BREWSTER, Adolphe Brewster (1855-1937 ): papers relating to Fiji

Identity Statement

Reference code(s)	: GB 1446 MS 25 and MS 25a
Held at	: Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland   Click here to find out how to view this collection at http://www.therai.org.uk/ ›
Full title	: BREWSTER, Adolphe Brewster (1855-1937 ): papers relating to Fiji
Date(s)	: 1890-1923
Level of description	: collection
Extent	: 11 items
Name of creator(s)	: Brewster | Adolphe Brewster | 1855-1937 | colonial administrator x Joske | Adolphe Brewster

Context

Administrative/Biographical history:

Born Adolphe Brewster Brewster, 1855; Commissioner of Colo (Tholo), North and East Provinces, Fiji, [c1884]; he later changed his name to Adolphe Brewster Joske. He retired to England and died in 1937. The Brewster family were noted for their pioneering work in establishing the sugar industry in Fiji, including the importation of machinery for Fiji's first sugar mill.
Publications: The Hill Tribes of Fiji: A Record of Forty Years (Seeley, Service & co., 1922)

Content

Scope and content/abstract:

Papers of Adolphe Brewster Brewster, 1890-1923, comprising typescript book (MS 25) by Brewster entitled 'Genealogies and histories of the Matanitu: or, tribal governments of central Viti Levu, Great Fiji' with photographs, genealogical tables and map of Viti Levu showing pilgrimages of tribal fathers, 1923, and MS 25a: letter from Brewster to E N Fallaize, Honourary Secretary of the Royal Anthropological Institute, 25 Mar 1925, enclosing original documents by Fijians, used by Brewster to write his Genealogies and histories of the Matanitu, including an account of the election of the first Vunivalu of Nomalu by Ratu Joni Kuradudua, Native Stipendiary Magistrate of the Province of Colo Wainimala; notes by Jimi Tiraulevu, District Scribe of Noemalu on the tribal history of the Noikoro, 27 Nov 1892; notes by Aliferete, District Scribe of Noemalu, on the Vunaquma (Vunangumze) tribe, 1890; notes by Jolame (Joram) Tamanavuilagi, District Scribe of Muaira, on the Muaira tribe, 7 May 1892; notes by Nathaniel, District Scribe of Nadrau, on the Nadrau tribe, [1895]; notes on the Colo Navosa or tribes of the Tholo West by Revd Felix (Vilikeasa) Kalou, Wesleyan Native minister of Tholo West, 1895, with covering letter containing further notes on the Noidavutukia tribe at Koroinasu by Aliki Bere, Provincial Scribe of Tholo West, 21 Aug 1895; notes by B G Corney on the Shark clan of Noikoro and notes by Timoci Cuva, Provincial Scribe of Tholo North, on legends related by Nadurutamata, the ancient of Noemalu including the legend of Tuvou of Nagatagata, showing the relationship between the Noikoro and Vatusila tribes and the legend of the dispute between Jehovah and Degei upon the creation of man.

Access & Use

Language/scripts of material:
English. Notes by Fijians are in a Fijian language.

System of arrangement:

Single item

Conditions governing access:

Appointments are necessary for all visits; please contact the archivist by email to arrange; a fee of £10 is payable by all visitors except Fellows and Members; membership details can be found on the RAI web site; access to material referring to the most recent thirty years is restricted; some material is very fragile and may not be available for view; a few items are of restricted or forbidden access.

Conditions governing reproduction:

Photocopies and scans for personal research only may be arranged at the discretion of the archivist; charges apply; in all cases forms governing use of copies must be signed; use of digital cameras is not allowed.

Finding aids:

Collection level description available in the Institute's reading room.

Archival Information

Archival history:

MS 25 was made into a book from ethnological notes on Fiji rejected by the publisher of The Hill Tribes of Fiji: A Record of Forty Years.

Immediate source of acquisition:

MS 25a was received by the RAI from Adolphe Brewster Brewster, 25 Mar 1925.

Allied Materials

Related material:

Publication note:

Description Notes

Archivist's note:
Entry compiled by Sarah Drewery.

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:
May 2008