Lighthouse Advisory Committee

The archive consists of minute books, 1904-1951, which also include correspondence and other memoranda; an LAC letter book, 1900-1903; a command paper published by the LAC; and a copy of the light vessels overhauls committee report, 1930.

The Lighthouse Advisory Committee (LAC) developed out of the 1858 Royal Commission, which looked at the current state of lighthouse provision in Britain, in an attempt to suggest ways in which it might be improved. The committee itself grew up with the founding of the Chamber of Shipping, with which it was closely allied, and was made up of UK shipowners, merchants and underwriters, whose job it was to decide the yearly level of expenditure needed to maintain existing lighthouses and provide for new ones. The Committee met regularly at the Chamber of Shipping, and held annual meetings in conjunction with other regulatory bodies.

Reference: Lighthouse Advisory Committee report, 1861 (MSS.367/LAC/4/1); Chamber of Shipping Annual Report, 1950-1951 (MSS.367/COS/1/4/36).

This collection is available to researchers by appointment at the Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick. See http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/services/library/mrc/using/

Link to full catalogue: http://mrc-catalogue.warwick.ac.uk/records/LAC

The archive was deposited by the Chamber of Shipping in December 1995, as part of the larger collection of British Shipping Federation records.