Subject files, 1940-1944, on a range of topics including general organisation, "H" Company (County Hall), "P" Company (Parks Department), "E" Company (Chief Engineers' Department), "C" Company (Cooper's Hill), "F" Company (Fire Brigade Department), "S" Company (Supplies Department), Public Health Company and No.2 Battalion (later 48th County of London Battalion), Mental Hospitals Company, medical organisation and equipment, food rationing and mobile canteens, Battalion Funds, Courts-martial and courts of inquiry, explosions, accidents and injuries, loss of arms and ammunition, dress regulations, storage of ammunition, revolvers, appointment of officers, adjutants and quartermasters, Permanent Staff Instructors, new conditions of service for home guards, man-power figures, attachments and locations, Women Home Guard auxiliaries, compensation for loss of earnings, casualties, discipline, Home Guard duties and civil defence, personnel over 65 years of age, transport, armoured fighting vehicles, Winter and Summer training, assaults at arms, ranges, operations, exercises, security and intelligence, mine watching exercises, anniversary parades, standing-down of Home Guard and awards and commendations.

Also Army Council Instructions; regulations for the Home Guard; Home Guard Information Circulars; Home Guard Instructions; London District Home Guard Orders; London County Council Group Orders; 47th Battalion Orders; 48th Battalion Orders; Guard report books; papers relevant to the history of the London County Council battalions, including copies of the printed histories of "3" and "C" Companies by Majors Brand and Belsham; papers relating to the formation of Old Comrades Association and Home Guard Training Manual (third edition).

Records of the London County Council Fire Brigade Department, 1822-1965, including subject and policy files on general topics including correspondence on question whether horses can smell fire and locate scene of outbreaks; participation by Brigade in International Horse Shows; surprise inspections of stations by the Chief Officer; passing of information on fires to firms of fire assessors; the funerals of Sir Eyre Massey Shaw and Sir Lionel Wells; drills and competitions; Women's Fire Protection Force; emergency arrangements during the 1926 General Strike; pamphlet on National Fire Brigades Association; International Fire Exhibition, Paris; mutual arrangements between brigades for extinguishing fires; London Fire Brigade Questions and Answers Book; liaison with press; displays and demonstrations at exhibitions and events; London Fire Brigade Museum; reorganisation of the Brigade (1934); visits by officers to foreign fire brigades; the Royal Commission on Fire Brigades and Fire Prevention; Departmental Committee on Fire Brigade Services (Riverdale Committee); Fire Brigades Act, 1938; insurance companies' contributions towards the cost of the Brigade; Central Advisory Council for Fire Services; press cuttings; transfer of Fire Services from National Fire Service to local authorities after Second World War.

Subject and policy files regarding fires and special services, including papers on: fires aboard ships; fires on tramcars; fires in dance halls, factories, workshops, warehouses, Government and LCC buildings, hospitals, nursing homes, massage establishments, chimneys, hotels, clubs, lodging houses, restaurants, fried fish shops, places of public entertainment, houses, flats, tenements, schools, colleges, churches, church halls, University buildings, wharves, docks, gasworks, gas mains, departmental stores, shops and retail markets; fires involving explosives; static electricity as a cause of fire; reports on serious fires; legal right of Brigade to enter premises on fire; Society for the Protection of Life from Fire; special services including gas escapes, lift accidents, railway accidents and pumping operations during flooding; fires of doubtful origin or caused by arson and incendiaries; City fire inquests; lives lost at fires; electrical hazards at fires; organisation at large fires; oil fires; fires and panics; special reports on individual fires; fires involving celluloid; reports on fires by fire prevention officers; register of fires and other incidents attended by the Brigade Control Unit.

Subject and policy files regarding appliances and equipment including land steamers, horses and stabling, motor vehicles, motor pumps, Merryweather's pumps, escape vans and turntable ladders, electrical turntable ladders, foam tender, fireboats "Alpha", "Beta", "Gamma", "Massey Shaw" and "Raidwood", smoke helmets, respirators and breathing apparatus, chemical fire extinguishers, fire escapes, asbestos protective equipment, air foam. Also Stores Ledgers and registers of accidents to vehicles and appliances.

Subject and policy files relating to communications including street fire alarms, fire alarm telegraph systems, fire telephones, malicious false alarms, automatic fire alarms, radiotelephony, messages, Watch-room and Control Room procedures, teleprinters, radio installations, list of automatic fire alarms and fire telephones connected to each station.

Subject and policy files relating to fire prevention, including tests of fireproof flooring; inspection of public, government and Council buildings; fire precautions at various buildings including hospitals; petroleum storage; petrol fires on barges; celluloid risks; explosives; electric high voltage and neon signs; household fire protection rules; revised fire drill rules for schools; automatic sprinkler installation; foam installations to deal with petrol and oil fires; automatic drencher installations; means of escape in case of fire; Advisory Committee on the Amendment of the London Building Act, 1930; fire prevention arrangements on ships and Tube railways; Fire Prevention (Business Premises) Order, 1941.

Subject and policy files relating to water supplies including liaison with Metropolitan Water Board in cases of water shortage at fires; hydrants and hydrant tablets; maps showing locations of hydrants; hydrant registers. Subject and policy files relating to Fire Brigade buildings, particularly London Fire Brigade Headquarters at Albert Embankment.

Original fire reports, containing detailed reports concerning individual calls to fires, including false alarms, including: address of fire, occupiers of premises, business or trade carried on, where fire started, particulars of fire, times of calls, method of extinguishing fire, fire appliances in attendance and fire station called. Also daily return of fire calls, compiled under section 31 of the Metropolitan Fire Brigade Act, 1865, which required the Fire Brigade to supply each fire insurance company with a daily return of fires occurring in the Metropolis. The information generally duplicates that of the fire reports.

General reports and publications, including Memoir of James Braidwood; pamphlets and order of proceedings; handbooks; lectures; reports; articles; guidebooks; memoranda, orders and instructions; order books, statistics and log books. Also photographs.

Records of the London County Council Fire Brigade Department relating to emergency wartime measures, 1914-1949, including subject and policy files on the First World War History of the Brigade; First World War air raid measures; experiments to test the efficacy of dry-powder fire extinguishers against incendiary bombs; fire protection for munitions factories; coal and food rationing; war badges for off-duty wear by firemen of military age; employment of disabled ex-servicemen; medals and decorations awarded to Brigade staff (uniformed and non-uniformed) on war service; interwar consideration of air raid precautions; fire-fighting during air attacks; press cuttings on air raid precautions; auxiliary fire stations; air raid warning signals; unexploded bombs and shells; Fire Service Information Bulletins; co-operation between military and civil authorities; Ministry of Information Official Bulletins; duties of fire brigades in case of invasion; National Fire Service (London Area) Regulations, 1941; nationalisation of fire services on 18 August 1941; situation reports; decontamination; emergency vehicles; River Service; Emergency Water supplies; communications in wartime; observation posts; anti-gas and incendiary bomb control training; Auxiliary Fire Service recruitment; liaison arrangements with London Salvage Corps; honours and awards for gallantry; reports on individual air raids (in and out of London); long range rockets.

Original air raid fire reports, First World War, and original reports on incidents due to enemy action, Second World War. Daily returns of air raid fire calls, First World War and Second World War. Situation reports, Second World War.

"Fire Over London: The Story of the London Fire Service"; London Auxiliary Fire Service informative leaflets used for recruiting purposes; National Fire Service (England and Wales) Directory; London Civil Defence Region Directories; Directory of London Fire Brigade and London Auxiliary Fire Service Stations and Sub-Stations; registers of B Class auxiliaries (the fire-fighting category) enrolled in the Auxiliary Fire Service from 1938; Press Cuttings Book; London Auxiliary Fire Service Routine Orders.

London Fire Region (LFR) files, including messages received at night in the Regional Control Room; LFR Newsletters; air raids on Portsmouth and Southampton; incendiary bombs; Fire Service vehicles; Water Relaying Units; women auxiliaries; Regional Fire Officer duties; Regional Fire Headquarters staff; twice daily situation reports (London Civil Defence Region); Regional Fire Control Room Occurrence Book; London Fire Region Twice-daily Situation Reports; Home Office Daily Air Raid Intelligence Reports; Home Office Weekly Summary of Air Raid Intelligence; Home Office Detailed Reports on individual fires; training films; monthly returns of personnel and appliances in each outer-London brigade; medals, decorations and honours; underground control room; conferences; protection of fire stations against bombing and poison gas; aircraft crash fires; reporting of casualties.

The collection presents an integrated record of US decision making during the 1962 nuclear confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union. Much of the documentation focuses on the period from Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs McGeorge Bundy's 16 Oct 1962 briefing of President Kennedy on the discovery of Soviet missiles in Cuba to Soviet Prime Minister Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev's 28 Oct 1962 decision to withdraw the weapons. Papers include intelligence reports, diplomatic cables, political analyses, military situation reports, and meeting minutes relating to the immediate backdrop to the crisis, the crisis (16 Oct-28 Oct 1962), and its aftermath. Papers concerning the background to the crisis relate to US attempts to overthrow Cuban Prime Minister Dr Fidel Castro following the Bay of Pigs invasion, Apr 1961; US and Soviet nuclear capabilities and doctrine in the early 1960s; the deployment of US Intermediate Range Ballistic Missiles (IRBMs) to forward bases in Europe; and the concern over the resurgence of Soviet military aid to Cuba in the summer of 1962. Papers relating to the crisis include US intelligence reports confirming the construction of Soviet missile bases in Cuba; National Security Council minutes relating to a potential invasion of Cuba by US conventional forces, possible US air attacks against Cuba and the resultant Cuban casualties, the possibility of imposing an economic blockade around Cuba, the maintenance of US U-2 High Altitude Reconnaissance Aircraft flights over Cuba, and the possibility of Soviet retaliatory military actions against North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) states in the event of US attacks on Cuba, 16 Oct 1962; Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) daily intelligence reports concerning Soviet missile bases and possible Soviet surface to surface SS-4 ('Sandal') nuclear missiles in Cuba; reports from the UN Security Council and General Assembly from the US Ambassador to the UN Adlai Ewing Stevenson; meetings between Kennedy and Soviet Foreign Minister Andrei Andreevich Gromyko; US estimates of Cuban ground forces; articles from Soviet news agency TASS denouncing American motives in Cuba; reports from US Secretary of Defense Robert Strange McNamara regarding the possible withdrawal of US missile bases in Italy and Turkey in exchange for Soviet withdrawals from Cuba; discussions of the possible US 'Naval Quarantine' of Cuba; CIA estimates relating to possible Soviet first strike military capability with missiles in Cuba; NSC reports relating to the construction of IRBM and Medium Range Ballistic Missile (MRBM) bases in Guanajay and San Cristóbal, Cuba, 21 Oct 1962; President Kennedy's announcement to world heads of state regarding the US 'Naval Quarantine' of Cuba (24 Oct-20 Nov 1962) to prevent further Soviet arms shipments of offensive weapons and development of further missile bases, 23 Oct 1962; message from Khrushchev to Kennedy stating that the US 'Naval Quarantine' is an act of aggression against both Cuba and the Soviet Union, 23 Oct 1962; statements by US Ambassador Stevenson, Cuban Ambassador Mario Garcia Incháustegui, and Soviet Ambassador Valerian Zorin in the UN Security Council, 23 Oct 1962; documents relating to the operational readiness of US continental nuclear forces; minutes from UN Security Council meeting, 25 Oct 1962; letter from Khrushchev to Kennedy suggesting that the Soviet Union would withdraw missile bases in return for a US 'non-invasion commitment' towards Cuba, 26 Oct 1962; negotiations over verification of the Soviet missile withdrawal; the US non-invasion 'guarantee' to Cuba and the Soviet Union; and, the question of Soviet Ilyushin IL-28 ('Beagle') bombers and troops remaining in Cuba. The collection also includes retrospective studies of the missile crisis, including the US Department of State internal history of the crisis, US Department of Defense comprehensive reports describing the actions of military commands and units during the missile crisis, and US government records relating to the US-Soviet rapprochement developed in the 1970s and 1980

The Soviet Estimate: US Analysis of the Soviet Union, 1947-1991 is a themed microfilm collection which presents an integrated record of US intelligence estimates and studies relating to Soviet strategic projections, military capabilities, science and technology, economics and internal politics, 1946-1991. The estimates and studies were produced either collectively as national intelligence products or by individual agencies, and include contributions from the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA); the Director of Central Intelligence; the US Defense Intelligence Agency; and, the US State Department. The collection includes CIA and British Secret Intelligence Service debriefing transcripts of former Soviet Gavnoye Razvedyvatelnoye Upravleniye (GRU), Chief Intelligence Directorate, Soviet General Staff, operative Oleg V Penkovskii, relating to Soviet military organisation and plans for nuclear war, Soviet nuclear targets and deployments in Europe, missile technology and launch sites, Soviet military personnel, the capture of Capt Francis Gary Powers, US Air Force U-2 High Altitude Reconnaissance Aircraft pilot, 1 May 1960, profiles of Soviet military officers, locations of Soviet nuclear weapons tests, Soviet intelligence organisations and Soviet chemical and biological weapons programs, Soviet development and deployment of Inter-Continental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs), positions of Soviet divisions in East Germany, and the Berlin Crisis (1958- 1962), 20 Apr-14 Oct 1961; yearly US estimates of Soviet strategic capabilities, 1947- 1983, including the 'missile gap' National Intelligence Estimates, 1957-1961; detailed estimates of the Soviet space program, including National Intelligence Estimates (NIEs) relating to lunar exploration, manned space flight, reconnaissance satellites, space exploration, space weapons and weapons development, 1962-1967; US Air Force report entitled 'A History of Strategic Arms Competition: Volume 3, A Handbook of Selected Soviet Weapons and Space Systems', including data relating to Soviet air to surface missiles (AS), Tupolev bomber aircraft, M-4 / Mya-4 / 2M Myasishchev ('Bison') aircraft, space weapons, communication satellites, electronic intelligence capabilities, surface to surface (SS) theatre missiles and ICBMs, Intermediate Range Ballistic Missiles (IRBMs), Submarine-Launched Ballistic Missiles (SLBMs), Jun 1976; US intelligence community experiment in competitive analysis conducted by the CIA 'B Team' relating to US misperceptions of Soviet strategic objectives and offensive and defensive forces, Dec 1976; report from the US Department of State entitled 'History of the Strategic Arms Competition 1945-1972, parts 1 and 2', including detailed surveys and analyses of Soviet and US decision making on nuclear forces, force deployments, and nuclear strategies, Mar 1981; Special National Intelligence Estimate relating to Soviet support for international terrorism and revolutionary activities, including mention of arms transfers, military training, political violence, and terrorist activities in Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and the Middle East, May 1981; reports from the CIA concerning Soviet perspectives on research and development in energy-directed weapons and involvement in space weapons and Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) research, 1985; National Intelligence Estimates relating to General Secretary of the Soviet Communist Party Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev's prospects for reforming the Soviet economic and political system, including mention of his economic agenda and its implications for the Soviet military program, the dynamics of Soviet civil-military relations, the impact of reforms on labour production, health, standards of living and technological development, and the rise of civil unrest and nationalism in the Soviet Union, 1985- 1989; CIA report concerning the probabilities of a coup d'etat in the Soviet Union and the growing influence of Chairman of the Russian Republic Supreme Soviet, Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin, May 1991.

Edition of Profile 207: Messerschmitt BF 110 Night Fighters magazine (Profile Publications, Windsor, [1976]) with article by Alfred Price

Edition of The British Way and Purpose, 3: The Growth of Empire, the Dominions, India, the Colonial Empire (The Director of Army Education, London, 1943); photocopy of manuscript note from Rt Hon William Maxwell Aitken, 1st Baron Beaverbrook of Beaverbrook, Minister of Aircraft Production, relating to aircraft production and storage, [1943].

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.

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].

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.

Memorandum book including copy letters to the Court of the East India Company; bye-laws and resolutions of the Society; and printed East India Company notices.

Photograph and press release relating to the unveiling of a commemorative plaque at Heathrow Airport.

Records of Binny and Company Limited, steamship agency, traders, textile mill operators and engineers, including articles of association; annual reports; financial accounts; investment ledgers; correspondence; memoranda; papers regarding company history; and photographs of staff, offices and works.

Macdonald, Hamilton and Company records comprise: partnership deeds, declarations of trust, power of attorney, and correspondence 1907-55 (Ms 27784-6, 38570-6); plans of offices 1919-20 (Ms 27787), and histories 1934-5 (Ms 38577).

Records of Wilson, Sons and Company Limited, coal and steamship agency, and associated companies. The records include minutes; financial accounts; letter books; constitutional documents; historical notes; registers of members; annual reports; and agreements.

Account book of Thomas Blossom, coachbuilder, including costs and a detailed list of each stage of his work on repairing and building coaches and carriages of (named) gentry, 1809-14; summary entries of coach work, 1808-9; and Blossom's note of cargoes received at Tahiti and Eimeo (Windward Islands, French Polynesia) from the London Missionary Society, 1821-6.

Records of London United Tramways, comprising minutes of Board meetings and General meetings.

Records of South Metropolitan Electric Tramways, comprising minutes of Board meetings and minutes of General meetings.

Records of the Union Construction Company, manufacturer of tube and tram cars, comprising minutes of Board meetings and minutes of General 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.

Records of Couldrey Motors Limited, 1932-1948, including memorandum and articles of association; director's meeting minutes; trading and profit and loss accounts; correspondence; sales returns; stock lists and property costs. Also records of the Couldrey Commercial Motor Company, comprising balance sheets and trading and profit and loss accounts.

The records consist of issues of TOT magazines, 1930, and a souvenir programme of a rugby match between London Underground Railways and the Union Sportive du Metropolitain of Paris, 1930.

Papers of the British Medical Association compring files [1915-1960], from the following subject series: Medico-Political, Science, Groups, Ethics, Public Health, Hospitals, Organisation. Also incomplete set of copy minutes of Council, Committees and of the Annual Representatives' Meetings and Special Representatives' Meetings, [1907-1982].

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'.

Collection of note-books containing six volumes on Botany and Comparative Ostology, a Register of Photographs, and a Bicycling Diary. The 5 Botanical notebooks and the single volume on Comparative Ostology are illustrated with mounted and other drawings, some in pencil.

Copies of papers and photographs relating to his military career, 1915-[1921], dated 1915-[1921], [1970-1980] and 1983, principally comprising letters to his father, 1915-1916; his flying log book, 1915-1917, covering his service with 1 Reserve Aeroplane Sqn, Royal Flying Corps, UK and with 8 and 12 Sqns, BEF, France; notes and texts of lectures relating to aerial combat tactics, produced by instructors at the Royal Flying Corps School of Aerial Gunnery, 1916; his diary, 1918, including details of his work [as an experimental pilot with the Aircraft Directorate and the Air Board]; notebook containing notes on the performance of various aircraft, [1918-1921]; 'Memoir of service with the Royal Flying Corps, 1915 and 1916', written in [1970-1980].

Papers relating to his naval career, [1920-1959], dated [1920-1959], 1985, principally comprising photographs, [1919-1933], notably of the evacuation of [White] Russian refugees, Black Sea, 1919-1920, and of HMS NELSON, West Indies and Panama, 1929-1931, and HMS GANGES, 1931-1933.

Typescript and manuscript notes, calculations and sketches made by Sainty during the designing of sand eliminators for tanks and the filtration of atmospheric air, which was extensively used in tanks for the war in North Africa, 1943-1945; leaflets and pamphlets relating to the work of Carrier Engineering Co Ltd in designing and installing filters for gas protection prior to and during World War Two, including a summary by Lt Col John Arthur Edward Heard.

Presentation photograph album of HMS GLORY's tour of duty in the Mediterranean, 1949-1950.

Two pilot's flying log books, 1933-1937 and 1937-1960. Typescript 'Report on GAF (German Air Force) night fighting from the interrogation of prisoners' by Wing Cdr W K Davison, Officer Commanding 88 Sqn, RAF [1944]; typescript report by James Lansdale Hodson entitled 'Night fighters' [1944]; typescript memorandum by Slade, 'Notes for new crews' [1944]; typescript 'Report on GAF night fighter system. A post mortem' [1945]. Photograph album with uncaptioned photographs of Slade's RAF service in Egypt and Iraq, 1933-1937. Fifteen photographic negatives and 185 photographs, 1933-1960, including aerial photographs of terrain, Iraq, 1934-1937, group photographs, 1942-1945, and Fairey Aviation Limited aircraft in flight [1960], notably the Gannet and the Rotodyne.

Typescript text of talk by Tyrrell to Wimbledon Literary and Scientific Society [1985], entitled 'Some recollections of a prisoner of war of the Japanese', relating to his experiences as a POW in Zentsuji Camp, Shikoko Island, Japan, 1942-1945. Copies of eight certifications on Tyrrell by Commanding Officers of RN ships and establishments, 1933-1955, with copy of Tyrrell's Mention in Despatches citation for service on HMS ENCOUNTER, Mar 1942, copy of letter relating to the award of the Dutch Order of Orange Nassau, Aug 1948, and copy of newspaper cutting relating to Tyrrell's wedding, Dec 1947. Typescript address by R Adm William Terence Colborne Ridley at Tyrrell's memorial service, Jan 1995.

Papers relating to his naval service, 1945-1950, principally comprising photographs of British Pacific Fleet ships and personnel, 1945.

Letter from P K Seaman of HMS Wolverine, docked at St Helena, to his father, 1 Jun 1851. '... I have already told you that we have caught 3 slavers ...'.

Autograph, with signature. 4 sketches of vessels captured by the Wolverine are pasted to the second leaf of the letter.

Letter from Edward Kirkpatrick of Southampton to Thomas Attree [or Altree] Esq of Brighthelmstone [Brighton], Sussex, 21 Sep 1822. Enquiring about the tax payable on flies [i.e. light carriages], as he wishes to have an example before advising resistance to the Tax Office. The duty demanded at Southampton was £6 10s. The flies there '... are built with metallic springs and leather in every respect as a large Landau, the wheels under 30 inches and driven by one ass'. Attree had evidently not answered [and perhaps not received] Kirkpatrick's earlier letter on the same subject.

Autograph, with signature. The following comment has been inserted in another hand: 'They are only liable to 30/- [or 30%] duty'.

Poem by John Edward Masefield, 1965. Verses entitled Lines for the 1965 HMS Victory Calendar, produced to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the ship's launch.

Autograph.

Two bills of sale of vessels registered at Liverpool, details as follows:

1. Sale of 4/64 share of the barque Charlotte for a consideration of £675, by Philip Nelson, shipowner, to Henry Gardner, produce broker, both of Liverpool, 1 Jun 1866.
2. Sale of 8/64 share of the barque Cecilia, for a consideration of £900, between the parties as above, 25 Feb 1869.

Manuscript volumes containing 'An abstract of the total number of ships with their tonnage which have been registered in the British Dominions in pursuance of the Acts [of Parliament]...Distinguishing such as are British built, such as are foreign built, and such as are Prizes made free, and distinguishing the Ports at which they have been respectively registered', with a volume devoted to each year between 1788 and 1793. Includes a commentary on the statistics given, and dedicatory epistle in Volume I to King George III.

This series contains correspondence, memoranda and extracts from minutes primarily concerning the construction, provision and maintenance of vehicles.

Records, 1926-1951, of the Chinese Government Purchasing Commission (CGPC), including information on the state of Chinese communications; the workings of the Chinese Ministries of Communications, Railways and Industries; Chinese banking; construction and engineering technology and the work of British manufacturers; and some information on Chinese educational and cultural institutions in receipt of subsidies from the Board of Trustees for the Administration of the Indemnity Funds Remitted by the British Government.

Records, 1926-1951, relating to the foundation and constitution of the CGPC comprise printed report of the Anglo-Chinese Advisory Committee (China Indemnity Advisory Committee), 1926; correspondence, largely letters from the Board of Trustees to the CPGC, 1931-1950, concerning the constitution of the Commission, procedural issues, personnel and financial matters; file on procedure on appointment of a new member of the Commission, 1947-1948; correspondence concerning events preceding the winding-up of the Commission, 1951.

Financial records, 1931-1951, comprise papers on the Board Account, 1937-1950; papers on the Chin Fund (apparently a grant paid to Constance Chin, a patient of the Bethlem Royal Hospital), 1945-1951; summaries of expenses relating to purchase orders made by Chinese ministries, 1931-1951; Indemnity Fund cash books, 1937-1950; invoices and receipts relating to CGPC business, 1937-1951; financial statements and correspondence relating to banking matters with the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank, 1931-1951, the subjects including investments and tax.

Operational records, c1928-1951, relating to the administration of purchase orders, comprise register of tenders/purchase orders, 1942-1946; contract registers (not comprehensive), 1931-1949, recording the management of contracts for the supply and delivery in China of plant, machinery and other materials manufactured in the UK for the Chinese government, and over 1,000 related contract files for engineering companies and manufacturers for industrial, construction, railway and other projects; tender forms, 1934, issued to contractors by the CGPC; specifications and standards, c1928-1937 and undated, largely for the construction of railways and carriages; correspondence concerning administration of purchase orders, 1932-1951, relating especially to delivery of locomotive spare parts and related materials; registers of export licences issue to British manufacturers under wartime regulations, 1941-1946; applications for export licences, 1939-1945; registers of shipments, insurance, freight and inspection fees, 1931-1951; shipping letters, 1937-1950, issued for CGPC shipments; general correspondence concerning the administration of the CGPC, 1931-1951, including correspondence with solicitors and correspondence concerning the CGPC premises in Tothill Street, London.

Annual reports and accounts, 1931-1950, comprise typescript accounts and reports, 1931-1950, of the CGPC and published annual reports, 1931-1950, including summaries of receipts and payments; and annual reports of the Board of Trustees, 1931-1938.

Miscellaneous records, c1932-1950, comprise one file including papers on subjects including railways, training Chinese students, Japanese imperialism, and CGPC records, a photograph of ships in harbour, and maps of China and the Far East.

Records, 1939-1943, of the China Purchasing Agency Ltd comprise standing regulations of the Board of Directors, undated; correspondence, 1939-1943, concerning various purchase orders; miscellaneous items, c1939-1940, including list of tenders passed for acceptance, 1939, and an undated schedule of materials shipped.

Personal correspondence of William Blair-Bell, 1920-1931, including 5 photocopies of documents relating to William Blair-Bell's private practice and to his personal dress etc, 1923-1928; page of a letter sent to Blair-Bell by a firm of monumental masons relating to the churchyard memorial to his mother and brother, 1931; copy letter of Blair-Bell to the Secretary of the Royal Automobile Club complaining of treatment he had received at a hotel recommended by the RAC; letter of thanks to Blair-Bell from Dorothy Leith. Murray, wife of Herbert Leith Murray, FRCOG, and Blair-Bell's successor as Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Liverpool University; photocopy of a letter of congratulations from J M Munro Kerr to Blair-Bell, almost certainly on the latter's appointment as Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Liverpool University; photocopies of two letters to Blair-Bell from solicitors and insurers relating to a verdict of negligence against Blair-Bell in a motor accident; letter of thanks to Blair-Bell for a donation to a fund for the medical care of an individual; two letters regarding references for chauffeurs, 1924; letter from an antiquarian bookdealer, 1921; copy letter to a travel agent, 1925; letter from Sir Ewen J Maclean thanking him for a testimonial; 1921; letter relating to rental of shooting rights, 1924; correspondence with American Hospital suppliers, 1926.

Papers of Donald Whatley Roy, 1897-1948, and including correspondence, 1898-1948; medical certificates, including one a as a Foundation Fellow of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, 1897-1930; articles and speech, 1930-1938; card announcing results of the III MB Pt 1, 1903; testimonials, 1908-1929; passenger lists of ships on which he was surgeon, 1910; applications, 1916-1934.

Records, 1848-1984, of the Melanesian Mission, including minute books; correspondence, journals and diaries of pioneer missionaries including R H Codrington and J C Patteson; correspondence of more recent missionaries; logs relating to the Mission vessels including the first 'Southern Cross' log book, 1855. Material relating to the Church of Melanesia includes the proceedings of the Provincial Synod from its inception in 1975, conference reports, and lists of missionaries from the Mission's beginnings to the 1920s. Printed materials include the Southern Cross Log, 1895-1954, 1963-1973, and Annual Reports, 1864-1939 (1917 and 1923 missing). There are also a large number of photographs and manuscript maps of the Diocese of the Melanesian Mission dating from 1875 onwards.

Library Manuscripts comprise manuscript items donated to the Royal Geographical Society. They are chiefly single files or a small number of items which are not large enough to warrant forming a special collection. The papers include, astronomical and meteorological observations, diaries, correspondence, notes, conference papers, reports, articles, photographs, sketches and maps covering all aspects of geography and exploration across the globe and date from 1691 to 1994. Highlights include:

Memorandum on a map of South America, by John Arrowsmith.

Papers of Maj R A Bagnold, 1929-1933, comprising positions, routes and heights in Egypt and letters from Bagnold.

Letters from Sir John Barrow to Lord Melville, 1935-1945 and letters to Barrow from Murzuq, 1822 and J D Dundas, 1818.

Papers of Dr Heinrich Barth, 1846-1952, letters and copy of a sketch map of Timbuktu.

Notes on heights of mountains in America by Capt F W Beechey, 1826.

Letters from the King of Siam to Sir John Bowring, 1855.

Letters relating to the British Arctic Air Route Expedition, 1928-1932.

Correspondence and reports of the British Ornithologists' Union Expedition to New Guinea, 1908-1911.

Papers of G Wyman Bury, 1913-1918.

Papers of Capt R F M Crozier, 1836-1906.

Account of a journey to Lhasa and central Tibet by Sarat Chandra Das, 1902.

Papers of Lt James Barker Emery, chiefly relating to Mombassa, 1822-1835.

Plan and elevation of the Screw Yacht FRAM as reconstructed in 1898.

'Narrative of a small party of HMS LEVEN under command of Lt C W Browns sent to explore the Zambesi by one of the survivors, a native of Angola', by Antonio Jozi, 1823.

Journal of Joseph Kaye's voyage from London to Genoa.

Papers and maps relating to William Kennish's exploration in South America for a canal route.

Papers relating to the Kufara expedition led by H W C J Penderel and P A Clayton to Gilf Kebir, 1933.

Papers relating to the Livingstone Award, 1875-1970.

H B Molesworth's diary of a journey to Mokalla (Mukalla), 1893.

Letters from Sir John Morrison to Henry Dundas and others concerning Persia and trade with Persia, 1783-1792.

Narrative of a shipwreck on the southern shores of Arabia by B A R Nicholson, 1836.
Correspondence of Walter Oudney, 1821-1823.

Papers of Adm Sir W E Parry, relating to the Arctic, 1819-1823.

Papers relating to the Pitcairn Islands, 1831-1885.

Annotated 'Code of Naval Signals' belonging to Adm Sir Home Popham, 1799.

Letter from Sultan Husain Sufrari, 1708.

Account of explorations on the coast of Patagonia by B Villarino, 1782.

Travel journals of J Washington, chiefly in South America, 1822-1829.

Letters to A F R Wollaston, 1896-1926.

Papers of Sir Joseph Banks, 1788-1811, comprise microfilm, and enlarged prints from the microfilm, of papers held in the Sutro Collection, State Library of California concerning subjects including the Africa Association.

Collection comprises photographs of both the ambulance train and the servicemen's hospital in Berkshire showing servicemen and nurses [including Eliza Wakelin]; and two letters regarding Miss Wakelin's health.

Records of the Middlesex County Council Fire Brigade Department Auxiliary Fire Service, 1948-1965, including policy and administration files relating to: civil defence, planning, repair depots, personnel management, staff regulations, conditions of service, minutes of meetings of officers, tactical studies, tactical instructors, competitions, recreational facilities, and liaison with other authorities.

Files relating to recruitment and training including: recruitment policy, recruitment publicity including films, courses at civil defence training schools, rescue training, training films, exercises, promotions, women's section, allowances and expenses, medical examinations and long service medals.

Files relating to appliances and equipment including housing of vehicles and appliances, motor cycles, Bedford self propelled pumps, equipment for water relaying, stores and provisions, extension ladders, and training pamphlets.

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

This category contains individual documents containing lists of ships, seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Among the items is a list of ships of 1652 to be prepared for the summer guard for the coasts of England, Ireland and Scotland, with the names of commanders, numbers of men and guns. The list was presented to Parliament and approved. Another, of 1804, is an 'abstract of the country craft of various descriptions that have been armed for the defence of the coast from Shoreham in Sussex to Mistley in Essex'.

This category contains single items relating to the administration of naval ships. Among the items are a watch bill, c 1810; a certificate of 1813 signed for a petty officer 'to pass through the lines' from the BRUIZER, 1903.

In-Letters of the Board Of Admiralty consisting of 324 volumes and 45 boxes of loose letters to the Board of Admiralty from subordinate boards, 1703 to 1832. The majority are letters from the Navy Board concerning the construction and fitting of ships, dockyard management, appointments, the settlement of accounts and naval finance, 1738 to 1832 (235 vols, classmarks ADM/B, ADM/BP, ADM/Y). There are also letters from the Victualling Board concerned with the problems of purchasing, packing and supplying provisions to ships, 1703 to 1714, 1714 to 1732, 1732 to 1769, 1787 to 1822 (51 vols, 34 boxes, ADM/D, ADM/DP); letters from the Sick and Hurt Board relating to the care and housing of sick and wounded seamen, 1742 to 1754, 1755 to 1764, 1794 to 1806 (37 vols, 11 boxes, ADM/F, ADM/FP).