Guide to the Records of Robert Brooks & Company (as filmed by the AJCP), 1822-1890

Summary

Collection number:

M582 - M583

Creator:

Brooks, Robert

Extent:

8 items

Language:

English

Preferred citation:

Acknowledgement of use of this material should refer to the location of the original material and to the Australian Joint Copying Project.

Items from this collection should include references to the location of the original material and to the AJCP nla.obj number, which serves as the online identifier for the digital copy.

Example: M Series: Journal of Capt. James Cook, 18 February 1770, British Library Add. MS 27885 (AJCP ref: http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-1234)

Availability:

Available

Access conditions:

Available for research.

Background

Content Summary:

The collection consists of:

1. Correspondence 1862-90, mainly with Robert Towns and Co of Sydney, regarding the cotton plantation on the Logan River, Queensland. Includes letters from R. Towns, A. Stuart, C. Lett and W.T. Walker; inventories, statements and a plan of the plantation.

2. Journal January 1822-September 1828 giving details of supplies sent to ships from London (2 vols).

3. Ledgers 1826-32 (2 vols).

4. Acceptance book containing bills accepted from Australian companies and merchants 1846-53.

5. Cash book 1855-56.

6. Letter-book February 1841-May 1843. Includes copies of letters to W.C. Wentworth, Campbell Co, W. Campbell Co, R. Dacre, James Cain, R. Towns and other Australian pastoralists and businessmen, regarding shipment and sale of wool and other products.

Biographical / Historical:

Robert Brooks (1790-1882) was born in Laceby, Lancashire. He was apprenticed to a Hull timber merchant, John Barkworth, who later diversified into shipping and shipbuilding. In 1814 Brookes sailed on a trading expedition to Mauritius on Barkworth's ship Elizabeth and in 1818-19 he was sent to India. After 1820 he traded on his own account, although he remained closely associated with Barkworth for several years. By 1823 he was the sole owner of the Elizabeth and he sailed to New South Wales and Van Diemen's land and established links with local merchants such as Robert Campbell Junior, John Rickards, and Raine and Ramsay. This was the only occasion on which Brooks visited Australia.

The main interests of Brooks were initially shipping and the import of timber from Australia and New Zealand. He exported goods to local merchants such as Robert Campbell in Sydney, James Cain in Melbourne, and William Campbell Co in Launceston. Local merchants were used as commission agents and from 1830 onwards he had a resident agent in Sydney: Ranulph Dacre, succeeded by Robert Towns (1794-1873) in 1843. Octavius Browne was his agent in Melbourne from 1847 to 1855. By the 1830s the wool and whaling industries were Brooks' priority and by the end of the decade he was one of the largest London importers of wool, whale oil and whalebone. In 1837 he was one of the founders of the Union Bank of Australia and he remained a director until 1873. He was also a director of the Southern Whale Fishery Company and a number of insurance and mining companies. In 1846 he was elected chairman of the New South Wales and Van Diemen's Land Commercial Association, which regulated London wool auctions.

In 1841 Brooks set up a small office in St Peter's Chambers, off Cornhill in the City of London. In 1855 he took on Robert Spence as a partner and the firm of Robert Brooks Company was established. It remained one of the largest importers of wool for the rest of the century. In the 1840s Brooks owned up to 12 vessels, but in the early 1850s he abandoned his active involvement in shipping. From then onwards his main priority was financing the wool trade and other Australian ventures, including gold mining. He greatly expanded his credit facilities, especially to Robert Towns.

Brooks retired in 1872 and three of his sons took over the management of the company. It continued to handle wool consignments from Australia and to finance pastoral activities in Australia until well into the twentieth century. Its principal business, however, was the ownership and management of tea plantations in Ceylon. Robert Brooks Company was liquidated in 1968.

Reference: Frank Broeze. Mr Brooks and the Australian trade: imperial business in the nineteenth century (Melbourne, Melbourne University Press, 1993)

Related

Existence and Location of Copies:

The original AJCP microfilm of the records filmed from this collection is available at the National Library of Australia [https://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn333700] as well as other institutions holding AJCP microfilm.

Existence and Location of Originals:

The records of Robert Brooks Company, with the exception of the file of letters (1861-90), were acquired by the National Library of Australia in 1969 (MS 2381). They include an 1872-76 letterbook that was not filmed by the AJCP.

For further information see Records of Robert Brooks and Co. (http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-230942481).

Conditions Governing Access:

Available for Access.

Conditions Governing Use:

Many of the records digitised as part of the AJCP are still in copyright. Readers wishing to publish or reproduce documents should seek permission, in the first instance, from the owner of the original material.

Preferred citation:

Acknowledgement of use of this material should refer to the location of the original material and to the Australian Joint Copying Project.

Items from this collection should include references to the location of the original material and to the AJCP nla.obj number, which serves as the online identifier for the digital copy.

Example: M Series: Journal of Capt. James Cook, 18 February 1770, British Library Add. MS 27885 (AJCP ref: http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-1234)

Location of this collection:

National Library of Australia

Parkes Place

Canberra ACT 2600, Australia

Contact:

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