Guide to the Natural History Museum: Letters of the Keeper of Zoology Archive (as filmed by the AJCP), 1841-1973

Summary

Collection number:

M2599-M2610

Creator:

British Museum (Natural History). Department of Zoology

Extent:

258 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 reference.

Background

Content Summary:

Correspondence 1858-1945 Subjects include: New Zealand lizards; mud fish from Hokitika, New Zealand; lizards and butterflies from New Hebrides; sponges from the Philippines; butterflies and insects from New Guinea; appointment of taxidermist for Public Library, Museum and National Gallery of Victoria; and sale of Gilbert Raynor's collection of Australian lepidoptera.

Foreign letters 1841-1869. Subjects include birds from Australia, New Zealand, New Guinea and Sumatra, and the collecting of shells and crustacea.

Reports and minutes to Trustees 1840-1850. Subjects include fishes of Port Jackson, birds and shells from New South Wales and John Gould's collection.

Miscellaneous subject files. Subjects include: Animal Protection and Game Act 1921-1922; British, Australian and New Zealand Antarctic research expedition 1929-1931; Harold Hall expeditions 1960-1969; North Borneo expedition 1956; and New Guinea expedition 1964-1965.

Great Barrier Reef expedition files 1922-1963.

Curator of Birds correspondence 1896-1918.

7. Official documents and correspondence of the Vertebrate Section 1893-1915.

Biographical / Historical:

The Department of Zoology has its origins in the Department of Natural and Artificial Productions which was set up at the founding of the British Museum in 1756. In 1806 it was renamed the Department of Natural History and Modern Curiosities and was under the keepership of George Shaw (1751-1813) and later Carl Dietrich Eberhard Konig (1774-1851). Most of the records from this period remain in the archives of the British Museum, though there are a number of early letters and reports included in DF200 and DF205.

In 1836 the Department was divided into three branches, of which zoology was one, and in 1856 the branch was given the status of a department, with John Edward Gray (1800-1875) as the first Keeper, and a staff of 15. Gray made great progress in registering, cataloguing and exhibiting the growing collections, and was the first zoologist to gain and deserve scientific eminence through his work at the Museum. Although Gray pressed long and hard for a move to larger premises, he had been succeeded by Dr A Gunther (1830-1914) by the time the move to South Kensington took place in 1883. When Gunther retired in 1895 the department had a staff of 35, divided into the Vertebrate, Invertebrate and Insect Sections. In 1913 the Insect Section became the separate Department of Entomology.

In 1922 the department was divided into nine sections, including Mammals, Birds, Fishes, Mollusca and Crustacea. The number and precise designation of the sections has changed over the years, and by 1965 there were 17, each with its own head, and keeping its own records.

By 1965 the department was responsible for one of the largest and most important collections of zoological material in the world, and was an international centre for research in animal taxonomy and systematics. The research was supported by a fine departmental library, rich in manuscripts and rare books. The department was also responsible, in conjunction with the exhibition staff, for displays in the zoological galleries. Staff numbered 98, who between them saw to nearly 5,000 visitors a year, coped with the acquisition of over 35,000 specimens a year, and were responsible for over 100 monographs, papers and reports.

References

Gunther, A E, 1975. 'A century of zoology at the British Museum through the lives of two keepers, 1815-1914'. Dawsons of Pall Mall.

Gunther, A E, 1980. 'The founders of science at the British Museum 1753-1900'. The Halesworth Press.

Stearn, W T, 1981. 'The Natural History Museum at South Kensington'. Heinemann. Chapter 12.

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-vn1067256] as well as other institutions holding AJCP microfilm.

Existence and Location of Originals:

Archives Department, Natural History Museum. Cromwell Road, South Kensington, London SW7 5BD, England.

Collection reference: DF 200-299. For further information, see Natural History Museum Library and Archives (http://www.nhm.ac.uk/our-science/departments-and-staff/library-and-archives.html).

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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