Return/retour

Selection Lists for Archival Sources Concerning Louisbourg and Cape Breton in the Public Record Office. London: High Court of Admiralty - 30. 
Fortress of Louisbourg (Supplement to June, July, 1965 [Report H J 11]: 
Early 1970's Research Undertaken by John and Brenda Dunn)

By 

John and Brenda Dunn

Early 1970's

• (01) PIECE 232: Piece 232 is the first of 5 pieces of HCA 30 which contain the commercial papers of Nicholas G. Lutkens, a "negociant" (See pieces 233-236). He apparently was connected to the Compagnie des Indies since many newspaper clippings connecerning the company were found ..... The box held correspondence and accounts of Lutkens dating 1742-1745. The correspondants were his agents in London, Amsterdam, Hambourg, Paris and several ports. The main topic of discussion seems to have been trade with the West Indies. About 2/3 of the material was in Dutch (some possibly German), and about 1/3 in French. Two English documents were also found. Three 18th century playing cards -- 7 of diamonds, 8 of clubs, and a card in the heart suit -- were among the letters ..... The documents in this box, as well as in the other 4 dealing with Lutkens, were better organized than the other HCA 30 pieces searched. The Dutch documents were not read ..... 

ORDERS PLACED: 

Xeroxes of 4 documents [most of the documents copied are bills for the making of clothes, which will be of comparative interest to the study of costumes in Louisbourg] were ordered for Louisbourg -

(i) aoust 1743, "facture des Marchandises Livrées ce Jour a Monsieur Lutkens d'hambourg par [?] Silvestre de Paris." 1 p. .....
(ii) 26 juillet 1743, "Memoire pour Monsieur," signed Cartagne, 1 p.. Enclosure in (i).....
(iii) [1742] Memoire de ce que je fait et fournie pour monsieur premie .....
(iv) 14 aoust 1742, Doit Monsieur Lugue pour avoir fait un habit de droget de Soye ..., Recu 14 fev. 1743 signé: J. Rouguet .....

• (02) PIECE 233: More of Nicolas Lutkens' business papers are found in HCA 30, piece 233. They are organized in packets with a label on the outside sheet of most. The organization was done some time prior to October, 1970. The letters were only given a brief survey for my research ..... The packets were organized as follows:

(i) 30 letters in Dutch to Mon. Nicolas Lutkens, chez Mons d'Egmont, L'Orient, 1744 .....
(ii) 25 letters from Lewis Pitot of Morlaix to M. Nicolas Lutkens at Brest, January - July 1745 (The correspondence includes documents pertaining to the purchase of English sugars, tobacco, and other prize goods. They are written in French) .....
(iii) 85 letters in French from M. Lichigary of Bayonne to M. Lutkens at Nantes, Bourdeaux, and L'Orient in 1744 and 1745 .....
(iv) Several letters from sundry persons to M. Lutkens at Hamburgh mostly in the year 1743 and some in the year 1744 .....
(v) Contents & observations upon 20 letters of Cornelius de Meyer & Son & on Albertus de Meyer of Amsterdam in 1744 & 1745 .....
(vi) Purport of 7 letters from Hertzer Van Bobart in the year 1745 .....
(vii) Purport of letters & accounts relating to N.G.L. & Riewart Frerecks [6] .....
(viii) Purport of 12 letters from Anton Lutkens of London to N.G.L. in several Ports of France in 1744 and 1745 .....
(ix) "Letters not read," all Dutch to N.G. Lutkens in various ports of France. 28 from Amsterdam .....
(x) "All dutch, all in the years 1741, 1742, 1743, & 1744 Perused about 80" .....
(xi) "All dutch. Perused" About 80 to N. Nicolas Gottl. Lutkens .....
(xii) Packet not labelled, seems to be in Dutch, about 90 .....
(xiii) Unlabelled packet, mostly without envelopes, about 50 .....
(xiv) 40 letters from M. [Le Costo?] dated at Bilboa in 1744 and 1745 to M. Nicholas Lutkens at Nantes, Bourdeaux, and L'Orient in France .....
(xv) Purport of 3 letters from Bethman & Imbert at Bordeaux in 1743 and 1744 .....
(xvi) Purport of 9 letters from Nantes and St. Malo in 1744 and 1745 from Lutman and van Bobardt .....

• (03) PIECES 234-236: Pieces 234-236, like 232 and 233, contain a considerable amount of papers concerning the commerce of Nicolas Lutkens during 1744 and 1745. Included are newspaper clippings, printed inventories of captured ships, and letters to agents in Lorens, Paris, Amsterdam, Biboa, St. Stephen, Bayonne, Bordeaux, L'oriént, Brest, Nantes, Port Louis, and London. The names of some of the agents appear to be:

(i) Antoine Lutkin (Location: London) with the language of the letter being: Dutch .....
(ii) Ochs & Schssreighausser (Location: Nantes) with the language of the letter being: French .....
(iii) Cornelius DeMeyer & Son (Location: Amsterdam) with the language of the letter being: Dutch .....
(iv) Jacques Prevost (Location: Port Louis) with the language of the letter being: French .....
(v) Pictet (Location: Paris) with the language of the letter being: French .....
(vi) Joachim Kahler (Location: Hambourg) with the language of the letter being: German or Dutch? .....
(vii) Jourdain (Location: Brest) with the language of the letter being: French .....
(viii) M. Duhuat (Location: St. Malo) with the language of the letter being: French ..... West Indies trade in sugar and tobacco seems to be the main concern. Of particular interest was a letter containing 2 samples of English flaxen and two of English Hempen, each about 2" by 4", and 2 playing cards -- the 4 of diamonds and the 7 of clubs ..... A legal document dealing with "Fautoux, neg't a Louisbourg, dame hiriard et fils aussi negociant au dit Louisbourg ..." was discovered among the Lutkens papers. It seems to be unrelated to the rest of the contents of the box .....

ORDERS PLACED:

(i) The Fautoux document mentioned above is to xeroxed
(ii) 21 juillet 1744, HCA 30, PN 234-236, no. 41 [3p] signé Girard nore royale, Vrienne, no. royal, Nantes
(iii) 9 janvier 1744, Port Louis, Lettre de Jacques Perron à M. Lutkens, 2f. Répond le 13 dite .....

• (04) PIECE 237: GENERAL COMMENTS: The letters, dated 1744-1745, are mainly of a commercial and personal nature. The main origin of the letters is Bordeaux, with several from Nantes, Paris and Nimes, while a few came from such areas as Beauvais, LaRochelle and Dunkerque. The table (below) indicates that overwhelmingly the letters were addressed to St. Domingue, while Martinique consists of a third less in number. "Others" includes destinations not easily identifiable, or to locate geographically, as well as several letters in Spanish. The letters are dated mostly January-March 1745, with quite a few from October-December, 1744, and some as early as July, 1744. The letters are in two groups:

(i) Those opened before 27 October, 1970 -- these were grouped "as found," and bound together in unsegregated lots
(ii) Those opened after 27 October, 1970 -- these are bound in several groups according to the geographical area of the addressee -- St. Domingue consists of several packets ..... Areas grouped and incident of letters [a total of 340 of which some envelopes contain more than one letter, not all of which may be accounted for - and there are also c. 12 empty envelopes]: (a) Martinique ... 81 (b) St. Dominigue ... 243 (c) Guadeloupe ... 4 (d) Others ... 12 ..... The following items were noted for interest:
(i) 13 September, 1745: convoy orders of Le Chevalier Lespinay
(ii) 15 March, 1745: Letter from Etienne Rigaud, Bordeaux, to M. Le Chevalier Vaudreuil, Lieutenant de Roy, Commandant Cote de St. Domingue
(iii) 16 February, 1745: Letter from "Pierre Bourdict picart"[3 separate signatures] (a) clothing price list for Paris (b) blue ribbon attached -- 1/4 inch wide by 3 feet long ..... 

ORDERS PLACED: 

The following items were copied for the Louisbourg project: 

(i) 20 mars 1744: letter from Dubourdit Lafon, Bordx, à M. Cambon, avocat au conseil Superieur de Lamartinique a St. Pierre
(ii) February, 1745. "Nouvelles Historique Pour Le Siècle Courant, Avec des Réflexions & Remarques Politiques." Vienne: Garhat Bernes, 1745 (iii) 8 January, 1745: Letter from "freres Martinon" (a) contains several (c.5) samples of cloth with price list .....

• (05) PIECE 238: The items in this box dated 1744-1745, were sent mostly from Bordeaux, with other port cities being represented as well. The letters were destined mainly for St. Domingue, with half as many addressed to colonial agents of the merchants and to ships' captains. The contents of the letters related to the war in Europe, the marriage of the Dauphin and to the prices of West Indian goods in Bordeaux ..... The letters were grouped according to colony addressed:

(i) Letters [Total: 28] opened before 27 October, 1970:
(a) Martinique - 9 letters
(b) St. Domingue - 9 letters
(c) Guadaloupe - 9 letters
(d) Others - 9 letters
(ii) Letters [Total: 47 of which some contained more than one letter] opened 27 and 28 October, 1970: (a) Martinique - 16 letters
(b) St. Domingue - 26 letters
(c) Guadaloupe - 1 letter
(d) Others - 3 letters ..... The following is a list of the names of the persons addressed in the two most numerous groups. It was not possible to include those letters opened before 27 October in the following list as letters, enclosures, and envelopes were too difficult to correlate within the time available:
(i) ST. DOMINGUE: de Latapy; Gillibeu; D'Abbadie; Amand de la Rue; Bossiere; Mme La Ve Guisot; Lasezre; I. Touzeau; Ramon Lostains; Francoise Lamun; Francoise [et compagnie]; Sauvage fil; Lassozze; Juchereau de St. Denis; Lassus; Lorry Freres; Baulod; Buttel; Bose; Assorty
(ii) MARTINIQUE: Jean Beatrix; Hyves; Lar Desmarnieres; Roumain; Berard; Desabaye; Bonassons; Louis Hurard; Paul Capilene; Mlle La Ve Monmelliant; Bourgela; Dugournay; Fabre Perier; Dargelez; de la Cuillerie; Nicolas De casse ..... The following items were noted as being of interest:
(a) 2 February, 1745: Letter to deMezy, Louisiana, from "laueuue[sic] dauphine"
(b) 1 November, 1744: Letter from "Sr MarieA. de la Nativité. aux Ursulines de Quebec, "to M. Juchereau de St. Denis, Conseiller du Roy, et Procureur General au Conseil Superieur de St. Domingue - St. Denis' aunt mentions his brother, "Me de Vaulezard," says that she has no news from her nephew, Legardeur, and tells him that Mr. Desligneres and Villemonde were made lieutenants .....

ORDERS PLACED: 

The following items were copied for the Louisbourg Project:

(i) 14 February, 1745: Letter from C. Juchereau De St Denis, Paris, to his father. He mentions that he is eighteen years old and has left college
(ii) 11 December, 1744: Letter from "Actions 1959" to "madame lagarde Nefte et demte Rue Espagnolle, au Cap
(iii) List of ships leaving Martinique since 21 November, 1744, and leaving St. Domingue since 8 December, 1744 .....

• (06) PIECE 239: Piece 239 consists of personal and commercial correspondence from France to the West Indies, with the exception of 5 letters which were addressed to France from the West Indies. The majority were written in the early part of 1745, particularly in March. At the bottom of the box, separated from their envelopes were about 50 letters dating from 1744. Some of these were badly crushed. Legal papers of 1742 were also found here. Two letters in the box were written in Spanish, one in English, and the remainder in French ..... Those envelopes with letters [Total: 272] were addressed as follows:

(i) St. Domingue - 144 letters
(ii) Martinique - 65 letters
(iii) Other West Indies ports - 58 letters
(iv) Bordeaux - 4 letters
(v) Nantes - 1 letter ..... The figures do not represent an accurate number of the letters being sent, as the majority of the envelopes contained from 1-4 letters ..... Of interest in piece 239 was a copy of "Nouvelles Historiques Pour Le Siecle Courant, Avec de Réflexions & Remarques Politiques." (Mois de Fevrier 1745. Vienne: chez Garhat Bernes, 1745, pp. 75-139.) Included in this volume was news of:
(a) Italy: Rome, Naples, Lombardie
(b) Tournique: Constantinople
(c) Germany: Vienna, the Empire
(d) The North: Petersbourg, Hambourg
(e) Great Britain: London
(f) France
(g) Spain (h) Des Pays-Bas: Madrid, Paris Brussels, LaHaye .....

ORDERS PLACED: 

One reference to Louisbourg was found:

(i) 19 janvier 1745: Duplicate letter to M. S.J. Gressier, brother-in-law, "malgré la vigilance des anglois les Vaisseaux de la compe. des indes qui etoient derelache a Louisbourg sont bien arrive dans le port delorient ..." .....

• (07) PIECE 240: These items, numbered 365, were dated between 1743 and 1748, and were not read except where the addresses may have indicated some interest to the Louisbourg Project. They were arranged in three groups. They presumably concern the same general information as revealed in the letters in the other piece numbers containing items dated during this period .....

(i) Items opened prior to 27 October, 1979. There are approximately 200 items in this group
(ii) Two letters opened 27 October, 1970
(iii) Unopened letters [Total: 161.] These are grouped according to the geographical area of the addresses, with Spanish letters segregated:
(a) St. Domingue - 121 letters
(b) Martinique - 33 letters
(c) Spanish - 7 letters ..... The following items were noted for interest:
(a) Letter to M. Brouillet, commandant le fort Louis, 1745
(b) Letter to M. Gouax, secretaire de M. de Mezy, 1744 .....

ORDERS PLACED: 

The following items were copied for the Louisbourg Project:

(i) 7 copies of a "Gazette" (possibly d'Utrecht) in an envelope addressed to M. Heriot, in Leoganne. The "Gazettes" are dated 1748:
(a) January 16, 23, 30
(b) February 6, 13, 20, 27 and the issues are numbered 3 to 9 inclusive
(02) 3 commissions in the militia of L'Isle de La Grenade, signed by the Governor, and dated 1738, 1739, 1742. The 1739 commission is transcribed below: "Nous Gouverneur pour le Roy de l'Isle de la Grenade et dependances La Souslieutenance de la Compagnie d'Infanterie de milice du Sr Barie auquartier dela Basseterre se [trouvane] vaccante par L'avancement du Sr Couinguen a La Lieutenance En pied Etan [g] necesaire d'y pourvoir, Nous Envertû de Lautorité qu'il a plû au Roy nous de partir En cette Isle, avons fait Chois sous le bon plaisir de Monsieur Le General ; du Sr Corthoy fils qui En Enseigne delad Compagnie, sur laparfaite Connoisance qui nous avons deSa Vigilance, Bonne Conduite, fidelité et affection au Service de Sa Majesté a ces causes Nous Avons Nommé Et Nommons, Etably Et Etablissons, Commes Et Committons par ces présentes led.d.Corthon Lieutenant En Second delad Campagnie de Sr Barie, aux honneurs, Privileges Et Exemptions attachées aud Employ. Prions M. DeBouvours Major de cette isle de faire receuvir Et Reconnaitre led Sr Carthon fils Enlad qualité de Lieutenant En Second, de Tous ceux et ainsy qu'il apartiendre ..... Donné au fort Royal de lagrenade le 29e 9br, 1739 ... De [Pradinet]" .....

• (08) PIECE 241: The majority of the letters of piece 241 were written from France to the West Indies; several were addressed to Brest. The previously opened letters were dated the beginning of 1745, with a concentration in March. One letter was in Spanish and several were in English ..... About 200 letters were without envelopes. Unopened letters numbered 137, of which only six were opened by the researcher in 1970. These letters remaining unopened and unread were addressed as follows:

(a) France to Dominigue - 87
(b) France to Martinique - 31
(c) France to Pointe d'antigue - 5
(d) France to Brest - 7
(e) France to other places - 11 ..... The previously-opened letters yielded two items of interest:
(i) Gazette du 30 Janvier 1745, no. 5. A Bordeaux: De L'Imprimerie de al veuve de J. DeLa Court, Seul Imprimeur du Roy, pp. 17-20
(ii) A Queen of Clubs playing card which was enclosed in a letter to St. Malo. The blank side read "adresse pour m. de La plancher pr Brest ..... Monsr Penarumarion ..... negt. a Brest." ..... A rough tracing was made of the card on P.R.O. toilet tissue. The colours on the card were ink black, lead grey, light grey, white and yello [Tracing appears in finding aid H J 11] .....

• (09) PIECE 244: Most of these letters are from French port areas to the French West Indies. The letters originate principally from Nantes, LaRochelle, Bordeaux and Rochefort, while many come from Paris and other locations in the interior. The majority of the pre-1747 letters, some dating as early as 1713, appear to be enclosures or copies of Letters previously sent. The letters were all opened before 27 October, 1970, and have not been arranged in any order .....

(i) Addresses of Letters [Total: 318]
(a) St. Domingue - 137 letters
(b) Leoganne - 50 letters
(c) Martinique - 10 letters
(d) France - 30 letters
(e) Others [includes those geographical areas not easily identified and undoubtedly includes letters to both Europe and the West Indies]
(ii) Dates of Letterstal: 318]:
(a) 1713-1719 - 3 letters
(b) 1720-1729 - 6 letters
(c) 1730-1739 - 13 letters
(d) 1740-1746 - 53 letters (e) 1747 - 225 letters
(f) No Date - 18 letters ..... The following 18 items are noted as being of general interest: ......
(i) "Charet freres" of St. Domingue (or Leoganne)
(a) company charter of 15 Novembre, 1734 - "Societté Charet Et Leg'on"
(b) Cahier of affairs, 5 avril, 1747
(c) affairs of the company, 17 Février, 1747; 4 and 6 mars, 1747; and 17 février, 1747 .....
(ii) The Martinique holdings of Jeanne Civard - worth about 41441 livres. Also 11 letters about company affairs date between 1740 and 1747 .....
(iii) Queen of clubs playing cards, with the four edges clipped. Reverse side: Off Des Souliers/Du 7e Xbre/René Alenandre De 37/Ste avoye JW Face sie: a. initials ARG [W] b. FULLETOT .....
(iv) Marriage contract of "Ecuyer crespin de comte seigneur de pichon major des alibamanes pays de la Louisianne originaire de la ville dagens paroisse de saint la prenne province de guyenné fils major descuyer crespin de Comte ...
(a) 5 pages plus an extract from Nantes parish records
(b) a baptismal record, asked for by the Conseil Superieur of St. Domingue ......
(v) 17 avril. 1747: Declaration communiquée par ordre de sa Majesté Trés-Chrétienne aux Seigneurs Etats Generaux des Provinces-unies."
(a) wants piece
(b) no U-P territory taken to be held
(c) French troops on U-P soil to be rigourously disciplined .....
(vi) 4 aout, 1747. Mercier Dupaty, La Rochelle to his cousin M. L'Allemant, Capt. de Cavalerie, Au Cap.
(a) details of the de la Mothe expedition
(b) Conflan's stay in La Rochelle before going to Rochefort and then to St. Domingue .....
(vii) 4 aout, Cruyue laype [sic], Nantes to Messieurs Linsen et Cie, negotiants, à Leoganne.
(a) the La Jonquière losses as affecting the Nantaises, especially Linsen, who lost considerable cargo from four ships
(b) "List des Navires Pris de la folotte de St. Domingue," which contains 57 names, among which were:
(A) LE NECESSAIRE
(B) LE VIGILENT
(C) LE WILLIAMSBURG
(D) LE LOUISBOURG
(E) LE PERE DE FAMILLE 
(F) LA PAIX ......
(viii) Playing card enclosed in a letter dated 28 mai, 1747, from du hallé, Paris, to "M. de Mondiere fils a St. Domaingne au font de Lile a vache." Inscribed on the back of the 2 of hearts (coloured black) was, "dela societte Passeno[c]e," with two sets of numerals added together (13500# + 7421 = 20921) .....
(ix) "Du Mardi 20 Juin 1747 Amsterdam: Avic Privilege De Nos Seigneurs Lex Etats De Hollande Et De West-Fruse, XLIX." page 2. "De Londres le 13 Juin .../para 3 lines 6-14/L'Amiral Warren partit le 10.pour Portsmouth, & abora le jour suivant son Pavillon à bord du Vaisseau de Guerre le SAINT GEORGE à Spithead, devant mettre incessamment à la voile avec l'Escadre qu'il commande. Les Vaisseaux de Guerre le WARWICK, L'ALOUETTE, & le SCARBOROUGH, qui sont dans la même Rade, en partieront aussi dans peu pour se rendre aux Indes Occidentales [Caps -- italics]..... 

ORDERS PLACED: 

The following items were noted as being of interest to the Louisbourg Project have been copied: 

(i) s.d., "Project detablissement d'un commerce de la nouvelle angleterre aux colonies francoises de l'Amerique." (a) 2 pages, double leaf each (b) 4 stages in the project (A) Achat a Boston
(B) Vente a L'Amerique
(C) Achat a L'Amerique
(D Vente a Boston (c) American cargoes to contain only taffia and sirrop (d) page 1 (bottom) "c'est la Copie de Celluy remis a M. Laporte"... page 2 (bottom) "Cequi fait 46 [VC] .....
(ii) Amsterdam, XLVII, Mardi 13 Juin, 1747: page 2. Coulon de Villiers attacks Colonel Noble. Supplement, page 2, a number of ships seized by Anson and Warren and are now in Portsmouth .....
(iii) Amsterdam, XLVIII, Vendredi 16 Juin, 1747: ... Page 2, De Paris le 9 Juin - Jonquiere vs Anson and Warren ... page 4: Warren receives Order of ther bath ... page 5: Anson and Warren arrive at Portsmouth with French silver .....
(iv) Gazette D'Utrecht, Vendredi, 30 Juin, 1747: ... page 2, Warren arrives at Portsmouth with his squadron ... issues from December 1746 to July, 1747 (c. 150 pages of microfilm) are copied .....
(v) "Enseignement Sur le Commerce projetté Reduction des Monnoyes." Mark in top-left corner "18 4" .....
(vi) Projet de L'Etablissement d'un commerce ... mark in top left corner "18°1-1746" .....
(vii) 28 Jet 1747: Durand Beauval, Paris, to M. Fournier De Belle Vue, Au Cap ... la Jonquiere's encounter with Anson and Warren ... author lost a daughter in the engagement .....
(viii) 2 mai, 1747: Cassaro Au Cap. to "M. Le marquis de Caylen, Gvt des iles du vent, a la Martinique." ... detaile of the D'Anville expedition .....
(ix) 10 Septembre, 1747: de Maugon, Rochefort, to "M. De Lamotte Auile[sic] St. Domingue." ... relates quite a few details of La Jonquiere's battle on his way to Canada .....
(x) 2 Aoust, 1747: "Gab: Michel, Nantes, à M. De Launay, Maché, au Boucassin, côté de St. Domingue" ... (a) page 2 refers to Louisbourg being an inhibitor in the peace negotiations ...(b) playing card, 10 of hearts, with nothing on the reverse side .....

• (10) PIECE 245: The letters date from October, 1746 to August 1747 and consist of letters going from France to the West Indies. In addition to the usual commercial nature of the letters, there are many references to the war in Europe at sea, especially the defeat of la Jonquiere. The letters are grouped according to the geographical area addressed, and were opened after 27 October, 1970: 

(a) St Dominque ... 97
(b) Leogane ... 31
(c) Martinique ... 6
(d) Others ... 7
(e) Total: 141 ..... The following were noted as items of interest:
(i) Letter addressed to "Messieur de Lazy freres Negt/Au Cap françoise Coste/St. Domainque" containing "Relation Exacte et Circonstanciée de L'Escadre Angloise ... & Celle de France ... Envoyée a Plymouth." The relation contains the details of the encounter between LaJonquiere and Anson and Warren, 14 May, 1747, off Finisterre. The author was the captain of a ship at the rear of the French column .....
(ii) Letter from "Le Chev DELEstang DERy" to "Monsieur Le gardeur Repantigny/officier des Troops detachée de/La Marinne en garnison/A St Louis." dated Brest 15 juille, 1747. 2 pages. The information written is brief and general in nature, and refers to La Jonquiere's defeat, the departure of "Lagalisoniere," and the author's activities in Brest .....
(iii) "Suite De La Clef/au/Journal/Historique/sur/Les Matieres Du Tems/Contenant quelques nouvelles de Litteratures &/autres remarques curieuse./ Janvier 1747/Tome LXI/A Paris, Chez la Veuve Ganeau,/ Libraire, rue Saint Jacques, aux Armes/de Dombes, prochela rue du Plâtre/M.DCC.XL VII./Avec Approbation Et Privilege." .....

TABLE OF CONTENTS:
(a) Recapitulation ... p. 3
(b) Italie, Et Turquie ... 27
(c) Etats Du Nord ... 35
(d) Allemagne ... 44
(e) Angleterre & Hollande ... 52
(f) France ... 62 ..... Also:
(A) poem, "A Son Altesse/Monseigneur le Comte de Saxe ..." signed "Le chevalier de S***" pp. 23-26 inclusive
(B) Edits du Roy ...
(i) décembre, 1746
(ii) 1 janvier, 1747 ..... 

ORDERS PLACED: 

The following were copied for the Louisbourg Project: 

(i) Amsterdam, newspaper from 9 December, 1746 to 27 July, 1747 ...
(A) (a) December, 1746: 3rd and 6th December missing
(b) January - March (inclusive): complete
(c) April - May: 4 issues missing each month
(d) June: Complete
(e) July: 5 issues, up to, and including, 21st
(B) Three issues of the newspaper UTRECHT are also included .....
(ii)
(A) Memoire on French West Indies trade with New England, (Copy no. 1) dated 1742. 13 foolscap pages. Unsigned
(B) Covering letter from [Lorn], dated 5 August, 1747 at Nantes
(C) A letter From Peter Faneuil, Boston, is missing .....

• (11) PIECE 246: The letters in Piece 246 were captured en route from France to the West Indies. St. Domingue was the intended destination of most. The letters were found both in a canvas mailbag and loose in the box .....

(I) A very dusty mailbag contained 100 envelopes addressed to St. Domingue. Ninety-six remained sealed, three had previously been opened, and one had been separated from its enclosed letter(s). A few of these had more than one enclosure. It seems that they were taken from the ship L'Heureux which had left Bayonne under the command of Captain Beatris on 20 decembre 1746. Presumably after capture, the mailbag was addressed to The Right Worshipful Sir Henry Penrice Knight, Judge of the High Court of Admiralty, Doctors Common, London .....

(II) The letters found loose in the box were addressed as follows:
(A) Letters Opened:
(i) St. Dominique ... 90 opened
(ii) Martinique ... 5 opened
(iii) Guadeloupe ... 1 opened
(iv) Rochefort ... 2 opened (v) LaRochelle ... 1 opened
(vi) Other ... 5 (vii) Total: 104 opened:
(B) Letters Unopened:
(i) St. Domingue ... 19 unopened
(ii) Martininique ... 1 unopened (iii) Total: 20 unopened ...... In addition thirty six were without envelopes. As usual, many of the envelopes had more than one letter enclosed. April to November of 1747 was the general period of the correspondence ...... Included among the papers were a few notarial records of LaRochelle plus a bundle of papers tied by a shoelace, and entitled: "Liasse Contenant La procuration de M. fortin Secretaire du Roy demeurant a Rochefort proprietaire de L habitation nommé La Salinne Scituée au port au prince, quartier du cul de Sacq de L Eoganne avec Les memoirs notes Et Lettres de M. Le Comte de Maurepas a L'occasion de La demande que M. fortin fait ... 1° des Eaux ... 2° du payement du prix du Terrain qu'on luy a pris ... 3° La liste de nos Parents et amis que nous Prions Mrs dest[anoy?] Clignet d'obligir ..... The research of HCA 30 Piece 246 for Louisbourg was limited to random checks of the opened letters. None of the sealed letters were opened .....

• (12) PIECE 254: Piece 254 consists of letters to France from the French West Indies [one letter was addressed to St. Domingue from France]. About 2/3 to 3/4 of them are personal letters, with the remainder concerning commerce. The majority are dated 1755 and 1756 while a small minority are dated 1758. Most have from 1-10 letters enclosed to be forwarded to other people and/or places. There are about 400 principal letters plus about 400 enclosed letters. The principal letters were mailed to the following places: 

(i) Bordeaux ... 115
(ii) Nantes ... 100
(iii) La Rochelle ... 36
(iv) Marseille ... 30
(v) Paris ... 23
(vi) Rochefort ... 4
(vii) Others ... 85
(viii) Total from the French West Indies: 393
(ix) St. Dominigue ... 1
(x) Total: 394 .....

ORDERS PLACED: 

The order for HCA 30, piece 254, consisted of:
(i) Three letters in torn envelopes, "ma tres chere tante" - 12 septembre 1755, "ma tres chere mere" - 10 septembre 1755, and "ma cher oncle" - 14 septembre 1755 ...
(ii) 22 septembre 1755, Letter from J. Guilon of Port au Prince to M. Nicollas Charet negociant rue De Gorges at Nantes. Brief reference - " ... mais nous ne [voyons?] point de nre arriver qui puisse nous En dire de Recentes surtout du Canada Et Louisbourg où il y a plusieurs Bâtiments dicy ..." ...
(iii) 22 septembre 1755, Letter from V. Martel of Port au Prince to Monsieur Le masse de charmand negociant at Nantes. Brief reference - " ... Nous sommes icy tres inquiet de nouvelles du Canada. Il ne nous est pas encore parvenu aucun nre ny Goelettes et Btau de lisle Royale ..." .....

• (13) PIECE 255: INTERCEPTED MAILS AND PAPERS - FRENCH: This group of letters consists of mail from the West Indies addressed to locations in France. They are dated July-August 1756, and April-August, 1754. They were opened after 27 October, 1970, and are grouped as follows: 

(a) La Rochelle ... 113 letters
(b) Nantes ... 34 letters
(c) Bordeaux ... 32 letters
(d) Paris ... 15 letters
(e) Marseille ... 1 letter
(f) Rochefort ... 1 letter
(g) Other ... 73 letters
(h) Total: 269 ..... There were a number of letters addressed to Monsieur A Courtableau fils, commanding a ship in 1753/1754 bound for Quebec and marinique. The name of the ship is unknown.
(i) From I.M. Garr[y], dated 1 may, 1754, La Rochelle, Addressed to Quebec. Contained news of home and wished him a good trip
(ii) 1754, half-page personal letter from jacob [sic]
(iii) 1754, La Rochelle. from Jacques B[onn]aud. Tells Courtableau to follow the advice of Dugure [sic] in his (Bonnaud's) affairs. The letter is one page and badly stained, but legible
(iv) 12 May, 1754. From I Valable. 1 1/2 pp. of commercial affairs
(v) Undated letter from Daniau, to Courtableau at St. Pierre. The letter is one page and personal
(vi) 24 July, 1754. From A. Duma[r], Quebec to Courtableau at Gaspée. A 2 page letter containing commercial and personal affairs
(vii) 19 April, 1754, Bonnaud to Courtableau at Quebec, and, (as above) tells him to follow the orders of M. Alexandre Dumer
(viii) 4 August, 1754, from Duma[r] and St. Martin. 3 pages about his stay in Quebec. No envelopes.
(ix) 13 April, 1754, la Rochelle. From M.D. Tayeau. Addressed to Quebec
(x) 1754, from Guadeloupe. From B. Valable
(xi) 29th October, 1753, La Rochelle. From N. Huazto Courtableau through his father in La Rochelle .....

• (14) PIECE 256: Twelve letters remain unopened in the box; these have been bound together. Only letters previously opened were read and will be discussed here ..... The opened letters were en route from the French West Indies to France, with the exception of 12. Nine were written to Martinique and three to Quèbec - the latter and some of the former were addressed to a Monsieur Courtableau. All of the opened letters in the box were written in 1756. Frequent reference is made to the death of M Roy, Juge du Cap Francois. One such letter is addressed to leNormant De Mezi, "Conseller d'Etat Intendant général des Armées Navales de france, en son hôtel, a Paris." ..... The opened letters, not counting enclosed letters, were addressed as follows:

(a) La Rochelle ... 88 letters
(b) Bordeaux ... 28 letters
(c) Nantes ... 23 letters
(d) Paris ... 8 letters
(e) Others ... 45 letters
(f) Martinique ... 9 letters
(g) Québec ... 3 letters ..... In addition, there was a pile of opened letters which had not been refolded and often had been separated from their envelopes. These are bound together as found, while those letters which had been refolded with enclosures and envelopes are bound together according to address ......

ORDERS PLACED: 

Xeroxes of four letters were ordered for the Louisbourg Restoration Project from HCA 30 piece 256:

(i) 19 juin 1756, Letter from Monsieurs Mesnier & Dogers at Cap [Francois] to M. Rodrigue at La Rochelle. It is interesting to note that the former two men are mentioned in Nicolas Lutkens' correspondence and seem to have been his agents (see HCA 30, pieces 232, 233 and 234-236). Included in the letter is a form made out to Francois Guillot, capne.
(ii) 15 juillet 1756, Mesnier and Dogas of Cap [Francois] to M. Beltremieux at la Rochelle
(iii) 20 juillet 1756, Mons J. Minbielle at Cap [Francois] to M. Carrabus ainé negotiant à Bayonne
(iv) 21 juillet 1756, [Pavadin?] at Cap Francois to M. [T]ardieu Mtre. Raffmieu at la Rochelle .....

• (15) PIECE 257: The letters are a mixture of personal and commercial correspondence from the West Indies to France, with one letter from France to Martinique. The majority of them are addressed to LaRochelle and Bordeaux and are dated 1756. Several letters have enclosures to be directed to other people and/or places in France. All of the correspondence in this box had previously been opened ..... The contents of the box was divided into two sections - one section was wrapped in oilskin type of paper and the other section was loose in the box. The researcher left the former section as found and organized the latter into groups according to address. The intended destinations of the letters were as follows:

(A) LOOSE SECTION:
(i) LaRochelle ... 45
(ii) Nantes ... 16
(iii) Bordeaux ... 14
(iv) Paris ... 4
(v) Others ... 29
(vi) Total: 108 (vii) Martinique ... 1
(viii) Grand Total: 109
(B) WRAPPED SECTION:
(i) Bordeaux ... 8
(ii) LaRochelle ... 6
(iii) Nantes ... 1
(iv) Total: 15 [A large number of envelopes were missing for the letters in this section] ..... The wrapped section contained many official papers. Some of these concerned the Company of the Indies, such as a printed "Arret Du Roy" of 26 fevrier 1726, "Concernant les défenses faites aux particuliers d'envoyer des Vaisseaux et de faire dans les Pays de la Concession de la Compagnie des Indies."Five extracts of the Registry of the Office of the Admiralty in Cap Francois, St. Domingue, were also found .....

ORDERS PLACED: 

Three things have been xeroxed from HCA 30, piece 257: 

(i) 21 juillet 1756, Duplicate letter from [Paradined?] of Cap Francois to Mrs. J. LeBeuf & Comp., negt. at laRochelle. Brief reference to Louisbourg - "4 mallorient venant De Louisbourg qui ont fretté à 35 [?] 40 d. à tous risque ..." ...
(ii) 11 aoust 1756, Letter from Boyé to his sister. Reference similar to (1) - "Voila 4 malouins qui Sont arrivé de Louisbourg qui Sont la ville [...?...] ...
(iii) 26 fevrier 1726, Arret du Roy concerning commerce and the Compagnie des Indies, as mentioned above .....

• (16) PIECE 264: Environ les trois quarts du contenu de cette boite est constitué de lettres adressées de France à des gens de Louisbourg vers 1756-1757. Il s'agit de lettres adressées aussi bien au gouverneur Drucourt qu'à de simples soldats ou habitants de Louisbourg, comme à Madame Boularderie demeurant "dans sa maison près du cartier du roy." ..... AND Peter Wilson Coldham, 16 Foxley Hill Road, Purley, Surrey, England to Eric Krause: ... There are approximately 500 letters in Box HCA 30/264 from which I have identified and separated those which are clearly addressed to persons in Louisbourg or, from their content, relate to the town. Those I have packed separately within the box, leaving aside some few which have become separated from their wrappers and cannot now be identified as to addressee .... .....

• (17) PIECE 657: There are twelve items in this number: 

(i) November 1702-late 1712: Registers of Sealings in the Prize Appeals Court
(ii) 1703: Clearance papers from the French embassy in Lisbon for LE THOMAS, Captain Jean Drey, and signed by Pierre Rouille
(iii) 1708-1714: Proctor's fee book (Probate)
(iv) 1736-1757: Memoranda Book -
(A) Front Cover; N19/Livres ou Memoires/ Du Achat/ Fait En/ Chine/1738
(B) Navigation (astrological) figurings and Problem solving
(C) Price Lists: sometimes comparing prices in France
(D) Form letter inserted between the pages
(E) The book appears to belong to M. Chautard, Ile de France
(v) 1705: A list of cargo and prices of the goods belonging to Prophet Daniel and Abraham Partman
(vi) 1732: "Traite General Des Manoeuvres Des Vaisseaux ..." - 8x10 inch sheets
(vii) ca. 1720-1750: Description of the coast of the Near East
(viii) ca. 1753-1759: Portion of a ship's log
(ix) ca. 1725: "Trouver la latitude par la distance du Zenith a L'Equateur." One (11x14 inches) sheet
(x) ca. 1729-1730: Journal of a voyage to China
(xi) ca. 1720: "Routier General pour servir aux voyages des Indes, De la Chine et du Perou"
(xii) 1704-1705: Frigate LE DAUPHIN, LaRochelle, ship's log .....
(18) PIECE 666: The contents of piece 666 date circa 1745-1751 and include principally papers from captured French war and Companie des Indes vessels. The bulk of the material is as follows:
(i) The bound log of the Chameau, a ship taken by Warren's fleet on July 7, 1747. The English continued to use the book, copying in it a great deal of official correspondence of the later war years. Among the correspondence are various letters by Peter Warren (e.g. orders to Captain Gwynn, commander of "Ambuscade") .....
(ii) A hand-written bound volume of 176 pages - "Routier pour la Navigation des indes". No date is given. The volume gives instructions for navigation to various ports (St. Domingue, Ganges, etc.) The last few pages are a directory of Malais-French vocabulary and phrases .....
(iii) A four page leaflet, "Plan d'un canon de 24# avec touttes & Exercice Du Canon" which was found loose in No. 2 above .....
(iv) A printed volume of 1747 - "Signaux de Jour." The booklet detailed "signaux de Jour L'Escadre Etant a l'ancre ou a voile" and more specifically "signaux de Jour pour les Vaisseaux Du Roy Commandés par M. de Saint George en 1747." It was printed at L'Orient: "Chez la veuve de Pierre Durand, Imprimeur de la Marine & de la Companie des Indies." Six pages of hand-written notes followed the text .....
(v) A printed booklet of 1747 - "Signaux de Nuit" which seems to have been the companion to No. 4 above .....
(vi) A few unrelated captured papers Noteworthy among these were a leaflet entitled "No. 6, Cahier de proportion d'affuts de marine", and a playing card, the eight of diamonds. The latter was a bill of sale for clothing which were listed on the back of the card, dated 27 aoust 1758 and signed Tanchanet. An unusual feature of the card, as compared to other cards found during the research of HCA 30 and 32, was an abstract design on the reverse side .....

ORDERS PLACED: 

A xerox was made for item no. 3 - "Plan d'un canon ..." and the leaflet on proportions of gun carriages mentioned in item No. 6 .....

• (19) PIECE 669: The number consists of a small (4x5 inch) envelope containing one item, a badly crumpled, difficult-to-read clearance for Louis Keane [sic] from Stockholme to Amsterdam. The document is written in Spanish .....

• (20) PIECE 670: INTERCEPTED MAILS AND PAPERS - FRENCH: Two items form this number: 

(i) A book listing the cargo manifest of "La Triomphante de Nantes," bound from nantes to martinique in early 1745
(ii) 1743 book of mathematical exercises .....

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