Hymn sheet in German, used in a memorial service in March 1939 at Potters Bar Cemetery.

This series relates to the conveyance of mail on the railways. In the latter half of the 19th century railway mail services were known as Travelling Post Offices and sorting tenders. During the early 19th century sorting tenders became known as sorting carriages. In general terminology sorting carriages were also often referred to as TPOs. The railway mail service also included bag duties or tenders. TPOs and sorting carriages comprised either special trains run exclusively for conveyance and sorting of mails or carriages on passenger trains hired to convey and sort mails. Bag duties were run solely for transportation of mails.

This series includes papers on the mail bag exchange apparatus, TPO mail circulation and sorting lists, railway rolling stock lists and diagrams, schedules of TPO services, minutes of the TPO Whitley Sub-Committee and files on TPO staffing, during railway strikes and after service alterations.

This series relates to the conveyance of mails by Underground pneumatic tube in London. It comprises reports and papers produced and used by the committee appointed in 1909 by the Postmaster General to consider the introduction of the underground transmission of mails within London and plans of the proposed route for the railway, showing rail levels and junctions. It also contains a copy of the Post Office (London) Railway act and the patent granted to Hosiah Latimer Clark for the invention of apparatus for conveying post by pneumatic tube, (POST 20/30). Papers relating to the construction, maintenance and expansion of the Post Office (London) Railway are also present including specifications, invitations to tender, conditions of contract, estimate of costs and technical plans relating to the construction of new stations, car depots, subways, additions and alterations to stations, including the fitting and maintenance of electrical equipment. This is also demonstrated through numerous plans held within the collection. As well as the Manager's annual reports, there are also numerous files of miscellaneous correspondence, memoranda and reports from the Post Office to various departments and organisations regarding the Post Office (London) Railway, historical accounts. There are also two photograph albums of railway equipment and work being carried out on it.

Some of the plans show properties purchased by the Post Office following the passage of the Post Office (London) Railway Act in 1913. There is a series of signed plans dated 26 October 1914 showing the depth and route of the Post Office (London) railway below ground with details of tunnels, shield chambers, and shafts. There is also a series of plans marking individual and corporate properties along the proposed route of the Post Office Railway.

This Class relates mainly to the railways but includes some material concerning conveyance of mail by mail coaches and steam ships.

The papers of Thomas Frankland, Postmaster General with Sir Robert Cotton 1691-1708 and with Sir John Evelyn 1708 -1715. Frankland largely increased the revenues of the Post Office and was retained as Postmaster General by Queen Anne after the death of King William. Volume containing various letters and petitions regarding packet services, including foreign packets and freight of goods. The opening of the volume shows the collection to have been sold in 1893, giving a catalogue description from the sale, then another sale and catalogue description from 1895.

The Packet Report series (POST 39 and POST 41) comprise reports to the Postmaster General, from the Secretary to the Post Office, on the Packet Boat service and overseas mail arrangements.

POST 41 consists of indexed volumes containing a copy of every report submitted to the Postmaster General (including those which have since been destroyed) and is the only guide to the contents of POST 39 (Packet Service Report Papers). The Postmaster General's decision on each case is also recorded. POST 39 consists of those actual reports which are still in existence, with any enclosures.

In 1811 a parallel series entitled Packet Minutes (POST 29 and POST 34) was created. Cases for the attention of the Postmaster General were sometimes recorded in both series, but at other times in only one of the two series. Upon the cessation of the Report series POST 29 and POST 34 continued alone.

For further details of how this class relates to the other report and minute classes, see the following section 'Related Material'.

The packet report series (POST 39 and 41) comprises reports to the Postmaster General from the Secretary to the Post Office, on the packet boat service and overseas mail arrangements. These are the surviving reports from those listed in POST 41.

POST 39 therefore consists of the actual Reports which are still in existence, with any enclosures. POST 41 consists of indexed volumes containing a copy of every Report submitted to the Postmaster General (including those which have since been destroyed) and is the only guide to the contents of POST 39. The Postmaster General's decision on each case is recorded. Examples of incidents recorded in the reports include the capture of packet ships, possibly due to pirates, smuggling of dry goods, loss of crew, terms and conditions of ship hire, victualling of crew and route changes and times.

In 1811 a parallel series entitled Packet Minutes (POST 29 and POST 34) was created. Cases for the attention of the Postmaster General were sometimes recorded in both series, but at other times in only one of the two series. Upon the cessation of the Report series POST 29 and POST 34 continued alone.

For further details of how this class relates to the other report and minute classes, see the following section 'Related Material'.

The Packet Minute series (POST 29 and 34) comprise minutes to the Postmaster General from the Secretary to the Post Office, on the Packet Boat and overseas mails services. It began in 1811, at which date those subjects were transferred from the Postmaster General's Minute series (POST 30 and 35).

POST 29 consists of volumes containing a copy of, or reference to, every minute submitted to the Postmaster General, including those which have since been destroyed. POST 34/1 - 105 are indexed. The Postmaster General's decision on each case is also recorded. POST 29 consists of those actual papers which are still in existence (comprising both the original minute to the Postmaster General and the papers leading up to, and following from, the Secretary's submission). It has been produced in two versions, one numerical and the other alphabetical, i.e., set out under subject headings. When requisitioning papers, both the catalogue reference Nos. and the Minute No. should be quoted, e.g., POST 29/4, Pkt 203B/1314.

For details of how this class relates to the other report and minute classes, see the following section 'Related Material'.

This class primarily relates to the establishment and organisation of the packet boat and shipping services between the United Kingdom and overseas. There are a small number of records relating to operational procedures between the Post Office and HM Customs and Excise Office. The records mainly consist of Post Office Daily Lists of ship's departure and arrival times, and mail carried. It also contains Packet boat log books, voyage record books and Packet station correspondence relating to personnel, stores held, and armed conflict.

It also includes some later records concerning the general organisation of overseas mail including by air.

Some records have been re-classified from POST 12 and POST 45.

This POST class comprises contracts of agreement between, the Postmaster General and individual persons and shipping companies, for the conveyance of mail overseas by packet boat. The contracts lay down the standards required by the Postmaster General, for example the equipment and maintenance of the vessels, routes, ports of call and penalties incurred by non-compliance with the terms of agreement. The class also includes correspondence concerning applications for tender, papers relating to profits made by particular companies, returns showing particulars of existing contracts, and contracts for the establishment of a packet service between the UK and other countries.

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.

This series relates to conveyance of mails within the United Kingdom and Ireland by sea. The majority of records are on the Irish and Scottish packet services, with a few contracts for mail services to the Scilly Isles, Lundy Island and the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islands, placed at the end of the series.

This series comprises accounts of British packet services and overseas posts, including records of agents and postmasters, packet stations, and packet boats. The accounts cover income, expenditure, salaries, allowances and disbursements.

Papers of Portsmouth Dockyard. They consist of 566 volumes of the correspondence between yard officials, the Navy Board and the Admiralty, 1675 to 1899. There are also 147 plans for the yard, 1715 to 1884. The volumes are divided into four groups: those relating to the Resident Commissioner, the Admiral Superintendent, the yard officers and a miscellaneous group. Resident Commissioner's records. These consist of: letters from the Admiralty and Navy Board, 1773 to 1821, 1822 to 1827 (5 vols); abstracts of Admiralty and Navy Board letters and warrants, 1806 to 1823 (7 vols); letters to the Admiralty, 1707 to 1750, 1756 to 1763, 1769 to 1821 (19 vols); reports to the Navy Board, 1705 to 1722, 1732 to 1780, 1782 to 1815, 1817 to 1832 (41 vols); one volume of orders given by the Commissioner as a Flag Officer, 1712 to 1730, 1741; three volumes of letters to other yards and naval officers (including some by the Superintendent), 1809 to 1834. Admiral Superintendent's records. These consist of: 333 volumes of letters from the Admiralty, 1839 to 1840, 1840 to 1843, 1843, 1844 to 1845, 1845 to 1847, 1847 to 1848, 1848 to 1849, 1849 to 1851, 1852, 1855, 1855 to 1856, 1860, 1861, 1863, 1865, 1866, 1867 to 1871, 1871 to 1873, 1874, 1874 to 1875, 1875 to 1878, 1878 to 1879, 1880, 1883, 1895, 1898, 1899; and five volumes of letters to the Admiralty, 1832 to 1838. Dockyard Officers' records.

These consist of: Navy Board warrants, 1695 to 1780 and 1781 to 1822 (70 vols); the Commissioner's and Superintendent's warrants, 1694 to 1715, 1719 to 1780 and 1789 to 1848 (31 vols); an index to the Navy Board's and Commissioner's letters, 1675 to 1679, 1688 to 1690, 1694 to 1737 (3 vols); reports to the Navy Board, 1699 to 1713, 1714 to 1735, 1740 to 1780, 1782 to 1793, 1796 to 1822 (33 vols); Navy Board and Commissioner's correspondence with the Master Attendant, 1690 to 1692 and 1710 to 1713 (2 vols) and with the Ropeyard officers, 1751 to 1795 and 1796 to 1822 (2 vols); the first of these volumes also contains Navy Board orders to the Woolwich Ropeyard officers, 1746 to 1751. Miscellaneous records. These comprise: weekly reports of the progress on works, 1740 to 1744, 1778 to 1781 (2 vols); arrivals and sailings of ships, 1821 to 1848 (1 vol); arrivals and sailings of transports, 1829 to 1894 (1 vol); charts received and issued, 1809 to 1855 (2 vols); books received and issued, 1825 to 1843 (1 vol); one register of workmen entered and discharged, 1793 to 1801; reports of yard employees' trials, 1824 to 1855 (1 vol); one volume of the instructions to the Commissioner and officers, 1805, with manuscript additions, 1821 to 1822; one volume of orders to the yard Surgeon, 1823 to 1849. Plans. These include forty-four general plans of the yard and surrounding area, 1723 to 1884; forty plans connected with docks, wharves and slips, 1725 to 1854; and fifty-nine plans of buildings, 1715 to 1857.

Papers of Joshua Henry Porter including manuscript draft and published version of The Surgeon's Pocket-book, 2nd edition, 1880 and military scrapbook, 1850-1881.

Papers relating to his career with the Royal Naval Reserve, 1926-1950, dated 1926-1950, 1985-1986, 1989, 1994 and 1995, notably including commands, reports, correspondence and notes concerning his service on HMS GLOXINIA, North Atlantic and Mediterranean, 1940-1942, on the staff of Flag Officer, Liverpool, HMS EAGLET, 1942-1943, on HMS DELHI, Mediterranean, 1943-1945, and on the staff of Cdr in Chief, Mediterranean Fleet, 1945-1946. Text on Gen Sir Bernard Law Montgomery's role in the North Africa campaign, 1942-1943, by Peter Solly-Flood, 1986.

Papers of Rear-Admiral Edwin John Pollard, including accounts, memoranda and sailing orders for 1858 to 1861, 1863 to 1865 and 1878; a notebook recording the ships in which Pollard served as a junior officer; a watch bill, 1860 to 1861; a book of technical details on the RUPERT and the DEFENCE and newspaper cuttings. 1858 to 1878.

Papers of Sir James Hawkins Whitshed. They include a letterbook of the ROSE, 1784 to 1785; sailing directions and orders of battle, 1800 to 1801, and three letters concerning the possibility of mutiny in the Channel Fleet, 1800.

Papers of Rear-Admiral Edwin John Pollard, including accounts, memoranda and sailing orders for 1858 to 1861, 1863 to 1865 and 1878; a notebook recording the ships in which Pollard served as a junior officer; a watch bill, 1860 to 1861; a book of technical details on the RUPERT and the DEFENCE and newspaper cuttings, 1858 to 1878.

Letter from Samuel Plimsoll of 28 Park Lane, London to [?a newspaper editor], 26 Feb 1890. Complaining of frequent allegations that: 'I seek to subject English ship-owners to restrictions and regulations from which foreigners are exempted.' He has obtained evidence from the Board of Trade to show that foreign ships are not thus privileged.

Autograph, with signature.

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).

Papers relating to Piggott's service in World War Two, 1939-1945, notably the sinking of HMS VAN MEERLANT, 4 Jun 1941, including typescript list of the ship's company, annotated to show survivors of the sinking, with manuscript notes by an unknown survivor relating to Piggott's exemplary conduct during the sinking, Jun 1941; manuscript letter to Piggott from Hugh G Collins, HMS WILDFIRE, relating to Piggott's injuries, the loss of HMS VAN MEERLANT, and to the writing of sympathy letters to the crew's next of kin, Jul 1941; letter to Piggott from Cdr Humphry Gilbert Boys-Smith, Royal Naval Reserve, relating to accomodation for Naval officers, Mar 1945; typescript notes on Piggott's career [1996].

Records of Engelbert Pickert, merchant, comprising a ledger, 1860-4; ships' and ships' insurance papers, 1867-70; and family papers, including the private accounts of Maria Pickert, his widow, 1851-85.

Photo library created by a number of different departments within the Post Office, including the Public Relations/Communications department.

Copies of papers relating to his naval career, 1886, 1890 and 1916, some dated 1930, principally comprising an undated account of the role of HMS WARSPITE in the Battle of Jutland, 31 May-1 Jun 1916, written by Cdr Humphrey Walwyn.

General Records: This group contains a large vellum-bound volume of Spanish diplomatic papers, mainly dating between 1603 and 1672, but with a section dealing with the Armada, 1587 to 1588; two English documents relating to the expedition to Cadiz, 1596; an enquiry into the loss of ships in the convoy guarded by Sir George Rooke (1650-1709) and the Streights Squadron, 1693; a gathering of Italian papers relating to the capitulation of Malta, 1799 to 1807. There are also a number of items relating to Lord Nelson and his family, 1805 to 1845. (PHB/: PHB/P: 2 vols: 3 items) Merchant Shipping Records: relating to merchant shipping, including the journal of the Blackham on a voyage to Constantinople, 1696 to 1698; the log of H.E.I.C.S. Ceres, 1743 to 1745; of H.E.I.C.S. Wager, 1745 to 1746; and an account in verse of H.E.I.C.S. Ceres, 1812 to 1814, on a voyage to China. There is also a memorial of 1774 by a Harwich pilot to the Treasury, seeking to establish an excise cutter there. Among the documents are Bills of Sale, 1651, 1695, 1775; Letters of Marque, 1780, 1799. (PHB/: PLA/P: 4 vols: 12 items) Royal Navy: Administration: This group consists of nineteen volumes and four documents relating to the administration of the Navy. It includes the naval accounts from 1422 to 1427 of William Soper (fl.1410-1459), Clerk of the King¹s ships; a list of ships' stores 'wasted' in the Prymrose after the Rochelle expedition, 1573; a volume of the records collected by Sir Robert Cotton (1571-1631), the antiquarian and collector, containing summaries of papers on naval matters and defence from the time of Henry III to Elizabeth I; a copy, dated 1638, of the first 'Discourse of the Navy of England' by John Hollond (fl 1624-1659); regulations for the Ordnance Office, 1683; an account, written by a clerk, of the dispute between Samuel Pepys and Colonel Middleton (d 1672) about the importation of cottons and kerseys, 1667 to 1668; two lists of official documents transferred by Pepys to his successor on leaving the Admiralty, 1689; two volumes of Navy Board orders to Deptford and Woolwich dockyards, 1644 to 1722; and eleven volumes of papers, bound by Phillipps in no particular order, relating to general administrative matters, including sea-men's pay, 1711 to 1790; however, among these papers are three letters from Vice-Admiral Benbow (1653-1702) written from Jamaica, 1699. Finally, there are a number of lists; of Admiralty Commissioners, 1673 to 1782; of ships, 1625 to 1636, 1705, 1706 to 1745, and of foreign navies, 1755 to 1778 (PLA/: PLA/P: 2 1/2ft: 76cm) Royal Navy: Law and Prize Money: This group consists of a volume, 1658 to 1673, containing a collection of sentences and decrees made at the Court of Admiralty; a volume of 1685 chiefly concerning the powers and rights of the Lord High Admiral, with an abstract of the judgements of Oleron, translated from the French; a further seventeenth-century volume concerning maritime customs and law from the time of Henry III; a French treatise of maritime law, 1690; a volume containing bound letters from senior naval officers expressing their opinion on the prize money dispute between Lord Nelson (q.v.) and Lord St Vincent (q.v.), 1801 to 1802; vindication of the conduct of Surgeon D.T. McCarthy, court-martialled 2 lines 1 field in 1804.

Papers of Harry St John Bridger Philby, 1918-1955, including notebooks, journals, observations, letters and annotated typescript of Arabian Highlands. The journal and notebooks cover his journey across the Empty Quarter (Al Rub al Khali) in 1932. Typewritten reports cover his motorised journeys around Saudi Arabia from 1946-1955. His observations formed the basis for maps of Arabia prepared and published by the Royal Geographical Society.

Archives of the Peruvian Corporation, 1849-1967, comprising the surviving records accumulated at the London Office of the Peruvian Corporation. The bulk of the collection is an accumulation of files, most of which are dated after 1930, with a large proportion dating from the last ten years of the Corporation's history. Of more special note is the unusual series of photograph albums, with photographs of railways, scenery, locomotives and rolling stock dating from the early years of the 20th century. It is clear that the Corporation regularly destroyed groups of non-current records, and further papers were destroyed just before the collection reached the Library, so many expected series do not appear (for example, there are very few financial records). Apart from a full series of Annual Reports and some legal documents, there is very little material relating to the Peruvian Bondholders' Committee or to the early days of the Corporation.

List of stations on the Tomsk, Sabaikal, Omsk and Chinese Eastern Lines compiled in connection with British Military Mission in Irkutsk, USSR, 1919, with annotations made by the Commanding Officer of the mission while retreating from the Bolsheviks, 1919-1920. Passed to Percival for use on a planned round-the-world flight.

Papers of Lt Col Robert Malcolm Parker, 1945-1946, relating to his career in the Royal Engineers, comprising account of the operations of 8 Corps in North West Europe, Mar-May 1945, entitled 'The River Rhine to the Baltic Sea: a narrative account of the pursuit and final defeat of the German Armed Forces, March-May 1945', with a foreword by Lt Gen Evelyn Hugh Barker, as Commanding Officer, 8 Corps; account of the Finkenwärder U Boat pen, Hamburg, Germany, with site plan, and description of the intended method of demolition, by 224 Field Coy, Royal Engineers, and 8 Corps Troops, Royal Engineers, [1945]; papers relating to Exercise SWANSONG, Germany, Mar 1946, including Royal Engineer commands and staff planning for the assault crossing of wide rivers, accounts of exercise operations, situation reports, printed maps and sketch maps; uncaptioned official Army photograph of the construction of a large bridge, [Germany, 1945]; telegram announcing German surrender, 4 May 1945 and chart of Allied formation badges, in colour, 8 May 1945.

Typescript unpublished memoir of Squadron Leader Harry 'Wacker' Pain, 1937-1978, including descriptions of: training as an Aircraft Apprentice, RAF Halton, 1937; wireless operator training in Wallace and Wapiti biplanes; airborne wireless operator training, RAF Driffield, 1939; working for Special Duties Flight, Coastal Command, as a gunner in long range Sunderland flying boats, 1939-1942, including survivor searches after submarine attacks, escorting convoys, account of destruction of flying boats Cabot and Caribou, Bodo, Norway, Apr 1940, training messenger pigeons, serious injury in crash and subsequent reposting as Signals Instructor, 1942, and retraining as an Air Traffic Control Officer, 1943. Also anecdotes from various postings including Nutts Corner, Northern Ireland, 1944-1946; opening a new Area Control Centre in Gibraltar, 1946; RAF Mingaladon, Burma, 1947, and RAF Negombo, Ceylon, 1948; Area Control Centre, RAF Watnall, UK, 1949; RAF Gutersloh, Germany, 1954-1957; Air Traffic Controller at RAF Coningsby, 1957-1959; assisting with the introduction of radar guided systems and the formation of Border Radar in RAF Bishops Court, County Down, Northern Ireland, 1959-1962 and RAF Boulmer, Alnwick, 1962-1964; RAF Paya Lebar, Singapore, 1964-1967; as controller, Northern Radar, RAF Lindholme, 1967-1970; RAF Patrington, Withernsea, 1970-1971; Senior Operations Officer, Border Radar, RAF Boulmer, 1971-1973.

It consists of correspondence, articles, notes, drawings, photographs and ephemera concerning paddle steamers run by various compnaies, including the Caledonian Steam Packet Co Ltd; Cosens Co/Red Funnel Steamers; the General Steam Navigation Co (Eagle Steamers, Eagle and Queen Line and Queen Line); P & A Campbell Ltd/White Funnel Fleet; and Royal Mail Steam Packet Co Ltd/Red Funnel Steamers. There is also material re British Rail (Southern Region); services on the Clyde; Thames steamer launches; and pleasure sailings on the Danube, Lake Lucerne and the Rhine.

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

Papers relating to the 1937 Central London Omnibus Strike, notably proceedings of the Court of Inquiry into the Central London Omnibus Dispute, 1937; documentary evidence submitted to the Court of Inquiry by the London Passenger Transport Board, 1926-1937, including details of rates of pay and conditions of service, correspondence of Ernest Bevin to Frank Pick and Theodore Thomas of the LPTB, statistics relating to driver illness, and details of London traffic and bus speed; left-wing material regarding the strike, 1936-1937, notably pamphlets issued by the London Busmen's Rank-and-File Movement, the Transport and General Workers' Union and the Communist Party of Great Britain, as well as copies of The Daily Worker; miscellaneous material, including a memorandum of agreement between the TGWU and the LPTB as to rates of pay and conditions of service for conductors and drivers.

Papers realting to Sir Erasmus Ommanney's career in the Royal Navy, to his part in the administration of poor relief in Ireland from 1847-1849, and the Franklin search expedition of 1850-1851, including documents concerning his appointment as a midshipman; an order book and letters and reports from and to Ommanney on board HMS VERSUVIUS in the Mediterranean 1842-1844; official letters from the HMS MIRANDA and HMS BRISK in the Baltic fleet; a rough report and letter book of 1858; a personal letter book of 1851-1887 and other correspondence (with the Admiralty, Hyde Parker, William Walpole, Captain Hamilton and Sir James Graham); a folder of sketches, mainly of Arctic subjects, by George Morant, W H Church, and Ommanney; papers concerned with the Franklin search expedition of 1850-1851 when Ommanney was Captain of HMS ASSISTANCE, including a log book; order book; official reports; Admiralty communications; reports and correspondence exchanged among ships; personal letters (Dr. J Richardson, Captain John Ross, John Barrow, H Austin, Lady Franklin and others); and a scrap book of papers about the ASSISTANCE, RESOLUTE, PIONEER and sledge parties, copies of the Franklin reward poster, posters and programmes printed on board ship, sketches and notes.

Papers of Cpt Richard Oliver-Bellasis. They consist of standing orders and routines for some of the ships in which he served. There are also papers for a course at the Royal Naval College in 1936 and for a damage control course in 1943.

Papers of Algernon Hardy Oliver. They comprise a series of logs, some watch, station and quarter bills, a sights book, 1872 to 1876, three diaries, 1879 to 1881, and a notebook, 1888.

Papers of Adml Richard Aldworth Oliver. They consist of a notebook kept in the QUEEN; a general order and memoranda book, 1840 to 1850; a letterbook, 1847 to 1851, and a diary, 1848 to 1850, kept in the FLY, describing Oliver's time in New Zealand and a voyage to the New Hebrides.

Papers of Robert Dudley Oliver. There are three standing order books, one for Plymouth and Spithead, 1798 to 1799, probably when Oliver was Captain of the NEMESIS, and two for the MARS, 1804, 1805 to 1806. There are also two letters written by Nelson to Oliver's father-in-law, Sir Charles Saxton.

Papers of Cpt Richard Oliver-Bellasis. They consist of standing orders and routines for some of the ships in which he served. There are also papers for a course at the Royal Naval College in 1936 and for a damage control course in 1943.

Papers of Robert Dudley Oliver. There are three standing order books, one for Plymouth and Spithead, 1798 to 1799, probably when Oliver was Captain of the NEMESIS, and two for the MARS, 1804, 1805 to 1806. There are also two letters written by Nelson to Oliver's father-in-law, Sir Charles Saxton.

Brochure advertising cart lamps which accord with bye-laws, 1897-1898.

Papers and drawings relating to the Nottingham and Lincoln Railway, c1842-1867, namely:

1. Lithograph of Nottingham contract specification for execution of the works, to be completed before 1st June, 1846, with a list of 12 drawings to which the specification refers. (These do not, in most cases, correspond with the 12 numbered drawings that now accompany this document). (47 leaves. 12½" x 8").
2. Three lists of equipment and materials, compiled for comparison of the total weights various types of lifting gear will bear, c 1845. (2 leaves. 13" x 8").
3. Printed testimonials of Charles Kinder, railway engineer, 1851-1867, who was trained in the Newcastle works of Robert Stephenson, under whom he prepared the contract plans for and superintended the works on the Nottingham and Lincoln railway. (2 leaves. 9¼" x 7½").
4. 12 engineering drawings, c 1842-1845, comprising a section and plan of the railway through Belper, 1842 (27½" x 51"); sections of cuttings and embankments, numbered 5a and 6a, incomplete (19½" x 23¼"); sections of cuttings and embankments, numbered 7a and 8a (19½" x 27½"); drawings and sections of a mile and ½-and ¼-mile posts (13" x 14¼"); elevations, plans and sections for a bridge for the Flood Road, numbered 10 (this corresponds with drawing No.10 listed in the contract, p.2.); tracing on linen (24" x 72"); elevations, plans and sections for a bridge over the branch of the River Trent near the 18th mile, numbered 8; tracing on linen (24" x 36"); elevations and sections of a bridge over the River Witham at Lincoln, numbered 9; tracing on linen (24" x 36"); plan, drawings and section for a lifting gear to the bridge for crossing the canal at 14.50 chains, numbered 9; tracing on linen (24" x 36"); plan and sections for a bridge for crossing the canal at 14.50 chains, numbered 9; tracing on linen (24" x 36"); elevation, plan and section of a bridge for the footway of Queens Road, numbered 8 (this corresponds with drawing No.8 listed in the contract, pp.1-2); tracing on linen (24" x 36"); printed plan and section, with manuscript additions, of the proposed railway line from Nottingham to Lincoln (this sheet, numbered 1, shows the town of Nottingham and 1 mile East - i.e. to the parish boundary), surveyed by J.G.Binns in 1844 (19½" x 27"); printed plan and section, with manuscript additions, of the proposed railway line from Nottingham to Lincoln (this sheet is unnumbered but is the final one of a set; it shows the city of Lincoln and 1 mile West), endorsed 'Nottingham and Lincoln Railway. The ends of the working plans and sections' (19½" x 26½").

Papers of Frederick North. The collection consists of his diaries in the ALERT, 1878 to 1882. There are also photograph albums relating to North in the Department of Pictures.

Papers relating to property of John Michie, Director of the East India Company, at 'Muffets' or North Mimms, Hertfordshire, comprising a list of the fields, woods, etc. with their acreages, dated May 1780. There is also a list of those paying land tax, with the amounts, headed 'Present rate of North Myms Common' 7 Jul 1780.
On the reverse of one list is a brief memorandum headed 'By the Joint Committee of private Trade and Shipping', concerning an enquiry into the conduct of captain Peter Douglas of the Queen and Captain John Coggan of the Shrewsbury for 'parting company outward bound contrary to the orders of the Secret Committee' in 1777, dated 5 May 1780, initialled by four of the Company directors, and with a note that it was read in court. The documents are accompanied by a wrapper endorsed 'Muffets. (Account of Grounds by Messrs. Michie'.

Records of North Metropolitan Tramways, comprising minutes of Board meetings, minutes of General meetings and minutes of Shareholder meetings.

Records of Mark Noble, pump and fire engine manufacturer, comprising a diary and the donor's transcript and notes. The diary is unsigned, but the donor has identified the author from a patent mentioned in the text and from records at The National Archives relating to the activities described. The entries are mostly accounts of travel and meetings in London, Kent and Berkshire to arrange finance, materials and trials of a pump, with little technical or personal content.

Papers relating to his service on HMAS SHROPSHIRE in the Pacific Ocean, 1944-1945, dated [1984-1985], principally comprising ''Shropshire' in the Philippines', a pamphlet on the service of HMAS SHROPSHIRE in the Philippines, 1944-1945, including the Battle of Leyte, Oct 1944, and the landings at Lingayen Gulf, Luzon, Jan 1945, written by Frank Hoolahan and published for New South Wales Branch of the Canberra-Shropshire Association, [1984-1985]; Shropshire Times, 25 Oct 1984, special edition commemorating the service of the HMAS SHROPSHIRE in the Philippines, 1944-1945; printed texts of lectures by John C Date to the Naval Historical Society of Australia, 1984-1985, notably on the Battle of Savo Island, Solomon Islands, 9 Aug 1942, and the Battle of Leyte, Philippines, 22-26 Oct 1944.

This class contains six bound manuscript copies of ships' newspapers. They are generally of a humerous nature and include short stories, verse, riddles and jokes, and ship's news and gossip; nearly all are illustrated. There are two examples from the Royal Navy; 'The Young Idea', the weekly papers of the CHESAPEAKE, 1857 to 1859; and 'The Rocket', 1868 to 1869, newspaper of the MINOTAUR. The 'Sierra Cordova Magpie' is an example of a ship's paper, with colour illustrations, from the square-rigged sailing ship SIERRA CORDOVA, 1901 to 1902. The remaining three volumes are of papers edited by passengers; 'The Nautical Magazine', the EQUESTRIAN, England to Bombay, 1849; the 'Matilda Athenaeum', paper of the MATILDA WATTENBACH, 1859 to 1860, on a voyage to Calcutta; and the 'Loch Garry Magazine', covering a voyage of the LOCH GARRY from Melbourne to Glasgow, 1877.

This class consists of single copies of newspapers and newssheets, including a copy of the 'Challenger Gazette', 1828; two issues of 'The Great Eastern Telegraph', 1866, when the GREAT EASTERN was engaged on laying the Atlantic cable; and a copy of the 'Wei-Hai-Wei Gazette', 1902. It also contains playbills, including one advertising a performance on board the prison ship CROWN in 1807 of a play by a French prisoner of war and another announcing the performance of a comedy, Speed the Plough on the MINDEN, 1817.

Papers of Colonel Sir Stuart (Richard) Newman, 1916-1994, including call up and telegram, Aug 1939; letters home, [1940-1945]; two portrait photographs, [1940] and [1944]; photograph album, 1941-1942; letter to Newman, Mar 1948, from three former Luxembourg cadets, requesting confirmation of their Officer Cadet Training Unit training under Newman, 1945-1946; White Paper, 'Re-organisation of the army reserves' (HMSO, Dec 1965), and related press statement, Dec 1965, by the Council of Territorial and Auxiliary Forces Associations; correspondence, Mar 1993 - Mar 1994, relating to the future of the Territorial Army; photograph album of Newman's father, Capt Thomas Pacey Newman, 1916-[1924], and photocopy letter from Mrs Newman (wife of Thomas, mother of Stuart), to her son Roland, 9 Jun 1944, with eye witness description of planes and gliders leaving for France, evening of 6 Jun, with transcript.

Photocopies of papers relating to his internment as a POW by the Japanese, 1943, comprising account of the treatment of H Force during their work on the Burma-Thailand railway, 1943, written [for the Malayan Government] in 1945; notebook containing financial accounts and a register of deaths for 5 Bn, H Force, 1943; account of the experiences of 1 Subsection, H Force, Sep-Nov 1943, written in 1943.

Papers of New Zealand Shipping Co Ltd. Apart from one missing volume, 1876 to 1879, there are continuous minute books of Directors' meetings in London from 1874 to 1971; copies of the 'Colony' Board minutes, 1890 to 1904, illustrate the changeover from New Zealand to London management. There is also a volume of minutes of General Meetings of shareholders held in London, 1888 to 1971. The Directors' minute books of the Federal Steam Navigation Company cover the period 1892 to 1964. Routine account books are not part of the collection, although there are isolated cash books, journals and ledgers of the affiliated companies: three early cash books of the company, 1873 to 1892; and a series of private ledgers both for the company, 1900 to 1954 and the Federal Line, 1904 to 1936. Files on contracts and agreements exist for the period 1912 to 1943. The company's interest in the New Zealand passenger trade is well documented in the minutes and correspondence; details of the early homeward voyages date from 1883 to 1887 and there is a long series of 'outward' (i.e. London to New Zealand) passenger books, 1894 to 1955. These contain names only and are unindexed. Passengers apart, there are general steamers' movement books from 1906 to 1971. Two books set out the early victualling scales, 1876 and 1879. A good sample of vessels' voyage files survives, 1966 to 1971. Early correspondence is limited to three private letter and telegram books, 1912 to 1936, of C.J. Cowan (d 1944) who was chairman of the company from 1928 until his death. The bulk of the letter files is concerned with exchanges with London, Wellington and Sydney, and with conference letters and circulars, 1960 to 1971. A series of files, 1940 to 1970, relates to subjects like freight negotiations, research and programming. The launching and operations of the three Federal Line tankers, 1958 to 1960, are also on file. The private files of C.A.W. Dawes (1919- ) chairman of the company from 1966 to 1970, deal with the specialized situations which call for the attention of senior management. On the technical side there are Marine Superintendents'reports, 1901 to 1971, together with vessels'plans and handbooks for use on board ship. Records of the affiliated companies mentioned above are as follows: New Zealand and African Steam Shipping Company Ltd, minute books, 1902 to 1911, register of members, 1902 to 1909, Memorandum and Articles of Association; Montreal Australia New Zealand Line, account books 1956 to 1971; American and Australian Steamship Line, account books, 1956 to 1971; Avenue Shipping, minute book, 1954 to 1962; Crusader Line, correspondence and information, 1965 to 1967; Dolphin Line, correspondence and circulars, 1967 to 1970. (Section 3: NZS/: 275ft: 84m) Ships' Plans: there are also plans for ships of the company in the P&O collection of plans.

Records of the New India Assurance Company Limited, comprising a salvage book giving details of insurance claims on shipping.