Lloyd's of London

Lloyd’s of London

Intriguingly the name ‘Lloyd’, which has become so well known both within the insurance and marine classification industries, appears to have originally had very different business interests. Edward Lloyd was a coffee shop owner at Lombard Street, in the City of London in the late 17^th century. The import of this product was courtesy of the Honourable East India Company: also shipping tea and chocolate to the UK as well. Not unique to those connected with shipping by any means, these houses became fashionable centres of commercial activities, but underwriters and other interested parties frequented Lloyd’s. So the industry consolidated in this pocket of the City and has remained, although it has relatively recently expanded down to Aldgate and the Minories which had previously been rough areas of industrial manufacture, wholesaling, retailing, warehousing and plebeian accommodation (including that for mariners between voyages).

Although modern communications, it could be argued, have made the old ways of face to face business unnecessary, insurance people can be routinely seen going to and from the present ‘market’ at Lime Street. (Easy to spot, they are normally suited and carrying folders of documents, sometime struggling under their loads: like professional packhorses!)

Edward Lloyd, entrepreneur that he was, briefly published a news-sheet, Lloyd’s News, in the late 1690s. (Later he also seems to have published Lloyd’s Weekly London Newspaper.) However, in regards to shipping the 1734 the first editions of the famous Lloyd’s List appeared: though Edward Lloyd had nothing to do with this, having died in 1726. Unfortunately, the earliest editions have not survived. So, from modest beginnings came this august company. From 1811 a network of agents, both in the U.K. and abroad began and the rest, it is said, is history!

The Lloyd’s of London’s Marine collection is kept by the Guildhall Library, in the City of London, though there are facsimile and microfilmed copies of some of their records elsewhere. Because of the nature of this information there are many similarly titled classes of records, which as working documents would have been readily identifiable to those using them, but which can appear confusing to modern researchers. Also, through time there were periodic changes in the form which these records took, which must also be taken into consideration. Therefore, I will only mention these documents in a general sense and will not attempt here to catalogue the full holdings.

The movements of vessels are one highly important aspect. These can be found variously, but generally in most detail in Lloyd’s List. Although I have no personal experience of these, many of the 18^th century copies (from 1741) have been, or are in the process of being indexed. However it was not until the mid 19^th century that Lloyd’s List comes into its own. Between 1838 and 1927 there were contemporaneous indexes compiled to identify movements in the above publication. So, it should be noted that whilst entries are often similar, some individual entries cannot be found in copies of Lloyd’s Weekly Index (which should in particular, be noted by those using the National Maritime Museum’s collection). After 1927 an internal card system was produced for individual vessels.

Also, there had been competitors, such as the Shipping Gazette, renamed the Shipping Gazette and Commercial Advertiser, which was certainly active in the 1830s but appears to have gone by 1846 (when the first Newspaper Press Directory appeared). Whether William Mitchell had anything to do with the above operation I do not know, but the publication of Mitchell’s Maritime Register as of 1856 meant substantial competition. There had been other titles, such Mitchell’s Steam-Shipping Journal between 1859 and 1869, but the Shipping and Mercantile Gazette became the group’s daily (with a weekly summary also).

Without going into the corporate histories too deeply, the two groups merged their publication operations in 1884. The result was initially the Shipping Gazette and Lloyd’s List Summary as of 1884, but with marketing further titles came and went. All of these can be helpful in tracing movements and much else, although it must be stated that the Guildhall Library does not hold copies of Mitchell’s Mercantile Register before 1880.

It must also be noted that there were also separate confidential wartime listings of movements, which in my experience of those of the First World War, are far more complex than is acknowledged. (The majority of these are on microfilm, though not all.) There are added complications. Earlier in the First World War Lloyd’s still published movements. Some of these were accurate, some were not. Also one variety of later wartime listings in the form of original documents, uniquely at the Guildhall Library, were apparently given one title by Lloyd’s of London, but were then bound up by them with a different title! Unsurprisingly, I have found these particular documents to cause considerable confusion with the modern Guildhall staff, especially as these are not apparently used regularly by researchers. During the Second World War, movements were compiled, but not published.

Accidents involving vessels, or ‘casualties’ as they are known within the marine insurance world are also to be found in the same and other Lloyd’s records. Earlier 19^th century reports can and often were of few words. However, with improved communications, specifically the laying of undersea telegraph cables between important centres in the expanding Empire and in the 20^th century the adoption of wireless telegraphy; as well as other factors, such as greatly increased values involved (of both hulls and cargoes); often far more information was recorded in these reports. (It must be stressed that it can be seen that this was more a reflection of the successful business operations of Lloyd’s of London, rather than of shipping companies spending more money informing the industry of their problems though.) Once again, during wartime separate listings were developed which covered accidental and intended losses.

Whilst Lloyd’s List dealt very much with day-to-day market conditions, ‘Mitchell’s’ and the ‘Shipping Gazette’ were ‘newspapers’ in the normal understanding. Major happenings within the industries involved were commented on and this included events about vessels and crews.

Another class of records of the Lloyd’s Marine Collection at the Guildhall Library which is of significant importance to genealogists is that of the Lloyd’s Captains Registers. As well as recording details of certification and service (from the time of gaining certification as master mariners) these also give details of disciplinary action taken against holders; commissions held in reserve forces; and awards and decorations gained: both civil and military.

Relatively recently transferred to the Guildhall Library is the correspondence dealing with the awarding of Lloyd’s medals for gallantry. Unlike civil awards given by the British state, this correspondence is excellently catalogued.

And, as well as records strictly of the Lloyd’s Marine Collection there are others which are of use and interest. Not only is there a good collection of Lloyd’s Registers of Shipping, there are a number of ‘research boxes’ which contain specimen records of a wide variety and historical note.

The manuscripts section of the Guildhall library can be contacted through their website at http://ihr.sas.ac.uk/gh/

The historical information for this section came principally from Charles Wright and Charles Ernest Fayle: A History of Lloyd’s (London: The Corporation of Lloyd’s, 1928). Additional elements came from the Newspaper Press Directory for various years and viewing copies of the publications themselves at the British Newspaper Library, Colindale.

Go to the Certification of Seamen Officers

Go to the main Civil Gallantry Awards page

Go to Central Index Register c.1919-1941

Go to the main Mercantile Page