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Newspaper and paper wrappers from an unmounted collection from the herbarium of Dr. Hugh Francis Clarke Cleghorn.
A box of unmounted specimens from Cleghorn's herbarium and annotated as from ‘Cumbaukum Droog’ [Kambakkam Durgam] was discovered in the basement longstore at RBGE in 2025. It was assessed by Henry Noltie; the specimens were mounted and added to the herbarium collection, and the newspapers and folders used by Cleghorn to wrap his collection were seen as significant enough to be added to the Archive. Henry described the process in a Botanics Story: (right click, open link in new tab) https://stories.rbge.org.uk/archives/40144
The Collection includes manuscript lists relating to the Cumbaukan flora and a journal article cutting, made by Cleghorn, from the 1835 volume of the Journal of the Royal Geographical Society: an article titled an ‘Account of the Ragery Hills, near Madras’ by a Colonel Monteith.
The specimens were contained in newspaper flimsies dating between 1853 and 1859, most of which were placed in covers made of Indian ‘country’ paper annotated with the numbers and names of 20 plant families. Although the specimens were collected in December 1853, the majority of the newspapers date from 1858/9, presumably when Cleghorn undertook some herbarium curation. They are trimmed to uniform size, c 27 x 44 cm – some more or less whole sheets folded, others cut in half (when the titles are often missing).
The newspapers are of considerable interest, assuming that they were subscribed to by Cleghorn, rather than bought as scrap paper. Two certainly were his as they are inscribed with his name, title, and address while on tour as Conservator of Forests in Salem and Ooty. These tell us something about his reading habits and suggest a great thirst for news both Indian and from Britain. Also used was also a pamphlet advertising a Madras ‘Periodical Horse Mart’ revealing a previously unknown, though unsurprising, interest in horse flesh; and proof that he subscribed to the Gardeners’ Chronicle, suspected but previously unproven. Of the Indian newspapers was one published in Bangalore (The Bangalore Herald) and seven in Madras (Madras Circulator, The Commercial Gazette, United Service Gazette, The Athenaeum, The Madras Times, The Madras Spectator and the official government Fort St George Gazette). Of those published in Britain the largest number of sheets are from The Overland Mail, with smaller numbers from four others (The Indian News, The Morning Herald, The Record and The Examiner). There is also a single half-sheet from an unidentified Fife newspaper to show that he kept up with news from Scotland.
The articles in the papers dating from 1858/9 are of particular interest, with many articles discussing the aftermath of the Indian Mutiny. Interesting though the ‘news’ items are, the papers are equally intriguing for the advertisements and aspects of social history revealed. described here are only a few items that were noticed while cataloguing the plants: a meeting of the Madras Photographic Society attended by Sir Walter Elliot (6 April 1858); the opening of the organ by William Hill in St George’s Cathedral (13 September 1858); stained glass fanlights for the cathedral designed by Archibald Cole, Professor Fine Arts in the Madras School of Industrial Art, made by Nathaniel Wood Lavers of London (later Lavers, Barraud & Westlake) (21 January 1859); an advertisement by J. Deschamps offering three pianos by Erard (1 mahogany grand of 7 octaves; 1 mahogany grand square of 6¾ octaves; 1 rosewood cottage of 6¾ octaves) and 1 mahogany grand square by Broadwood (May 1854); J.J. Fonceca & Co offering ‘Likenesses either in Oil, Water Colors, or Crayon … Landscape and Cattle Drawings … charges so regulated with a view to place their services within reach of all (21 January 1859); an auction by Oakes, Partridge and Co. offered a by then very old fashioned ‘square piano by T. Tomkison, in good order’ (6 July 1853).

•Letter regarding being elected an honorary member of the Botanical Society of Edinburgh (October 7, 1837)

1 letter

•Materials related to his book ‘Flora of Forfarshire’ – 16 page handwritten monograph ‘Catalogue of Mosses Collected in Forfarshire and Perthshire; including 155 species and varieties belonging to 26 genera.’ bound in card cover. Inset at the end is a copy of a letter from Alex. P. Stevenson, stamped 17 Jun 1903, referencing James Donald – Hampton Court Gardens.
•Note from W.W. Smith, dated 23 Dec 1931 referring to Gardiner’s own copy of his book ‘Flora of Forfarshire’. The copy was lent by Alexander Hutcheson and is believed to be unique, as having mounted specimens of plants interleaved and named by Gardiner himself. The copy referred to in the note is in the Library of The Royal Botanic Gardens, Edinburgh.
•Lent by Alexander Hutcheson – an advertisement for a proposed 2nd edition of “Gardiner’s Flora of Forfarshire”, which was never published.
•Letter written by William Gardiner to his wife Elizabeth from Castleton of Braemar, dated 26 July 1844, on one of his botanical excursions; acknowledging receipt of a P.O. money order.
•Letter dated 30 Jan 1896 from James Scrymgeour to Alexander Hutcheson re: Wm. Gardiner.
•“The Flora Of Forfarshire”, Gardiner, William, London : Longman, Brown, Green and Longman, 1848.
(right click, open link in new tab:) http://hdl.handle.net/2027/mdp.39015061233758

•Card 1 - Material re Gilbert McNab contained in guard book filed under “McNab, Wm.” (brother) – individual box
•Card 2 - McNab, Gilbert W. (Jamaica) – 2 letters dated 7 Jun 1850 & 11 May 1851 respectively, filed in “Balfour, J.H.”, supplementary correspondence (boxes) under “McNab, Gilbert W.”

•Collector: Col. E Madden – list of numbered Himalayan Plants from Simla Lits mountains to Kumaon & Tibet named (mostly by M.P. Edgeworth) Almorah 1849, remainder named by Bentham, G; Munro, Major W.; Strachey, Capt. R.; Winterbotton, J.E. in some cases by collation with Herbarium Wallich – Filed under “Madden, E” in general index; in the form of 28 leaves, sewn in a paper cover]

Sanderson's Prize essay manuscript, ‘The Origin and Development of the Embryo in Phanerogamous Plants’, submitted in July 1849 as part of his Botany course for his Medical degree at the University of Edinburgh. Sanderson has illustrated the manuscript with pencil illustrations drawn from the microscope.
Impressed by the content, Hutton Balfour deemed it worthy of a prize, with part of the content read at a meeting of the Botanical Society of Edinburgh in February 1850.

1 sheet with John Sibthorp's book plate attached to it, alongside email correspondence outlining the discovery.

•Monograph on Figs - draft M/S from I.B.B.'s papers.
•M/S Catalogue of Artocarpeae – L’Herbier Boissier Received with Monograph on Figs in “Balfour, I.B. papers” , filed under “Boissier, P.E.”
•Letter dated 14 March 1847 to G. A. Walker-Arnott filed under “Miquel, A. W.” (Miquel, F. Anton Wilhelm) in main index

•Note of plants found in Ross-shire by Dr. John Robertson (14 Jul1847)