Porter Catalogue of Manuscripts in Harris
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A CATALOGUE OF MANUSCRIPTS IN HARRIS MANCHESTER COLLEGE OXFORD DENNIS PORTER HARRIS MANCHESTER COLLEGE OXFORD updated version 2020 First published in 1998 by Harris Manchester College, Mansfield Road Oxford OX1 3TD Copyright Harris Manchester College, 1998 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system without permission in writing from the publisher. A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. ISBN 0-95087 15-4-0 Grateful acknowledgement is made to the Unitarian Historical Society to reprint The Manuscripts of William Shepherd, by Francis Nicholson and Ernest Axon, previously published in the Transactions of the Unitarian Historical Society, v. 2, no. 4, 1902. Copies of the book may be obtained in the UK direct from the publisher, Harris Manchester College, Mansfield Road, Oxford OX1 3TD Printed and bound in Great Britain by Antony Rowe, Bumpers Farm, Chippenham, Wiltshire SN14 6LH CONTENTS Preface Introduction MANUSCRIPTS George & Richard Acland Armstrong Papers Robert & Robert Brook Aspland Papers John Worsley Austin Lectures Samuel Bache Lecture Notes Thomas Belsham Papers Joseph Bretland Papers Joseph Estlin Carpenter Papers Lant & Russell Lant Carpenter Papers William Henry Channing Sermons Thomas William Chignell Papers College History Additional Papers Valentine David Davis Papers George Eyre Evans Papers Thomas Wesley Freckleton Papers Lancelot Austin Garrard Lectures Henry Grove Notes Nicholas Thomas Heineken Lecture Notes Brooke & Hannah Herford Papers Herford-Wicksteed Papers George Dawes Hicks Papers John Howe Sermons Lawrence Pearsall Jacks Papers Daniel Jones and Samuel Jones Fund Edmund Kell Gift Letterbook "DM & Letterbook "D" Addendum Theophilus Lindsey Sermons Travers Madge Lecture Notes Manchester New College (London) Manuscripts Harriet Martineau Papers James Martineau Papers Miscellaneous Manuscripts Miscellaneous Notebooks James Edwin Odgers Papers Job Orton Notebook Robert Travers & Margaret (Osler) Herford Papers Edward Pickard Sermons Eric Shirvell Price Papers Joseph Priestley Papers Radice family Papers Ernest Renan Lectures Robberds Family Papers Edward Stanley Russell Papers Sarah Savage Notebooks John Seddon Papers Shorthand Keys George Vance Smith Annotations Sidney Spencer Papers John James Tayler Papers John Taylor Papers Barbara Thomas Papers Unitarians in India William Hill Wareing Sermons Warrington Academy Papers Willaston School William Whitaker Notebooks Joseph Blanco White Papers Philip Henry Wicksteed Papers Henry Winder Papers Wood Papers William Rayner Wood Lecture Notes Richard Wright Papers James Yates Shorthand Notes APPENDIX Axon, E & Nicholson, F The Manuscripts of William Shepherd Index PREFACE Researchers into the history of radical Protestant Dissent in England, of which there are ever growing numbers, have three major repositories to visit. These are Dr. Williams's Library in London, John Rylands University Library of Manchester and Harris Manchester College, Oxford. Each contains extensive book and pamphlet collections covering in the main the last 350 years, plus large numbers of documents of various types and origins. These manuscripts can be letters, lecture notes, sermons, diaries, annotations of books, and of course a catch all 'miscellaneous' heading. Finding a way into this vast assemblage of items can be daunting task, and both Dr. Williams's Library and John Rylands Library have indexes to track particular manuscripts. However Harris Manchester College has suffered in the past under a real handicap by possessing only the most rudimentary finding tools. For example I have asked in past years whether the College possesses manuscript material from or to a particular 19th century Unitarian; the answer given, except for the major figures, was always 'We do not know'. The only solution was to go through a great number of possible groups of letters in the hope of finding an item. For the majority of busy scholars, with limited time available, this was not a feasible option. Something had to be done and following the receipt of essential grant funding from the British Library, the College was able to engage Dennis Porter, formerly of the Bodleian, in 1988 to undertake the cataloguing and indexing of the manuscripts, on a part-time basis. His perseverance has borne fruit and this volume is the result. We are indebted to him for his expertise and commitment to a large and daunting task. The College now has a first class catalogue, and in the last couple of years as Dennis Porter's work has progressed, my requests for letters of particular 19th century figures have consistently met with a quick and positive response. It has long been recognised that the College possesses important manuscripts that deserve attention by scholars if they can be properly accessed. The papers associated with the life and work of Manchester College itself, stretching from 1786, are very extensive. As the reader will see from this catalogue reference is made to the papers of Joseph Blanco White, the Martineaus, Philip H Wicksteed, LP Jacks amongst many others, all key and representative figures of their time. This work, which we hope will find its way to many libraries and repositories, should enable researchers to locate precisely all the manuscripts, so ensuring their research time is spent to the best effect. This is not the end of the story, as the College regularly gains new deposits of papers both by donation and purchase, so there will be additions. However this is the core of the historic collection on radical Protestant Dissent, which is amongst the college's greatest endowments. It is our hope that, through this catalogue scholars will make increasing use of its treasures, now superbly housed and with improved facilities for access, in the 21st century and beyond. Alan Ruston Chairman Manchester College Council 1988-1996 INTRODUCTION In his Oxford Libraries outside the Bodleian (2nd edn. 1980), p, 73, Paul Morgan, the leading authority on the history and contents of Oxford college libraries, wrote that 'the wealth of research material in Manchester College library is too little known' and, further 'the manuscripts at Manchester College form one of the most important collections in existence for the history of British dissent, with the emphasis on Unitarianism.' It is hoped that this catalogue will enable the research material embodied in those manuscripts to become better known and more frequently used. This is not the place to summarise the history of the College. For that the reader should consult V.D. Davis, A History of Manchester College (London, 1932), still useful although in need of updating; Barbara Smith (ed.), Truth, Liberty, Religion :essays celebrating two hundred years of Manchester College (Oxford, 1986); and, in much smaller compass, Joanna Parker, Manchester College :a short history 1786-1990 (Oxford, 1990). On the College library specifically, Morgan's book cited above, his essay in Truth, Liberty, Religion, pp. 111-26, and his Select Index of Manuscript Collections in Oxford libraries outside the Bodleian (Oxford, 1991) are the major sources. One of the groups of manuscripts not described in this catalogue are the library catalogues. For information on them the reader should consult the two first-named publications by Morgan. For many reasons frequent changes of the location of the College, shortage of money, temporary Second World War loss of premises among them few of the College's manuscripts have ever been properly catalogued or adequately indexed. The one major exception to this was the papers of William Shepherd (1768-1847), prominent Unitarian minister, wit and friend of many politicians, particularly on the radical wing. Nearly a century ago a detailed handwritten catalogue was compiled by Francis Nicholson and Ernest Axon who also published the article in the Transactions of the Unitarian Historical Society which is reproduced as an appendix to this catalogue. Because of the availability of their catalogue, published surveys of manuscripts relating to various subjects or geographical areas have included references to the Shepherd papers but sometimes missed other interesting manuscripts relevant to their purpose. Due to some of the historic difficulties referred to above and to some extent also to the period of time over which this catalogue has been compiled by part-time work, there are certain anomalies. These are particularly obvious in those instances where manuscripts which belong together have been found and catalogued at widely differing times and under different shelfmarks (e.g. MSS. Wood 45 and 46 which really belong with MS. M.N.C. Misc. 7). The so-called 'Letterbook "D"', into which letters of people considered eminent were put apparently by the College historian V.D. Davis, contains a choice example of this: a letter of Charles Darwin in two widely separated parts. Other manuscripts which are known to have been in the College long before this cataloguing began (for example a shorthand notebook of Joseph Priestley and two letters of William Lloyd Garrison) are there no longer. Half of a letter of John Stuart Mill, of which the first part is in 'Letterbook "D"'. turned up in Japan, but whether it was ever present in the College is unclear. What are present and in great abundance are the internal records of the College. Many of these will be found catalogued