| Description | Letters from John Woodward from 1804. John Woodward was a clerk, or agent, at Charlotte Matthews’s banking house and agency at 6 Green Lettice Lane, Cannon Street, London, and he continued in the same position when she moved to 13 London Street, Fenchurch Street, in July 1795. In this position Woodward did a lot of work for the engine firm, dealing with payments, hiring and directing engine erectors, investigating pirate engines, and so on. He worked closely with the London engine erector Richard Dayus in this. When Charlotte Matthews died (9 Jan. 1802) the business was continued at the same premises by the new firm of M. and R. Boulton, J. and G. Watt, and Company. Mrs. Matthews’s two clerks, Woodward and John Mosley, ran this firm as agents for the partners, Woodward being the senior of the two. He continued to do business for the engine firm.
How Woodward’s correspondence was originally kept is not known, and these letters of 1804 were found scattered through the collection. They were probably removed from a larger bundle, the remainder of which has not survived. They are addressed to Boulton Watt & Co. and James Watt Jr. |