth, Milford Haven and Holyhead, and in the West and East Indies, notably hire charges, lighting dues, arms and ammunition stores, wages and victualling for captains, officers and crew whilst at sea, out of employ or while the ship is undergoing repairs; and ship letter mails

• Expenses for inland mail conveyance, notably for payments to mail coach contractors; road, bridge and ferry tolls; supply and upkeep of fire arms, time pieces, mail bags and mail guards uniforms; mail coach maintenance; and railway and steam packet company charges

• Compensation for abolished positions or duties

• Items supplied or work done by tradesmen

• Legal expenses notably relating to investigation, detection, capture, and trail of felons

• Rents, taxes and rates for offices in London

• Stationery printing costs

• Transit postage and tonnage dues to foreign post offices

• Travelling expenses, particularly surveyors'

Item 6/11, covering 1805-1809, is different to the rest of the series. It contains certified accounts of the quarterly salaries and allowances paid by incidents upon which the Civil List deduction, or tax, of six pence in the pound is chargeable. Each account lists the 'salaries' and 'incidents' of individual officers and clerks at the General Post Office headquarters in London, including the Postmaster General, Secretary and other senior officers, and the total duty payable each quarter.

These accounts probably originate from the office of the Receiver General, who was in charge of all moneys received and paid out of the revenue of the Post Office.

Papers relating to Weston's career, 1916- 1945, including manuscript notes by Weston entitled 'Some notes on the discipline of Imperial troops in convoy on HM Transport LLANSTEPHAN CASTLE from Durban to Suez', 1941; notebook containing manuscript 'Standing orders for POWs', 1943; typescript report on the sinking of the EMPRESS OF CANADA, 1943; typescript instructions and duties of Draft Conducting Officers on board troopships [1943]; typescript memorandum by Weston on the co-ordination of Movement Control in South Africa, 1944, with typescript reports on officers attached to Imperial Movement Control, South Africa (IMPCON), 1944; printed material including memorandum on the German attack near Givenchy, Western Front, 1918, with printed map annotated with dispositions of German 4 Ersatz Div during attack north of Cuinchy, France, 9 Apr 1918, scale 1: 10, 000; trench map entitled France. Sheet 57D SE. Edition 3A, scale 1:20,000 (GSGS 2742, 1916), annotated with features near La Boisselle, Pozieres and Courcelette, Battle of the Somme, 1916, Field Service Pocket Book, Orders and intercommunication (HMSO, London, 1939), Rifle Drill illustrated (Gale and Polden, Aldershot, 1940), Restricted War Office booklet 'Standing instructions for Officers Commanding units and drafts ordered overseas', 1943.

MS. 3352: Copy dated c1805 of a journal of a voyage from London to Cochin-China, 11 September 1792-15 June 1793. Note on verso of leaf 2 signed 'J.B.' (Sir John Barrow (1764-1848), Secretary to the Admiralty, and founder of the Royal Geographical Society) states 'This journal was written by Lord Macartney on board the Lion merely for his own amusement and to pass away a few heavy hours on a very long sea voyage'. MS. 5746: Correspondence and papers relating to medical services in Madras, 1782-1787, comprising 2 letters to Macartney from John Ruding, surgeon, Chingleput, 1782, 1783; letter to Macartney from James Hodges, Masulipatam, 1783; letter to Macartney from George Bell (d.1789), surgeon, Tanjore, 1783; Committee Minute on a proposal by Macartney for a fixed establishment of surgeons, 1784; letter to Macartney from Terence Gahagan, surgeon, enclosing a copy of his plan for the reform of the medical department, Vellore, 1787 (the plan is addressed to Macartney's successor as Governor of Fort St George, Madras, Sir Archibald Campbell).

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 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.

Testimonials and notebook of John Temperley Gray, 1859-1888.

Records of Albyn Line Ltd, comprising Directors' and shareholders' minute books, 1901 to 1966, containing an unbroken series of balance sheets and profit and loss accounts; a full series of cash books and ledgers, 1901 to 1966; ships' voyage books, 1953 to 1966, containing information on costs, types of cargo, freight rates, rates of hire, fuel costs etc; voyage papers for some of the voyages of the last three ships from 1962 to 1966; insurance records, 1952 to 1966, and a random collection of chief officers' log books, 1960 to 1966. There are also the records of Allan Black and Company, the managers, relating to internal office administration, 1958 to 1966 and papers relating to the voluntary liquidation, 1966. There is no correspondence apart from two out-letterbooks.

This catagory contains examples of various types of ships' papers and documents relating to the operation of merchant ships. There are examples of Charter Parties, including one of 1322 between Walter Giffard, master of the cog OUR LADY of Lyme and Sir Hugh de Berham for a freight of wine; the remainder are twentieth-century examples. The earliest example of a Bill of Lading is for the TRIPLE CROWN of Bristol, 1689; there are others from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Among the examples of Bills of Sale of ships and shares of ships is one for the Dutch East India Company ship DEHELDWOITEMADE, sold to James Mather, a London merchant, 1782; and also one for the SPECULATOR, a French prize, formerly LE CARME, sold in 1810. Examples of documents relating to insurance include a Statement of General Average for the POLLY AND EMILY made after she had been damaged in a gale in 1895. There are also Muster Rolls and Articles of Agreement of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries (see also entry no.13); Bills of Health, nineteenth and twentieth centuries; Safe Conducts, eighteenth and nineteenth centuries; and various nineteenth-century passenger documents and papers relating to wreck and salvage, including an order issued by Sir Cyril Wyche (1632-1707) and Sir Henry Capel (d 1696), Lord Justices of Ireland, for the arrest of the pilot of the wrecked TALBOT pink, 1695.

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.

The collection includes Robert Hammond's record of service and his survey, when Master of the Society of Pilots of the Cinque Ports, of the southern North Sea in the cutter GEM, 1841. The volumes collected by Barker himself consist mainly of logs of naval ships. They include that of the ORION, in home waters, kept by an Edward Barker in 1794, containing an account of the Battle of First of June; the Clyde, 1796 to 1800, kept by Lieutenant John Smith (fl 1780-1805), in home waters; of the CHALLENGER, 1828 to 1831, East Indies Station, kept by Commander John M R Ince (fl 1808-1850); the CALEDONIA, 1835 to 1836, Mediterranean station; the FLY, 1842 to 1846, surveying Australian waters, and the PILOT, 1850, East Indies station. There is also a journal of a voyage in the merchant ship VESTAL from North America to the West Indies, 1759 to 1760, by the author William Falconer (1744-1824); some of Falconer 's unpublished poems appear at the end of this journal.

The papers relating to Sir Hugh Cloberry Christian all date from 1798 when he was second in command of the Cape of Good Hope station. They include official correspondence relating mainly to the day to day running of the station but particulaly to the mutiny and subsequent Court Martial concerning the East Indiaman, PRINCESS CHARLOTTE. The papers relating to Sir Hugh's son, Hood Hanway Christian, are more extensive. Apart from an order book from 1812, when Christain was the governor of the Spanish fort at Castro, they are mostly official correspondence from the period 1824-1828. These relate to the supression of the slave trade and various disciplinary proceedings together with correspondence from the Navy Board. There is a small amount of personal correspondence including letters from Sir Richard Keats and Sir Edward Pellew.

Papers of Sir Alexander Duff, consisting of letters received from Lord Jellicoe (1859-1935) and Sir Charles Madden (q.v.), 1916 to 1933, and a few letters from Jellicoe to Lady Duff, 1934; a series of notes and letters, 1914 to 1919, on the convoy system; papers on mercantile shipping, conferences and convoys, 1918, and some of Duff's retrospective views on convoys written in 1931 and a private diary kept between 1914 and 1916.

Records of Furness Withy and Co Ltd. For the parent company the records in the Museum include: ship files from the Naval Architect's Department, 1941 to 1961; building and service files from the Superintendent's Department, 1947 to 1964; movement books, 1946 to 1966; Charter Parties arranged by the Charter Department, 1917 to 1965; financial records, including wages and salaries, 1911 to 1958; one volume of commission accounts (mainly North American berths and the Danube), 1896 to 1952. There are papers for the three companies concerned in the South American trade: the Argentine Cargo Line Limited, minutes, 1908 to 1918; freight agreements, mainly 1908 to 1910 and printed reports, 1909 to 1917; the British and Argentine Steam Navigation Co Ltd, minutes, 1911 to 1934; meat contracts, 1914 to 1915; Furness-Houlder Argentine Lines, freight agreements (including Brazilian fruit and meat), 1914 to 1921; balance sheets and profit and loss accounts, 1940 to 1946. For the Prince Line (including the Rio Cape Line) there are reports of meetings, 1921 to 1949; files on oil prices and contracts, 1953 to 1958; and some notes on the Far East-U.S.A. Conference, 1919 to 1968. There are also the following records for other subsidiary companies: River Syndicate Ltd, minutes and accounts, 1920 to 1968; Compagnie Furness (France), accounts, 1923 to 1939; Furness (Montreal) Ltd, minutes, 1954 to 1964; Watson and Youell, cashbook for London, Bucharest and Galatz, 1919 to 1923. (Section 3: FWS/: 36ft: 1,097cm) Ships' Plans: the plans were presented in 1970. They consist mostly of prints of details of a few ships of the late 1940s and early 1950s. There are also two data books.

Papers of Cicely Fox Smith, consisting of some manuscript material including logs of three East India merchant ships 1851 to 1854; a number of letters and photographs which she received from various correspondents; and a few articles and newspaper cuttings; there are also letters relating to the restoration of the VICTORY, 1920 to 1929. The collection has some useful materials for the study of the sailing ship.

Records of Houlder Brothers & Co Ltd. They consist of: movement books, 1920-1930; Charter Parties 1949-1950; voyage estimates, 1965-1967. The movements and estimates refer to ships of associated companies as well as those of the parent company.

Papers of Captain Henry George Hamilton, consisting of official service documents, letters to his family, 1822 to 1830, and from Australia, 1839 to 1843.

Papers of Adml Sir Frederick Tower Hamilton, consisting of logs, 1870 to 1872, 1877 to 1881, 1885 and 1915 to 1916, and semi-official letters received, 1914 to 1917, including some from Admirals Lord Fisher (1841-1920), Jellicoe (1859-1935), Beatty (1871-1936), Sir Charles Madden and Prince Louis of Battenburg (1854-1921). In addition, there is detailed material on the resignation of Lord Fisher in 1915. There are also a large number of private papers and letters received, 1889 to 1917, letters to his son Louis Henry Keppel Hamilton, 1906 to 1915, scrap and photograph albums, official service documents, notes on manoeuvering the HOOD, 1893 to 1894, and reports and memoranda, 1917.

Papers of Sir Louis Henry Keppel Hamiltom. The diaries cover most of his career and all periods afloat from 1908 to 1928. There are also diaries for journeys in the merchant ships Lagos, 1915, and in the Usaramo to Lisbon in 1924. In addition there are official reports and signals for the time when Hamilton commanded the First Cruiser Squadron and a very full collection of letters written by him to his family, 1906 to 1956. There are also photograph albums of Osborne and Dartmouth, 1903 to1907 of the Durbar, 1911, and of other periods in Hamilton's life. Finally, there are lecture notes and memoranda from Dartmouth, 1922 to 1924, and papers relating to Australia, 1947.

Papers of Sir Henry Keppel, consisting of logs, 1824 to 1825, 1830 to 1831, 1834 to 1835, 1842 to 1845, 1847 to 1851, 1853 to 1857, 1860 to 1861; private journals, 1867 to 1869; annual diaries, 1834 to 1838, 1842 to 1844, 1855 to 1857, 1867 to 1869; private letterbooks, 1867 to 1869, 1874 to 1875 and loose papers. These are mainly letters received, 1841 to 1900, the bulk of which date from 1870. Of the two groups of Keppel's letters to his family, one covers the Crimean War and the other his tour of the Far East, 1897 to 1900.

Papers of London and Rochester Trading Company Ltd., comprising the company's financial and business records including contract agreements for ship specifications for the building of company barges, bills of sale for various barges, general arrangement plans and miscellaneous material re: company's lease arrangements and other business records.

Papers of Basil Lubbock, reflecting Lubbock's detailed and intensive approach to his research. There are over thirty copies and transcripts of logs, many made by Lubbock himself from privately owned volumes. These include abstract logs of the CUTTY SARK, 1870 to 1872, and 1886 to 1895, and a detailed log of the same vessel, 1882 to 1883; the captains' abstract logs of the ARIEL, 1866 to 1868, HALLOWEEN, 1872 to 1876, PATRIARCH, 1877 and 1883, and THERMOPYLAE, 1881 to 1884; and logs of the whalers WILLIAM, 1796 to 1803, GEORGIANA, 1802 to 1803 and NEPTUNE, 1820. There are many press cuttings and photographs, some original, of sailing ships including some of the CUTTY SARK under the Portuguese flag as the FERREIRA. The collection also contains the reminiscences and personal testaments of many seamen. Original documents include ships' papers of the CUTTY SARK for her voyages of 1882-3 and 1883-4 under the command of Captain F Moore (fl 1865-1885); the diary of a passenger on the SUPERB, 1882; a contemporary copy of the log of HMS GALATEA, 1830 to 1831; and a log of the NARCISSUS, 1866 to 1867, kept by Admiral Sir John Fullerton (1840-1918) as lieutenant, together with his station and order book, a volume of watch, station, quarter and fire bills, and an order book containing rigging tips and Flying Squadron sail drill, 1871 to 1872. Among Lubbock's personal papers in the collection are his diary for 1899, including his voyage on the ROYALSHIRE which is illustrated with sketches. There is a wealth of notes and correspondence relating to his many publications on merchant sailing ships; notes on the suppression of the slave trade in the nineteenth century and a draft of a book on the subject; twelve notebooks relating to the 'Last of the Wooden Walls', the ships of the Royal Navy in the nineteenth century; and extensive notes for an unpublished biography of Prince Rupert (1619-1682). There are also annotated copies of most of Lubbock's publications.

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 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.

The collection comprises manuscript notebooks on architecture and antiquarianism, correspondence and printed obituaries of Carter, 1700-1818, notably including a folder of loose manuscript notes relating to merchant ships on the Baltic route, papers on Latin verbs and translation, bill of expenses and proposals for improvements to the catalogue of the Harleian Collection, now housed in the British Library, 1700-1818; manuscript notes compiled during Carter's childhood on the importance of virtue, and commonplaces derived from the writings of King Charles I and King Charles II of England, among others, [1762]; folio day book by Carter describing chapel ornamentation, the role of the antiquarian and the architectural content of scenes from plays by William Shakespeare, including Richard III, 1771; autobiographical notebooks by Carter describing his architectural tours, with sketches and drawings, 1774-1778; sketch book with observations of landmarks such as Durham Cathedral, 1791-1803; correspondence with Leathes on Carter's health problems, his estate and collection of drawings and papers, [1799-1818]; printed obituaries and memorials of Carter published in Gentleman's magazine, 1817-1818; Sotheby's sale catalogue of the Carter collection, [1817-1818].

Typescript summary of Ceylon Receiver of Wrecks reports, 1862-1881, giving detailed accounts of the loss of 56 vessels off the coast of Ceylon.

Printed bill of lading completed in manuscript for the ship Sprightly Packett, 19 Oct 1782, at Bristol and bound for Cork with eight hogsheads of dye goods.

Letter written by Richard Lawson, dated 21 May 1800 on the island of St Thomas, Virgin Islands, addressed to Messrs. Anderson [of London], concerning Lawson's schooner Nonesuch which 'arrived here about a couple of months ago...with a Cargo of Negroes which turned out extreemly well'; and business of Mr. Lalanda of St Thomas in the court of the Vice-Admiral relating to the capture of a vessel taken to Jamaica while on its way to St Domingo.

Manuscript volume containing an Order in Council, 2 May 1654, signed by William Jessop, Clerk of the Council of State, concerning the discharge of some merchant ships from service with the Royal Navy, and ordering that the new coined money on the Tower of London, along with cash from the sale of prize goods, should be used by the Admiralty Commissioners to defray the charge of freight and wages of those ships. The Order was approved on 4 May 1654.

Papers of Sir John Franklin, 1801-1847, chiefly relating to the ill-fated Franklin Expedition in search of the North-West Passage on HM Ships Erebus and Terror, 1845-1847, and the subsequent expeditions sent to search for survivors or relics of the expedition. Also, some earlier letters from Franklin mainly to relatives and letters from relatives to or about him. Some items relating to the bicentenary of Franklin's birth celebrated in 1986.

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.