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| 2011.0031 [CORRESPONDENCE AND PAPERS OF THE HAYWARD AND WILTENS ANDREE FAMILIES] |
| Date Range of Records: |
1777-1954 |
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Comprises correspondence and legal documents and genealogies, relating to the Hayward and (Dutch) Wiltens Andree families, their interactions concerning the Surinam plantations and the disputations over various inheritances (boedel) predicated by the will of Anna van Byland, (paternal grandmother of the Wiltens Andree children, d.1801) and other estates.
There are two main record sets – the first is the Surinam papers (1799-1811) which were inventoried c.1933 by numerical control 1-190. See: (2011.0031.0194). These previous controls have been retained and can be searched. Some of the indexed papers are 20th century correspondence regarding the Surinam papers. The second set of papers comprises all papers not on the inventory including Surinam papers (1824-1863), a volume of outwards correspondence from Surinam (1821-1823), as well as 20th century correspondence, transcriptions and genealogical history.
Much of the correspondence addresses family matters and news of events in the localities where the extended family resided in England: the Counties of Gloucestershire, Wiltshire and Somerset. Topical matters include Napoleonic Wars, the shipping disruptions during the 1812 War, the poor climactic conditions and economy following the Napoleonic Wars, social unrest, the suspension of habeas corpus, the Royal coronation scandal, the great Reform Bill, radicals in the 1830s (Chartists), agricultural machine breaking and the Crystal Palace and Great Exhibition. All of this is placed in the context of the family’s dependence on the remittances from Surinam and the social milieu of the landed classes.
The correspondence and papers also record the efforts to make the plantations pay in a complex legal setting in Surinam, in the face of the ongoing disputes by parties aiming to obtain control over the plantations, a volatile market for colonial produce and the vagaries of the environmental conditions. The papers provide some local news from Surinam and the Caribbean such as the Slave Revolt of 1816 (2011.0031.0043) and the fire at Paramaribo, however they mainly focus on the fluctuations of the market and other difficulties associated with making the plantations pay, including the introduction of steam equipment (sugar mill) manufactured and shipped from England. The later documents deal extensively with Captain Isaac Hayward’s son, Isaac Hayward II’s attempts to gain legal control over the plantations from various heirs and interests, and the ensuing family rift this created.
The production, processing and trade of sugar and coffee within the Caribbean were dependent on the use of slave labour. These papers span the time period when slavery was abolished in the British Empire (1807) but continued under Dutch colonial rule in Surinam (and elsewhere in the Dutch colonies) until 1863. Despite this, slaves and slavery do not feature prominently in the documents. There is an explicit statement on the likely effect on business in the West Indies if the Dutch follow the English regarding the abolition of slavery. See: (2011.0031.0207) (2011.0031.0157) (2011.0031.0213)
Spelling of Surinam has been retained from the letters, although it is most often in modern usage spelt Suriname. |
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| 3 units (1.71m) |
| Collection Category: |
Business, individuals |
| Access Conditions: |
Access: Open, digital access only.
All records digitised and available online via Search Digitised Items at http://archives.unimelb.edu.au/ |
| Finding Aids: |
Yes listed ONLINE |
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