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National Maritime Museum

Stephenson, Admiral Sir Henry Frederick (1842-1919)


IDENTITY STATEMENT

Reference code(s): GB 0064 STP

Held at: National Maritime Museum

Title: Stephenson, Admiral Sir Henry Frederick (1842-1919)

Date(s): [1868-1883]

Level of description: Collection

Extent: 2ft; 62cm

Name of creator(s): Stephenson | Sir | Henry Frederick | 1842-1919 | Knight | Admiral

CONTEXT

Administrative/Biographical history:

Stephenson entered the Navy in 1855. He served in the Crimea, India and Canada, being promoted to lieutenant in 1861 and to commander in 1868. He was in command of the RATTLER when she was lost in La Perouse Strait in 1868. He became a captain in 1875. From 1875 to 1876 Stephenson commanded the DISCOVERY in the British Arctic Expedition led by Captain C.S. Nares. He commanded the CARYSFORT, Mediterranean, 1880 to 1883, and took part in operations in Egypt in 1882. During the 1890s he was Commander-in-Chief both in the Pacific and the Channel, being appointed rear-admiral in 1890, vice-admiral in 1896 and admiral in 1901.

CONTENT

Scope and content/abstract:

Papers of Sir Henry Frederick Stephenson. There are letterbooks for 1868 and 1880 to 1883, and a printed account of the court martial following the loss of the RATTLER. Most of the collection relates to the Arctic expedition, 1875 to 1876. It includes Stephenson's diary in three volumes, a letter-book, a book of general proceedings of the DISCOVERY, a rough survey book and a scrapbook, with letters and orders from Nares and some other loose papers. There are also printed volumes of the official reports of the expedition and of earlier arctic expeditions.

ACCESS AND USE

Language/scripts of material: English

System of arrangement:

Conditions governing access:

Please contact the Archive for further information.

Conditions governing reproduction:

Please contact the Archive for further information.

Finding aids:

Detailed catalogue online at the: National Maritime Museum website .

ARCHIVAL INFORMATION

Archival history:

Immediate source of acquisition:

The papers were presented by Stephenson's nephew, Captain P.K. Stephenson, in 1953.

ALLIED MATERIALS

DESCRIPTION NOTES

Archivist's note: Edited by Sarah Drewery, Sep 2011.

Rules or conventions: Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.

Date(s) of descriptions: 2010-08-26


INDEX ENTRIES
Subjects
Courts martial | Courts | Administration of justice
Diaries | Nonfiction
Expeditions | Travel
Ships | Vehicles | Transport
Primary documents

Personal names
Nares | Sir | George Strong | 1831-1915 | Knight | Admiral
Stephenson | Sir | Henry Frederick | 1842-1919 | Knight | Admiral

Corporate names
HMS Discovery
HMS Rattler

Places
Arctic