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Willes Collection | ||
Warwickshire County Record Office has made a successful bid to save a valuable family archive! *Update - July 2011* The collection has now been fully catalogued and the catalogue is available to view in hard-copy in the public searchroom at the County Record Office and also online at Warwickshire's Past Unlocked by searching for collection CR4141 - Willes Family of Newbold Comyn.
Leamington By Letter Learning Pack In addition to the publication of the archival catalogue a learning resource pack has been created by the Leamington History Group as an accompaniment to the collection. A PDF version of the learning pack can be accessed by following the link below. | ||
| The collection | ||
The Willes collection of family and estate papers relating to the Willes family of Newbold Comyn has been purchased from Sotheby’s for £72,000. The county record office will catalogue the material and make it available to the users of the record office via the public searchroom. The collection contains correspondence, maps, deeds, accounts and other documents dating from 13th to the 20th centuries. Much of the material provides a history of the Willes family for several generations and provides evidence of their contribution to the development of Leamington Spa; there are papers relating to the creation of Newbold Gardens, canals, local churches and architecture. The collection also contains papers of national and international interest and importance, including correspondence with relations of Robert Peel and Lord Byron. | ![]()
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| Supporters of the purchase | Accessing the collection | |
Most of the cost of funding the purchase came from charities and private donations. The Record Office would particularly like to thank the: Victoria & Albert (MLA) Purchase Grant Fund Friends of Warwickshire County Record Office Friends of the National Libraries Leamington Society Warwick Society Warwickshire Gardens Trust Pilgrim Trust We have also received a number of very generous donations from private individuals. | If you would like to view the documents, you can do so by visiting the County Record Office. For more information about visiting us, please go to the visiting us page.
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Warwickshire County Council, Shire Hall, Warwick CV34 4SA Telephone: 01926 410410