Papers of Sir Andrew Buchanan
JISC (Non Formula Funding) award (1995) for cataloguing and conservation
Sir Andrew Buchanan (1807-1882) was a distinguished 19th-century diplomat who enjoyed postings to many European cities, notably St. Petersburg. His archive contains official reports and instructions, but is also of great interest for its correspondence with other diplomats and friends, which include comments on contemporary European affairs and on political news from Britain. It includes some papers relating to the diplomatic career of his son George, who was stationed in Russia during the time of the 1917 Revolution.
A general collection level description on the Manuscripts Online Catalogue provides more background information.
Until the project was launched, the collection was served only by a few pages of survey listing by the National Register of Archives, identifying the date coverage of the volumes of correspondence but providing no means of public access. The binding of letters into volumes had added a problem, as handling was difficult without risk of damage to the paper.
The project enabled the disbinding of the letters, the detailed cataloguing of all volumes in the collection, and the delivery of online access.
Next project: Denison of Ossington Collection