Hello Listers, I found the following book review in The Great Circle Vol 8 No 2 October 1986 and I wonder if this collection still exists or has been combined with another? Chase WEAVER, A Guide to the AIlen Knight and Captain Walter T F. Lee Photograph Collections, Allen Knight Maritime Museum, P.O. Box 805, Monterey, Cal., USA 93942, 90 pp. paperback. In 1918 the seventeen-year-old AlIen Knight signed on as an AB on board the Falls of Clyde , a four masted barque. From this time on he was an avid collector of ship photographs, and a photographer of ships. Forty years later he estimated that he had about 9,000 photos, and soon after that he acquired the Australian Captain Walter F. Lee's collection of almost 6,000 more. The Knight collection also includes about 250 logbooks, scores of ship Registers, going back to 1839 , ship models, navigating instruments and maritime artefacts generally. The guide to this part of the collection is in separate sections covering West Coast fishing vessels, mainly purse seiners (over 200 names in all); US Navy and other 'military' vessels (over 600); Motorships and steamers (about 3,000); US Navy and other "military" vessels (over 600); and sailing ships (almost 1 ,000). There is a separate alphabetical index of over one hundred figureheads held in the collection. Captain Walter F. Lee, born near Port Adelaide in 1884, began his long sea-going career as an apprentice on the full-rigged ship Bankfields . He, too, became an avid photographer of ships and collector of ship photographs. He was well known internationally for these interests, and provided sorne of the illustrations for books by Basil Lubbock,John Masefield and others. His collection comprises many negatives on film or glass plate , and 46 albums containing 6,294 ship photos of high quality dating back to 1843. Included are many photos of sailing ships engaged in the Australian and New Zealand inter-colonial trade, South Sea Island traders, Australian port and shipyard scenes. The main alphabetical index lists about 3 ,500 names of ships. There is also a section of eighteen local ports of which there are general views. Throughout the Guide, the rig or type of vessel and the date of build is given. These lists Include many names also recorded in the Nichols (NSW), Brodie (Vic.), Edwardes (SA) and De Maus (NZ) collections, but they also hold many rare and unique items. Australia's greatest loss, perhaps, is that some of the work of some local photographers of ships is represented nowhere else but in the Lee collection - for example, Captain Orison Beaton and Sam Hood of Sydney, William Sweet of Adelaide, and Jack Kinnear of Auckland. It is much to be regretted that such a magnificent local collection should have left these shores, but at least it is in good hands and well cared for. Still, one could wish that Captain Lee's son had offerred 'first refusal' to a library or rnuseum in his own country first , as, surely, his father would have liked him to do, Hope someone knows if this museum/collection is still accessible? Regards Ada

on 3/2/01 6:34 PM, Ada Ackerly at aackers@alphalink.com.au wrote: > Hello Listers, > > I found the following book review in The Great Circle Vol 8 No 2 October > 1986 > and I wonder if this collection still exists or has been combined with > another? > > Chase WEAVER, A Guide to the AIlen Knight and Captain Walter T F. Lee > Photograph Collections, > Allen Knight Maritime Museum, P.O. Box 805, Monterey, Cal., USA 93942, 90 > pp. paperback. Point your browser at: http://www.calhist.org/Support_Info/CHAs.htmld/CHA-Monterey.html#Org01 It doesn't give a lot of information but at least it confirms that it still exists. -- Michael Saclier Historical & Genealogical Research Services Phone: +61 2 6281 4117 Fax: +61 2 6281 4118 E-mail: saclierm@spirit.com.au Mail: PO Box 431, Curtin ACT 2605