Fildes, Horace (1875-1937): Papers

Fonds — Box: 849/3 ['newspaper cutting framed']

Identifier: Fildes

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The collection includes inwards correspondence only, although Fildes often annotated items with the date and sometimes a precis of the content of his reply.

All text and images are copyright to Victoria University of Wellington. Enquiries for re-use should be made in the first instance to the J C Beaglehole Room, VUW Library.

Dates

Creation: 1863 - 2004

Biographical Note

Horace Fildes was a Post Office official, rising to Assistant Postmaster of Wellington before his retirement in 1929. His mother was the daughter of J.J. Taine, a merchant in Wellington from 1840, and Leocadia di Oliviera, adopted daughter of E.G. Wakefield. Fildes was keenly interested in those aspects of New Zealand history most clearly connected with early settlement, particularly the influence of Wakefield. He collected books and corresponded with writers on New Zealand history and related topics.

Mr Fildes bequeathed his books and papers to the University Library, where they were accessioned in late 1938.

See also entries for Horace Edward Manners Fildes, 1875-1937, in:

Dictionary of New Zealand Biography link

New Zealand Electronic Text Centre link

Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa link

Extent

700 linear_centimeters (7 m archives and c2000 published volumes)

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

The papers of Wellington book collector and historian Horace Edwards Manners Fildes, 1875-1937, including correspondence, clippings indexes and research notes, and collected manuscripts and other items.

This collection covers over forty years of Fildes' interest in New Zealand history and historical resources, and a corresponding period of indexing and scrapbooking.

Arrangement

Arrangement has had to take account of several previous systems, some of which were imposed by Library staff.

Fildes numbered his books sequentially, including manuscripts and scrapbooks. These have been catalogued with the same number e.g. callmark Fildes 373.

A suffix 'MSS' was added for unpublished manuscripts and they are now shelved separately, e.g. Fildes 1 MSS.

Fildes did not number his pamphlets; he listed these in a separate shelflist. Fildes' pamphlets were catalogued into the Library's overall New Zealand pamphlet sequence, which have callmarks composed as follows: DU401/decade/box and running number.

Fildes papers were given a box listing.

There were several unlisted boxes, including indexes, clippings, and papers; these are being re-processed in 2008.

Location: Fildes books sequentially between 1/A/5 - 4/A/3, MSS manuscripts are sequenced from 4/A/2 - 4/A/5, Various boxes, clippings, portfolios, indexes, notebooks etc.. between 4/A/1 - 4/B/5