| Description | A bundle of twenty-three letters to James Watt, from Matthew Boulton and others.
On the outside fold of the letter previously numbered 1 is written in pencil: ‘1769- 1776 ’ .
The letters were numbered in red ink
Matthew Boulton did not date many of the letters, but a date has sometimes been given by James Watt on the docket.
The letters were arranged in approximate chronological order beginning with the most recent. They have now been placed in chronological order beginning with the earliest and renumbered, and a conspectus of old and new numbers is given at the end of the list.
The correspondent’s name and the date had been written on the letter by James Watt, and on most, a summary had been given by James Watt jr.
Any summary in square brackets has been given by the cataloguer.
Most of the letters are about the Engine Bill and the support of friends. Several concern the illness and death of Dr. William Small.
Some of these letters have been partially transcribed for the ‘Extracts from Correspondence’ in James P. Muirhead's three volume work The Mechanical Inventions of James Watt, (London, 1854). Some have been numbered at the head of the letter, in pencil, by J.P.Muirhead with a number which is that of the published letter. This number is given below, at the end of the docket, as, for example: (Muirhead no.142).
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