Admiralty Charts?

[toyboy]

These must have been around for a long while. Is there anywhere I can search a particular river over the last 200 years by buying old charts of the river. I am not sure where to start searching so any suggestions will be welcome?

pete

 

[jerrytug]

Hi Toy boy, if it is for the Orwell, where I believe you hang out, try local history societies and local history sections in the libraries. What about the Harwich maritime museum in the old lighthouse, and surely Trinity House will have amazing archives if you can get in there.
For London River, the Guildhall Library in the City, and the library in the Maritime Museum in Greenwich both have old charts.
The Admiralty chart retail catalogue does, or certainly used to, sell nice reproductions of historic charts, probably just of well known places though worth looking online and phoning them.
I did successfully look up some stuff like this, but it was 20 yrs ago. What river?
It's going to come down to leg work rather than web searches at some point to get your hands on old paper charts. The libraries mentioned above have large photocopying services, at a price.

 

[toyboy]

Hi Toy boy, if it is for the Orwell, where I believe you hang out, try local history societies and local history sections in the libraries. What about the Harwich maritime museum in the old lighthouse, and surely Trinity House will have amazing archives if you can get in there.
For London River, the Guildhall Library in the City, and the library in the Maritime Museum in Greenwich both have old charts.
The Admiralty chart retail catalogue does, or certainly used to, sell nice reproductions of historic charts, probably just of well known places though worth looking online and phoning them.
I did successfully look up some stuff like this, but it was 20 yrs ago. What river?
It's going to come down to leg work rather than web searches at some point to get your hands on old paper charts. The libraries mentioned above have large photocopying services, at a price.

That is a very comprehensive and extremely helpful reply Jerrytug. I often nip down to Harwich for an afternoon ride and I really hadn't thought of the places you mention. The place I am interested in is the Orwell as you realised. I have talked and mailed various places that produce charts and all have them but with stupid websites and waiting times. I will persevere thanks.