Wednesday, August 07 2024
During my time at Lloyd’s Register Foundation, I had the opportunity to experience various aspects of working in an archive. Initially drawn to curatorial positions, my week in the historic collections at Lloyd’s Register Foundation broadened my perspective, introducing me to the world of archives and libraries that underpin museums and heritage institutions. I joined the Heritage & Education Centre team for the week of 15 –19 July 2024, and no two days were the same. From digitising records to scanning paper documents to answering enquiries, my week consisted of a range of activities that I had not previously considered. Even though I had limited knowledge of maritime history going into the work experience, I was pleasantly surprised by how compelling I found the archives and how much it translated into my A-level subjects and general interests.
Most of my time was split between helping the heritage team in the archives with cataloguing and organising files in preparation for their move back to Fenchurch St in the new year, and meeting with other team members virtually. These meetings were insightful, providing me with information on their specific roles, how they entered the career field, and their ongoing projects. I gained valuable insights into potential avenues for archival jobs by talking to alumni of universities I am considering and individuals who have volunteered or worked at other heritage sites and museums that I may aspire to work at in the future.
One of the highlights of my experience was handling rare books, including a 1773 edition of Captain Cook’s Voyages and the archive’s collection of Lloyd’s Register volumes, which date back to the late 18th century. Before talking to the archivists and librarian, I had not considered the significance of the provenance of rare books. While I had always been intrigued by the survival of ancient texts and their ability to communicate with us through language, I had not thought about the books as physical objects with their own stories. I examined the colour and texture of the paper, company watermarks, the strength of the binding, and the condition of the books—whether annotated or perhaps used more for decoration—this was enlightening for me as an English Literature student accustomed to studying textual content.
An exciting activity I was involved in was learning to use the 4DigitalBooks robotic scanning machine, the technology used for capturing images of the archive’s books to make them available online. I have a passion for exploring how people interact with literature and artefacts in virtual spaces versus physical ones; this is in fact the topic of my Extended Project Question ( EPQ). Witnessing this machine in action was not only fascinating but also expanded my knowledge and experience in the digital heritage space. The discussions I had with the team about the temporality of objects and papers in a digital condition, and the often-higher durability of older materials compared to modern ones were particularly engaging.
I also found the investigative side of archiving exciting; on my first day, I was given a pamphlet which had been taken from a larger text. Using clues from the text in front of me, I scoured the internet for the book it was taken from. Whilst trying to find answers to mysteries and enquiries such as these can seem frustrating and endless, when you unearth an answer, it rewards you with satisfaction and new pieces of history which were in the dark prior to the investigation.
On Thursday, 18th July, the archive hosted a show-and-tell for non-archive-based workers of the Foundation. Stations were set up around the archive, organised by themes of social histories and sea-vessel histories. In this small exhibition, I saw the original building plans for the site at Fenchurch St (which included a shooting range!), intricately hand-drawn yacht plans, and photos and pamphlets of the Lloyd’s Register Cricket Club (est. 1882, making it one of the oldest corporate cricket clubs in the UK, or perhaps the continent). Another favourite was the photo collection of Paddy the horse, the famous horse who delivered the regular Lloyd’s Register Books to subscribers. He won awards for his beauty, and when horse-drawn carriages were replaced with modern forms of transportation, Paddy enjoyed his retirement as the in-house grass cutter for the Lloyd’s Register Cricket Club. The team also found records of another horse, Teddy, who worked and retired alongside Paddy.
My week at Lloyd’s Register Foundation archive was not only informative but also thoroughly enjoyable. The team was exceptional and made me feel welcome from the start. Their smaller size allowed them to provide me with a personalised experience, and I am incredibly grateful for this opportunity.