Letters from Codrington to his brother Tom Codrington, 1867-1872

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Apart from a few letters written while sailing on the Southern Cross or when visiting Auckland in 1872, the letters were all written at Norfolk Island. They commence in May 1867, when Codrington first arrived at Norfolk Island. They record his first impressions of the island and the Pitcairn Islanders who lived there, including Rev. George Nobbs and Sidney Nobbs. He also wrote about the geology of the island and a hurricane which struck the island in 1872.

The letters deal generally with the affairs of the Melanesian Mission, Codrington's work as a teacher and his relations with his students, his daily routines, the arrival of trading vessels, American whalers, French vessels and British warships, visits by Prince Alfred, the Duke of Edinburgh, and William Cowie, Bishop of Auckland, baptisms and confirmations, the ordination of George Sarawia as the first Melanesian deacon and priest, cruises of the Southern Cross, and Codrington's visits to Mota, Auckland, Sydney and Queensland. There are many references to Bishop George Selwyn, Rev. Charles Bice and Bishop John C. Patteson, the travels of Lord Pembroke in the Pacific, the deaths of Patteson and Joseph Atkin in 1871, the resulting disruption of the Mission, retaliatory action by HMS Rosario, criticisms of Captain Albert Markham, the Queensland and Fijian labour trade, problems with returned labourers, the possibility of sending missionaries to work with the islanders in Queensland and Fiji, and Codrington's refusal to accept the bishopric of Melanesia. More generally, the letters refer to Codrington's health, family and financial matters, English friends and acquaintances, the printing and distribution of his photographs, his collection of stone and shell adzes and other artefacts, the transmission of artefacts to the Blackmore Museum in Salisbury, the climate and weather.

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