Record copies of Admiralty charts (old copy bundles)
Record copies of published Admiralty charts produced since 1800 arranged by chart number
Record copies of published Admiralty charts, produced since 1800, are an important part of the archive. However, we do not have a copy of every chart ever published by the Hydrographic Office, but we do have the most complete collection in the United Kingdom. We do not have a copy of every correction to every chart, but it is possible to follow the history of most charts from the 1830s to the present day.
Our record copies are arranged by chart number. This collection is known as the ‘old copy bundle’ system. There is no single catalogue of its contents, but access to the charts can be made through the published catalogues of charts. The earliest catalogue we hold dates from 1825 and electronic versions of catalogues can be downloaded below
Copies of Admiralty charts are also held by many institutions in Great Britain and abroad. The larger collections include:
- The British Library
- The National Maritime Museum at Greenwich
- Cambridge University Library
- Oxford University Library Map Room
- The National Archives at Kew
- The National Library of Scotland
- The National Library of Wales
Some Admiralty charts are available on the internet at:
A digital version of the Admiralty chart catalogue for 1898 is available at archive.org