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Provenance Note
Many of the documents in this series were previously located atML MSS 743/1, 2 or 3. Documents 6, 11-12, 24-27, 33-35, 99-105,109, 112-120, 123, 129-133, 137, 145, 187-190 and 195, previouslylocated at ML MSS 743/1, were acquired for the Mitchell Libraryfrom the London bookseller Francis Edwards in December 1946. Documents 4, 86, 94, 126, 193-194 and 196 previously located atML MSS 743/2, were acquired for the Library from Maggs Brothers inLondon, in December 1946. Document 28, previously located at ML MSS 743/3, was acquiredfor the Library from Angus Robertson in December 1933. Other documents in this series were purchased in 1884 from LordBrabourne by Sir Saul Samuel, the Agent-General for New SouthWales. They were transferred to the Mitchell Library in 1910 andwere part of the accession which became known as the Brabournecollection. These include documents 82-84 previously located at ML A78-2;document 98 previously located at ML A78-3; document 144 previouslylocated at ML A79-2; documents 30, 62, 88, 92-93, 186 and 197previously located at ML A79 -3; documents 8, 56-61 and 127previously located at ML A 80-1; and documents 2-3, 14-16, 20-23,31-32, 66, 135, 139-140 previously located at ML A80-2. Still other documents are part of an accession of Banks paperspurchased by the Public Library of New South Wales from Sotheby's,London, in May 1929. These include documents 67-77, 89-90, 125 and128 previously located at ML A81; documents 5, 7, 9, 18-19, 29, 65,78-81, 91, 95, 106, 110 and 138 previously located at ML A82; anddocuments 97 and 184-185 previously located at ML A83. Documents 107-108, previously located at ML C180, were acquiredfor the Library from Angus Robertson in December 1912. Documents 1, 10, 85, 87, 122, 141 and 191-192 previously locatedat ML C181, were acquired from Angus Robertson in February1911. Document 96, previously located at ML Ah 41/5, was acquired fromJ. R. Lawson in November 1945. Document 182, previously located at ML As 24/1, and document183, previously located at ML As 24/2, were acquired from anunknown source. Documents 178-181, previously located at ML As24/3, were acquired from Maggs Brothers of London in December1946. Document 136, previously located at ML A11, was part of thecollection of David Scott Mitchell which was bequeathed to theState Library of New South Wales by Mitchell in July 1907. Document 111, previously located at ML B1124, was presented tothe Chancellor of Sydney University by the President and Fellows ofYale University in February 1947. It was then presented to theMitchell Library. Document 134, previously located at ML Doc 1120, was acquiredfro the Library from W.A. Myers in July 1967. The remaining documents in this series were part of the personallibrary of Sir William Dixson which was bequeathed to the StateLibrary of New South Wales in 1952. Dixson's bequest was formallyhanded over when the Dixson Library was opened in 1959. Theseinclude documents 13, 17, 63-64, 124, 142 and 177 previouslylocated at DL MSQ 158; and document 176 previously located at DLQ78/9. Many letters in this series include the original folio numberassigned by Banks, written in ink in an unknown hand in the topright hand corner. It is now not possible to reconstruct Banks' originalarrangement. The series has therefore been arranged alphabeticallyby correspondent's name.
Background Note
Banks received a mass of correspondence from a diverse range ofpeople, discussing an equally diverse range of topics. Hiscorrespondence was generally well organised though the subsequentdispersal of his papers means this cannot be reconstructed. His many correspondents include William Townsend Aiton, JohnAllen, George Bass, John Lewis Burckhardt, Charles Burney, DavidCollins, J.A. Currie, James Dickson, Jonas Dryander, ThomasEarnshaw, Johann Reinhold Forster, John Fothergill, Robert FulkeGreville, William Harvey, Lord Hawkesbury, Horticultural Society,Anna Josepha King, Thomas Andrew Knight, Jacques Julien deLabillardiere, Sir James Lahe, Archibald Lee, John Linton, AndrewLumisden, Evan Nepean, Thomas Pennant, Duchess of Portland, Duke ofPortland, Nathaniel Portlock, John Sibthorp, James Edward Smith,Daniel Solander and Marmaduke Tunstall.
View Series 72 in the Catalogue
View Series 72 in the Sir Joseph Banks Papers website
