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The Altmann collection, [1920-1997], comprises papers of Alexander Altmann; papers of his brothers, Manfred and Erwin Altmann, Altmann family papers and papers relating to the Institute of Jewish Studies. Includes memoirs, diaries, draft manuscripts, research papers, letters, photographs, audio-visual material, family research papers, financial and legal papers and papers relating to publications and conferences.

Papers of Henry Clark Barlow, comprising papers relating to his Dante studies, both published and unpublished work, including manuscripts and notes for unfinished essays and lectures, titled manuscript notebooks, titled manuscripts, notes from codices and other sources, printed matter, and papers relating to the festivals of Dante; papers relating to his other studies, including a few items on geology and theology, and many sketches relating to the history of art, to architecture and to topography; personal papers, including Barlow's diaries and journals in which he wrote his observations on the architecture, art, geology, history and people of the places he visited, travel notes, and correspondence devoted almost entirely to Dante matters; acquired papers, including photographs, pictures, books, maps, plans, printed matter and ephemera.

A book of memoirs of Sir Samuel Bentham, told in a series of letters from himself and others during his ten-year absence from England, 1779-1789. The notebook states it is 'the compilation of a friend', probably Jeremiah Bentham.

The collection contains papers, correspondence and diaries of Sir John Burdon-Sanderson and also papers of his wife Lady Burdon-Sanderson. Some of the papers include notes and drafts of lectures and addresses. There are also papers that were used for a Memoir of John Burdon-Sanderson, begun by Lady Burdon-Sanderson and completed by Burdon-Sanderson's niece and nephew, Elizabeth Sanderson Haldane and John Scott Haldane (published in Oxford, 1911).

Manuscript journal of George Caley, entitled 'Remarks on the weather &c', containing a travel diary, 1811-1817, describing a canal journey from London to Manchester and a journey to St Vincent in the West Indies.

Papers and correspondence, 1856-1968 (predominantly 1925-1966), of Sir (Gordon) Roy Cameron, comprising notebooks of lecture courses, 1925-1926, given by Cameron at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute, Melbourne; matriculation certificate at University of Freiburg im Breslau, 1927; other biographical and personal material, including printed matter and photographs; 14 letters and cards from Ludwig Aschoff, 1928-1937; scientific and personal correspondence, 1959-1965, with Professor Hou Pao-Chang, Cameron's collaborator on various scientific publications; correspondence on Linacre Lectures given by Cameron, 1964; research notebooks, annotated offprints and other working papers, 1961 and undated, and related correspondence, 1951, 1957-1958, 1961, the subjects including the liver, pulmonary oedema, and the spleen; notes and drafts for invitation lectures and articles, 1962-1966; draft report of the College of Pathologists to the Royal Commission on Medical Education, 1966; obituaries of Cameron and related correspondence with his friends and colleagues, 1966, 1968; material assembled for Cameron's proposed history of pathology, which he did not live to complete, including obituaries, notes and correspondence, 1965-1966, on Ludwig Aschoff, papers and correspondence, 1954-1965, on Julius Cohnheim, papers on Rudolf Virchow, including three letters of Virchow, 1891-1894, and other letters collected by Cameron, among them a letter from W L Begley to William Jenner to accompany a specimen sent to Jenner and William Sharpey, 1856, letters from Jenner to Thomas Barlow, 1891, and from Barlow to Cameron, 1935, concerning the specimen, four letters of R A Kolliker, 1862, three letters from Walter Pagel, 1954, 1961, and a letter from Peyton Rous, 1959.

The second accession comprises further papers of and relating to Cameron, 1917-1968, including various professional and personal certificates, 1917-1966, among them copies of Cameron's birth certificate, various medical registration certificates, and the certificate of his cremation; various photographs, 1920-1962 and undated, some unlabelled, including family photographs, holiday photographs, and formal occasions; correspondence between Cameron and Professor Cyril L Oakley, 1945-1965, on scientific, professional, personal and social matters; typescripts, 1951-1952, for an unpublished book by Cameron on immunology; two official letters to Cameron concerning his knighthood, 1957; Cameron's personal diaries, 1961-1963, including a trip to Italy and a trip to Australia and around the world; proofs of Cameron's Who's Who entries; press cuttings, 1954-1966, including various obituaries of Cameron, 1966; offprints of Cameron's obituaries from the Journal of Clinical Pathology, vol xx (1967), and Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society, vol xiv (1968), and typescript of obituary from The Lancet, 10 Oct 1966; photostat of typescript address at Cameron's memorial service and printed order of service, 1966; letters of condolence on Cameron's death, 1966; miscellaneous printed and typescript material, including articles on scientific subjects and on the history of medicine by Cameron, and obituaries by Cameron of other scientists; various obituaries of scientists other than Cameron, including an offprint of Oakley's obituary of Alexander Thomas Glenny for Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society, vol xii (1966), related correspondence, 1966, and other papers on Glenny including photographs and a typescript bibliography.

Records, [1820s]-1984, of the Chadwick Trust. Administrative papers comprise legal papers setting up the Trust, 1890-1896; minute books, 1895-1983; annual reports, 1962-1978; lists of securities, 1914-1917; corrected booklet The Chadwick Trust, 1926-1937; script of a proposed film treatment of Sir Edwin Chadwick, 1958; signing-in book for meetings, 1972-1980. Financial papers comprise account books, 1958-1979; tax claims, 1972-1976; financial files, 1972-1980; correspondence on tax reclaimed, 1980. Papers on lectures given under the auspices of the Trust comprise announcements of lectures, 1913-1935; printed copies of lectures held under the Trust's auspices, 1930-1967, the subjects including public health and buildings, sewerage, nutrition, disease, air quality, training and public health, medical provision, and public health work overseas; other printed lectures and writings, 1896-1932, the subjects including aspects of sanitation, disease, and Sir Edwin Chadwick. Correspondence comprises general correspondence, 1913-1924, 1971-1982; correspondence of the Clerk of the Trust, 1969-1979; correspondence of G M Binnie, 1944-1980; Charity Commission correspondence, 1962-1978; correspondence relating to medals and a memorial prize, 1966-1978; Trustees, 1969-1977; receptions, meetings and lectures, 1970-1978; blue plaque, 1972-1976; costing of activities, 1974; annual reports, 1974-1979; transfer of the Trust to University College London, 1974-1984. Miscellaneous items pertaining to Edwin Chadwick, [1820s]-1889, include his diary [1820s] and patents of his inventions, 1871-1872. Other acquired papers comprise printed ephemera including circulars against inoculation [1914-1918] and undated printed extracts from a hymn on sanitation. Photographs include undated prints of Edwin Chadwick and other eminent scientists; undated slides for a lecture, including various 19th-century public figures, 19th- and 20th-century mortality rates, and various London hospitals; and photographs, 1980, of a plaque to Chadwick at his birthplace in Longsight, Greater Manchester.

Notebooks, the first concerned mainly with Henry Machyn's diary, the second with the Chamberlains of the City.

Manuscript items of John Flaxman, comprising his journal, kept by him in Naples in 1788, consisting of manuscript text and drawings; and a commonplace book containing manuscript notes on sculpture and art and some pencil and ink sketches.

Handwritten diaries and notebooks containing writings on Greek history, Roman mythology, notes from lectures, poetry verses and prose.

Correspondence and papers of Dr Moses Gaster, his family, and the family of his wife Lucy (née Friedlander), 1796-1973, dating largely from the 1870s to the 1930s, also including some material on Gaster's life and work which post-dates his death. Many papers relate to Gaster's activities in his official posts, notably as Haham, to his interests in Jewish affairs and Zionism, and as a scholar, but the collection touches upon a wide range of topics in late 19th and early 20th century history, including the history of Rumanian Jewry and Anglo-Jewry. The bulk of the collection comprises Gaster's correspondence, which includes letters from Jewish and Zionist organisations in Britain, Europe and Jerusalem, from newpapers, periodicals and publishers, and from a large number of individuals outside Gaster's family, including eminent British, European and American Jewish scholars, rabbis and public figures, such as members of the Adler, Gollancz, Mocatta, Montefiore and Rothschild families, and with non-Jewish public figures, but it also includes a wide range of other material. The main series mostly cover much or all of Gaster's adult life. Some material of the same type or on the same subject is separated between different sections of this large collection.

Correspondence series include letters from organisations and individuals outside Gaster's family, one sequence sorted alphabetically by correspondent; one sequence sorted chronologically, 1874-1939, with a few other items, the earliest dating from 1854; a sequence of undated letters, sorted alphabetically; letters received by Gaster on the emigration of Rumanian Jewry, including to England, 1900; Gaster's out-letters and copies of letters written by him, 1887-1939; copies of letters from Gaster to the Zionist Chaim Weizmann dating from the 1900s and 1910s; letters not written by or addressed to Gaster, 1870-1939 and undated.

A series of bound volumes contains press cuttings and other items, largely printed, including circulars and pamphlets, with some letters received and written by Gaster, and relates to various subjects, although much of the material was apparently bound haphazardly; the contents, overall dating largely from 1879-1939 but with items of 1796, 1838-1849, and 1867, include persecution of Jews in Rumania and elsewhere; emigration; Anglo-Jewish matters and the Anglo-Jewish Association; hospitals and schools; lectures, weddings, and other functions; the Board of Deputies of British Jews; Shechita; the Slaughter Bill, 1911; the Spanish-Portuguese congregation, including Bevis Marks Synagogue and Gaster's 25th anniversary as Haham, 1912; Independent Order of B'nai B'rith; letters congratulating Gaster on his engagement, marriage and birth of his children, and on the 'Gaster Anniversary Volume' ; Zionism, including the Jewish Colonial Trust, and Zionist Congresses in 1905, 1907 and 1913; Palestine; the Royal Asiatic Society; the Folklore Society.

Printed ephemera, dating from the 1870s to the 1930s, includes invitations to lectures, weddings and other events; visiting and greeting cards and condolences.

Papers, 1890-1896, on the Ramsgate affair relate to Gaster's association with the College there, the controversy over his management, and events leading up to his departure in 1896.

Papers relating to Zionism include copies of letters between Gaster and Theodor Herzl at the turn of the 20th century and other Zionist correspondence and papers up to the Balfour Declaration of 1917; file of letters and telegrams, some copies, from Winston (Leonard Spencer) Churchill, 1906-1908; volume of minutes of Council meetings of the London Zionist League, 1904-1910; microfilms of Zionist sources, among them Herzl letters held elsewhere.

Pamphlets, 1944-1950, relate to the Anglo-Jewish Association, a London conference of Jewish organisations, Palestine, the Jews in Britain, and Jewish Relief Units in Germany.

Working papers include notebooks, many undated, relating to Gaster's studies (from the 1870s) and later research; typescript and some manuscript reviews, sermons, letters to the press, obituary articles or notices, speeches and articles by Gaster; loose press cuttings of Gaster's reviews and articles, and cuttings on Gaster himself and his areas of interest; reproductions of texts and manuscripts and working notes by Gaster on his scholarly research.

Papers on Gaster's life, work and estate include a photostat manuscript catalogue of Gaster's Hebrew, Samaritan and other manuscripts and printed books, with annotations postdating Gaster's death in 1939; papers relating to Gaster's manuscripts which passed to the British Library, John Rylands Library and Rumanian Academy, including manuscript and typescript descriptions of manuscripts, and correspondence, 1925-1926, 1941, 1961-1962, on their disposal; papers dating from the 1940s to the 1960s on the estate of Gaster's wife (d 1940) and disposal of her books and on Gaster's will, estate and the disposal of his books and manuscripts including his Judaica, the sale of his Rumanian library to the School of Slavonic Studies, the disposal of Samaritan and Hebrew manuscripts to the John Rylands Library, his papers at University College London; material, including press cuttings and papers to 1971, on Gaster's publications, including a copy of his 'History of the Ancient Synagogue ... in Bevis Marks ... 1701-190' (published in 1901); papers to 1961 on the 'Gaster Centenary Publication' (first published in 1936), the centenary of Gaster's birth in 1956, and his publications; papers on Gaster's life and work following his death in 1939, including a file of Vivian Gaster's correspondence on his father to 1973.

Personal papers include Gaster's appointment diaries; congratulations on Gaster's engagement (1889); various rolled or printed addresses to Gaster as Haham, from Jewish communities; certificates, including one for Gaster's election as Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, 1930; letters of congratulation and cuttings on Gaster's 80th birthday (1936); typescript autobiographical notes and reminiscences by Gaster; papers on Gaster's death, 1939, including a scrapbook of cuttings.

Family papers include a genealogical roll of the Gaster family; two photograph albums, largely undated but apparently dating from the latter 19th century, many items unlabelled but some taken in Bucharest, Breslau and London and some identified as members of the Friedlander and Gaster families; correspondence, comprising letters from Gaster's family in Rumania, 1873-1939 and undated; Gaster's original letters to his family in Rumania, from 1874; letters from Gaster to his wife and children, 1885-1939 and undated, and a diary of Gaster on a journey to Palestine, 1907; letters to Moses Gaster from his wife Lucy, between Moses and Lucy and their children, and from the Friedlander family to Moses and Lucy Gaster, 1888-1939; letters from Lucy to her parents, Michael and Bertha Friedlander, before and after her marriage, 1880-1922; Friedlander family correspondence including letters from Michael Friedlander to his wife Bertha, from 1866, and to the Friedlanders from the Gasters; other letters received by the Friedlanders from their family and others, largely 1870-1927 and undated. Other Friedlander papers comprise papers of Michael Friedlander, including notes, and working papers and correspondence relating to Jews' College, including its administration and courses; and the diary of Bertha Friedlander (wife of Michael Friedlander and mother of Lucy Gaster, née Friedlander), 1893-1898.

Papers of and relating to George Orwell (Eric Arthur Blair), 1875-[1997], comprising manuscripts and typescripts, 1917-1959 (Ref: A); literary notebooks, 1939-[1949] (Ref: B); Spanish Civil War material, 1936-1939 (Ref: C); general notebooks, 1943-[1950] (Ref: D); political diaries, 1938-1942 (Ref: E); domestic diaries, 1938-1948 (Ref: F); letters from Orwell, 1911-1949 (Ref: G); letters to Orwell, 1928-1950 (Ref: H); associated material, 1935-1949 (Ref: I); personalia, 1903-1971 (Ref: J); Eileen Blair papers [1920s]-1967 (Ref: K); family papers, 1875-1968 (Ref: L); posthumous material, 1950-1972 (Ref: M); proofs, 1932-1953 (Ref: N); radio scripts, 1943-1957 (Ref: O); adaptation scripts and screenplays of Orwell's work, 1952-1986 (Ref: P); documentary scripts, 1946-1983, of recorded interviews about Orwell (Ref: Q); audio-visual cassettes, 1983-[1997], about Orwell and his work (Ref: R); Sonia Orwell papers, 1937-1977 (Ref: S); photographs, 1893-1984 (Ref: T).

The collection consists of Lewin family correspondence, including some copy letters from George Grote; travel diaries of George and Harriet Grote on France, Belgium and Switzerland; and Harriet Grote's journals.

Papers, c1914-1989, of Dame Kathleen Lonsdale.

Biographical material includes correspondence and papers relating to imprisonment in Holloway Prison, with Lonsdale's own accounts of her time there; diaries and personal notebooks, 1946-1969; letters of congratulation on election as Fellow of the Royal Society (1945); various photographs dating from school to her later years.

Papers relating to Lonsdale's teaching and administrative work at University College London include papers on teaching undergraduate and postgraduate courses; significant documentation relating to laboratory personnel, research funding and general university administration; papers relating to the 'Round Table on Peace Studies', which proposed the establishment of a centre for research into international conflict at the University.

Research material, 1924-1970, consists of Royal Institution papers comprising notebooks, one dating from Lonsdale's first period there (1923-1927), correspondence with colleagues such as W H Bragg and J M Robertson, and Lonsdale's notes and drafts for various research topics; correspondence and papers from her University College years covering many different areas of research, including diffuse scattering of X-rays, thermal vibrations in crystals, methonium compounds and urinary calculi (the latter topic particularly well documented and including several case studies), and including a large group of photographs, mostly of X-ray diffraction patterns.

Papers on the preparation of volumes of the International Tables for crystal structure determination from Lonsdale's chairmanship of the Commission on Tables (1948) comprise drafts, notes and correspondence with colleagues and publishers.

Extensive papers relating to publications, lectures and broadcasts include drafts of articles, on subjects including peace and religious issues, also including obituaries and biographical articles on various individuals, books, book reviews, obituaries, and letters to newspapers and magazines, the latter principally on the issue of atomic weapons; general correspondence concerning publications; drafts of lectures, 1945-1970, including ethics and the role of science in society; a large series of lecture notes, 1933-1970; scripts for broadcasts, on topics ranging from crystallography to religion, 1945-1967.

Papers on foreign and domestic travel, 1943-1971, relating to conferences and lectures, on crystallography, science ethics, and work for the Society of Friends, including her visit to China (1955) and her world tour (1965).

Papers relating to organisations, notably the British Association for the Advancement of Science (BAAS) and the International Union of Crystallography (IUCr), including material relating to a number of International Congresses of Crystallography, also papers relating to participation in Pugwash Conferences on World Affairs, 1958-1970, and papers concerning prison reform and the running of Bullwood Hall Borstal, Essex.

Correspondence, 1927-1974, comprises two main sequences, one arranged alphabetically, the other chronologically; 'day files', principally carbons of outgoing correspondence, 1966-1969; a sequence of references and recommendations; also including correspondence relating to Lonsdale's period of imprisonment (1943). Correspondents include scientists such as Max Born, W H Bragg, W L Bragg, E G Cox, Dorothy Hodgkin, Judith Milledge, L C Pauling and A J C Wilson.

Professional and personal papers and correspondence of Egon Sharpe Pearson, including lecture notes, lecture slides, class papers; statistical research papers; publications and drafts; records relating to the Department of Statistics; papers relating to the journal Biometrika; and papers relating to E S Pearson's collaborative work with Jerzy Neyman, Walter Shewhart, Florence Nightingale David and Herman Otto Hartley. Also includes material used in preparation for a biography of William Sealy Gosset, including correspondence between Gosset and E S Pearson, copies of correspondence between Gosset and Karl Pearson; copies of correspondence between Gosset and R A Fisher; and a draft biography with the working title "All This and Student Too", [published posthumously, edited by Plackett and Barnard, under the title Student: A Statistical Biography of William Sealy Gosset].
Also includes a large collection of personal and family papers, including records relating to the history of the Pearson, Sharpe, Smith, Rogers, Kenrick, Reid and Wharton families dating from the 16th century onwards; personal correspondence of E S Pearson, Karl Pearson, Maria Sharpe Pearson, Sigrid Loetitia Sharpe Pearson, Helga Sharpe Pearson and other family members; family photographs dating from the mid-19th century to mid-20th century; holiday sketches, paintings and diaries; papers relating to Lina Eckenstein; and miscellaneous family memorabilia.
Many of the papers have been annotated by E S Pearson explaining their provenance or elaborating on other points. These annotations were probably made in the late 1970s when he was putting his papers in order. Some notes are addressed specifically to his assistant, Jan Abrahams..

Papers, 1907-1966, of Max Plowman and Dorothy Lloyd Plowman, comprising papers of Max Plowman, including correspondence, manuscripts and notebooks including publications, drafts of works, typescripts of plays, poems, articles and addresses, newspaper articles, and diaries; papers of Dorothy Lloyd Plowman, including correspondence, poems, prose, and writings on Max Plowman and on family relationships.

Papers of the writer Sir Richard Rees, c1920-1970 and undated.

Manuscripts and typescripts for Rees' published and unpublished work include material for an unpublished book of essays; a typescript of his unpublished novel; unpublished shorter pieces, including lectures on literary and cultural subjects, among them George Orwell and Simone Weil.

Miscellaneous personal papers and writings, 1926-1960s, include notes on dreams; travel notes on the USA, 1929; a Russian diary, 1935; papers relating to the Spanish Civil War; typescript papers of the International Commission for War Refugees, 1941-1944, and other correspondence and papers on its work; papers relating to Rees' service in World War Two; correspondence concerning Rees' membership of the committee of the Pilgrim Trust; papers relating to sales of Rees' books; printed papers, comprising various articles and book reviews relating to Rees' interests.

Correspondence, c1920-1970, comprises items to Rees and carbon copies or drafts of his letters, the correspondents including prominent literary and other public figures, for example David Astor, Vanessa Bell, Joseph Conrad, Victor Gollancz, Frieda Lawrence, Iris Murdoch, Sonia Orwell, Sir Herbert Read, Hugh Trevor-Roper, A L Rowse, John Sparrow, Stephen Spender, R H Tawney, and many others, and including letters relating to George Orwell, J Middleton Murry, R H Tawney, and Simone Weil; correspondence with his literary agents A D Peters and with publishers, on his publications and broadcasts; letters to the press; personal papers, including c100 letters from Rees to his mother, c1938-c1942, other family letters, and snapshots; correspondence with J Middleton Murry and his wife, 1936-1937, relating to personal matters leading to Rees' resignation from the Adelphi, and other papers relating to the Adelphi, 1935-1936.

Other material includes a notebook including typescript reviews and letters to editors; memoranda of agreements with publishers for books, articles, etc, 1954-1969; press cuttings on various political, literary, artistic, and other subjects, including reviews of some works by Rees; typescript diary of a visit to Italy, 1959.

Rees' papers on George Orwell, 1949-1963, relating to his role as literary executor include correspondence and papers, some relating to Orwell's death, adopted son Richard, and proposed posthumous publications, and including material relating to his wife Sonia; papers on the George Orwell Archive Trust; typescript transcripts of poems Orwell contributed to the Adelphi, 1933-1936; two book reviews by Orwell, 1943-1944.

Rees' papers on Simone Weil largely comprise translations, typescripts and proofs for Rees' publications on Weil. There are also some writings by Weil; a photograph of her, 1942; letters to Rees from Weil's mother and brother, André, and other correspondence on Weil, 1958-1970; press cuttings on Rees' publications on Weil.

Rees' papers on R H Tawney, relating to his role as literary executor, include correspondence and papers of Tawney; Rees' correspondence on Tawney, largely dating from 1960-1970; correspondence and papers relating to the sale of Tawney's belongings and his will, with other personal documents relating to Tawney and his wife; correspondence relating to the disposal of Tawney's collection of books on economic history, 1952. The correspondents include a number of prominent literary and other public figures.

The later deposit comprises a typescript on Orwell and a typescript and corrected proofs on Murry.

Memoirs of his life and family, with correspondence and papers.

The collection contains correspondence, diaries, travel journals, accounts, library catalogues and commonplace books of the Kenrick, Reid, Rogers and Sharpe families, which all help to complete the picture of the four related families. The correspondence covers many topics and is especially interesting on three counts: first, for the many letters from eminent men and women; second, for the range and depth of discussion and exchange of ideas on literary, artistic, religious and philosophical matters; and third, for the day-to-day letters written between parent and child over several generations, which provide a detailed account of family life during the period.

Papers and correspondence, 1929-1975 and undated, of Julia Frances Strachey, including diaries, notebooks, manuscripts and typescripts, 1929-1975 and undated; letters to Julia, 1924-1956 and undated, the writers including Dora Carrington; letters to Stephen Tomlin and Julia, 1923-1930 and undated, the writers including Lytton Strachey; correspondence between Stephen Tomlin and Julia, 1930-1931; correspondence between Julia and Lawrence Gowing, 1939-1971 and undated, and other letters to Julia, 1952-1967 and undated; personalia, including a copy of a divorce certificate, 1967, a will, 1971, a business diary, 1971, an appointment diary, 1974, passports, and an undated address book; postcards and photographs, largely undated, mainly miscellaneous works of art but also including Lytton and Oliver Strachey, Dora Carrington, and Stephen Tomlin; a scrapbook, 1932-1971, mainly comprising press cuttings including reviews of Strachey's novels, with a few miscellaneous letters inserted.

The collection contains family diaries and appointment books of Thomas Humphry Ward and Mary Augusta Ward, 1871-1926; personal diaries of Dorothy Ward, 1889-1955; family letters of Arnold Ward, 1890-1915; newspaper cuttings, 1891-1920.

Papers and correspondence, 1846-1974, of David Meredith Seares Watson and his family, largely comprising biographical material and family papers, scientific correspondence, and photographs, also including a few Exchequer receipts, 1568-1622.

Biographical material, 1886-1974, includes Watson's birth certificate, 1886; documentation, including certificates and correspondence, of Watson's career, honours and awards over a period of forty years, including election to the Fellowship of the Royal Society, 1922, the award of its Darwin medal, 1942, and the Wollaston Medal of the Geological Society, 1965; correspondence about the Directorship of the British Museum (Natural History), 1937; correspondence about the presentation album on his retirement from the Jodrell Chair, 1951; correspondence and papers relating to his final retirement from research, 1965; obituaries, 1973; F R Parrington and T S Westoll's memoir of Watson from Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society, 1974; an account of Watson's early days and family background by his daughter Janet Vida; recollections by his research assistant Joyce Townsend; Watson's curriculum vita and bibliography.

Family papers include the birth certificate of Watson's father, David, 1846, correspondence with his wife Mary, 1888, and a letter of condolence to Mrs Watson on her husband's death, 1899; diaries of Mary Watson, 1881, 1885; birth certificate of their daughter Constance, 1888, letters from Constance to her brother David Meredith Seares Watson, 1905-1909 and undated; papers relating to Katharine Margarite Watson (née Parker), Watson's wife, including her birth certificate, 1891, marriage certificate, 1917, death certificate, 1969, and various correspondence; papers relating to Watson's daughter Katharine Mary, including letters of congratulation on her birth, 1918, and letters to her parents, 1950, 1955; material relating to Watson's mother's family, including letters of her father Samuel M Seares, 1871, 1879-1882; papers of Charles J B Hutchinson, 1879-1880, who emigrated to Australia after his engagement to Watson's mother was broken off but who remained in correspondence with her aunt, Fanny Rossiter; other Parker family papers, 1929-1972; miscellaneous other personal correspondence, 1896-1965.

Four Exchequer receipts dated 1568, 1580, 1616 and 1622 were found enclosed with a letter to Watson's wife.

Scientific correspondence of Watson, sometimes including photographs of fossil specimens, with leading palaeontologists in Africa, 1947-1953, America, 1915-1964, Australia, 1931-1962, China, 1926-1927, 1935-1964, England, 1913-1914, 1920, 1926-1960, France, 1930-1936, 1945-1956, Germany, Austria, Hungary and Czechoslovakia, 1920-1962, Russia, 1920-1962, and Scandinavia, 1922-1964, and with the palaeontologist Robert Broom, 1911-1950, and Watson's research assistant Joyce Townshend, 1929-1973, also including a few letters from Watson's wife and scientific colleagues, and an obituary of Watson, 1974; correspondence and papers on bones found at Qau, Egypt, 1930-1957, 1972; miscellaneous other palaeontological correspondence, 1912-1967. There are few copies of Watson's outgoing letters before the end of the Second World War.

Photographic material comprises photographs documenting Watson's career, [1912]-1965 and undated, some including colleagues; photographs of scientific colleagues, 1911-1951 and undated, including Watson's predecessor as Professor at University College London, J P Hill, and Robert Broom; album of photographs and signatures presented to Watson, 1951; undated family photographs, including a photograph of Watson as a boy, photographs of members of the Seares and Parker families, and photographs of Watson's wife, Katharine Margarite, and daughter, Katharine Mary; photographs of unidentified fossil specimens.

Royal Society Darwin Medal Award given to Watson, 1942.

Townsend's journals. Also correspondence, personal files, postcards, art photographs, press cuttings, newspapers, typescripts of poems and articles, and general professional papers concerning colleges and exhibitions in Canada and the UK.