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North family papers

 Collection
Call Number: MS 240A

Overview

These are estate and personal archives of the North family of Kirtling, Cambridgeshire, and Wroxton Abbey, Oxfordshire, as well as other places in England, from the 13th to 19th centuries, with the majority of documents dating from the 16th through 18th centuries. Document types include deeds, manorial documents, legal and official matters, accounts, family papers and correspondence. Some additional locations cited in these documents include Harlow, Ashley and Silverley, London, and others.

Dates

  • Creation: approximately 1250-1856 (bulk 1500-1797)

Creator

Language of Materials

English, Latin

Conditions Governing Access

No access restrictions.

Conditions Governing Use

Spencer Library staff may determine use restrictions dependent on the physical condition of manuscript materials.

History of the North Family

Many members of the North Family represented in these papers were prominent in public and governmental affairs in England. For example, Edward North (circa 1496-1564), first Baron North, was a lawyer and politician and served several court-appointed roles during the reigns of King Henry VIII, Queen Mary, and Queen Elizabeth; Francis North (1637-1685) was a judge, privy councilor, and Lord Keeper of the Great Seal; and Frederick North (1732-1792) served as prime minister. Other family members were also lawyers and politicians, as well as authors, merchants, and soldiers. The last Baron North represented in this collection is Susan (1797-1884), tenth Baroness North, who assumed the title after it had gone into abeyance.

The North family papers came to Spencer Research Library along with the Kaye family papers, and both collections form part of the English Historical Documents Collection. The two families became connected when Elizabeth (1707-1745), Sir Arthur Kaye’s daughter, married the widowed Francis North (1704-1790), Lord North and later first earl of Guilford, in 1736. The North family papers document the family's transactions and interactions through several centuries. It is sometimes difficult to discern exactly which member of the North family is party to a transaction, as sons were often named after family members, all of whom could be of age to sign official or legal documents.

Extent

32 Linear Feet (60 boxes + 38 oversize boxes, 13 rolls, 8 oversize folders, 1 volume) : Many items within the oversize boxes are rolls.

Scope and Contents

In this collection of almost 2000 documents written between the 13th to 19th centuries, about 1500 of them relate to land and property transactions and maintenance. The bulk of the documents are dated from the 16th through 18th centuries. The remaining documents include legal and official matters, family papers, and correspondence.

The documents that specifically name North family members date from the first baron North in 1530 to the tenth baroness North in 1837. Earlier documents are deeds and manorial documents, mostly from Cambridgeshire, but also from Suffolk, Kent, Sussex, and Surrey. The documents are in Latin and English. Variant spellings of names and places in the papers are common, e.g, Kirtling, the principal family seat in Cambridgeshire, may be spelled Kertelynge, Cartlinge, Kirtlinge, Kartelyng, Kyrtlinge, Kerteling, Kertlyngg, Kertlynge, Kertelyng, Catlidge, or Catledge.

Arrangement

In the physical arrangement of the collection, priority has been given to the type of document. The documents have been listed to include the following information (if available) for each item: date, names or parties mentioned, general document type (deeds, estate, legal and family matters, etc.), specific document type (bonds, quitclaims, mortgages, marriage settlements, wills, etc.), places (counties, cities/villages and parishes), and notes. Oversize materials, rolls, and other items not stored with the main collection at the MS 240A call number are described at the end of each series when relevant and may therefore be out of sequence. Folder numbers for MS 240A are non-consecutive to reflect items that have been pulled to be stored at these other locations.

The date provided is usually the earliest date associated with the document; however, the document may contain later dates as well. Places identified in the collection frequently have a (place name) in parentheses or appear in the "Standard Parish" column in the chronological pdf inventory; this is typically the standardized spelling for a parish name. The notes may also include summaries of content, partial transcriptions or translations, paraphrases, information about the physical state of the documents, names and places not mentioned elsewhere, etc.

Physical Location

MS 240A

Physical Location

MS D128

Physical Location

MS Q5, MS Q17, MS Q75

Physical Location

MS Qa1:5-6, MS Qa14

Physical Location

MS North Box

Physical Location

MS North Case, MS North Case (over)

Physical Location

MS North File

Physical Location

MS RL 4:146-153, 5:185, 5:187, 5:189, 6:197, 7:241

Physical Location

MS J36

Other Finding Aids

A chronological listing of the items in the collection is available at ksrl.sc.northfamilychronorder.pdf.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Purchases, Hofmann and Freeman Antiquarian Booksellers, 1969, 1977; Phillip J. Pirages, 2009.

Related Materials

North Family Papers, 13th-20th century; Mss. North a. 1-17, b. 1-29, b. 31-79, c. 1-86, d. 1-71, e. 1-45, f. 1-8, f. 10-17, g. 1-4; North music c. 1, d. 1-17; North adds. b. 1, c. 1-11, e. 1-2; Bodleian Library, University of Oxford.

Francis North Papers, 1595-1763; mssHM 52322-52420, Huntington Library.

Separated Materials

These collections were acquired at the same time from the bookseller Hofmann and Freeman in June 1969:

  1. Abbey Dore Collection, 1225-circa 1300, MS 191, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
  2. Bolton Company Letters, 1695-1710, MS 84, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
  3. Carter, Henry John (1812?-1895); Letters to William Sharpey, 1752-1857, 1872-1873; MS P61, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
  4. East India Company Collection, 1701-1819; MS E94-E97, MS R3, MS Roll 1, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
  5. Fleet Prison, 1604-1637, 1677; MS D114, MS R2, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
  6. Frampton, Robert, Bishop of Gloucester (1622-1708), Letters, 1682/83, 1697-1702; MS Q23, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
  7. Great Britain. Court of Chancery, Decrees, 1733-1783, MS 135, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
  8. Great Britain. Court of Chancery, Records of 3 causes heard before the Lord Chancellor, 1671-1728; MS Roll 1, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
  9. Great Britain. Exchequer. Declared accounts, 1730-1749; MS Q8, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
  10. Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons. Committee appointed to enquire into the State of [Gaols], Copies of evidence concerning the Eyre-Bambridge case, 29 Oct 1729 - 30 April 1730, MS 106, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
  11. Great Britain. Parliamentary Debates and Common-Place Book, 1618, MS E103, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
  12. Great Britain. Royal Subsidies Collection, 1605-1627, MS Q1, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
  13. Grover, George Edward; Chaplin Family notes on genealogy, circa 1881, MS E115, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
  14. Harcourt, George Simon, Earl (1736-1809); An account of the Church and Remains of the Manor House of Stanton Harcourt in the county of Oxford, 1808?, MS C202, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
  15. Kaye family papers, MS 240B, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
  16. Levant Company Handbook, 1606-1720, MS E101, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
  17. A Miscellany of Deeds and Manorial, Estate, Probate and Family Documents, MS 239, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
  18. Arthur Moore Collection, 1503-1760, MS 143, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
  19. Norfolk Recusants Collection. Records of official inquiries into church-attendance, etc, 1591, MS 106, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
  20. "Of what in former times may have taken place, or been attempted, intended, or suggsted, in regard to an Union of Ireland, with England, or Great Britain...", [after 1785], MS C208
  21. Russia Company Collection, circa 1696-1698, MS 104, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
  22. Spelman-Macro Miscellany, circa 1640-1670, MS E107, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas
Title
Guide to the English Historical Documents Collection
Subtitle
North Family Papers
Author
Finding aid prepared by alh, mwc, sm, gfr, nwa, acs, mce, ksc, eeh, mab. Finding aid encoded by mab.
Date
2018-10-31
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
Finding aid written in English.
Finding aid permalink
http://hdl.handle.net/10407/7474402783
Preferred citation
North Family Papers, English Historical Documents Collection, MS 240A, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas.

Repository Details

Part of the University of Kansas. Kenneth Spencer Research Library Repository

Contact:
1450 Poplar Lane
Lawrence KS 66045-7616 United States
785-864-4334