Papers of P.E. Roberts

The Papers of P.E. Roberts consists of lists extracted from the India Office Letter Books for 1702 to 1753. These handwritten lists detail, for each year, all the East India Company ships sent out from Britain, their tonnage, the destination of each and the value of the cargo.

With the lists are two typed letters from Roberts to William Harrison Moreland, sent from Worcester College, Oxford. The first, dated 12 January 1924, explains that Roberts had been looking through old papers and had come across the lists which he had made about 23 years ago. Feeling he would not use them, he was about to dispose of them when he thought Moreland might find them helpful. He therefore asks if Moreland would like them. Roberts also comments on his admiration for Moreland's books on Indian Economic History.

In the second letter, dated 15 January 1924, Roberts thanks Moreland for his letter and writes to send him the extracts. Roberts recalls that he was working for Sir William Hunter at that time he made the lists and, that subsequently, he found the lists were accurate according to Hardy's Shipping Register.

P.E. Roberts worked at some time with Sir William Wilson Hunter in compiling statistics regarding India. He completed the second volume of Hunter's A history of British India after Hunter's death. Roberts was a Fellow of Worcester College, Oxford, teaching history, and was part of the College's governing body in 1936. He authored books about India.

Open. Please contact the archivist. Details can be found here. The archive is open on Tuesdays and Fridays 10-5, and Thursdays 2-5. Access is to any researcher without appointment but it will help if an appointment is made via phone or email. Please bring photo ID.

it is unknown how the material became part of the Society's collections. Presumably, W.H. Moreland, a member of the Society, deposited them at some juncture.

These papers were catalogued by Nancy Charley, RAS Archivist, in 2022.

Digital photography (without flash) for research purposes may be permitted upon completion of a copyright declaration form, and with respect to current UK copyright law.

The material was sent from P.E. Roberts to W.H. Moreland.

The Society's collections hold a few books written by P.E. Roberts. Details can be found here.