Archives & Special Collections Primary Resources
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This section includes links to major collections of original documents held in archives, and published editions of Amherst’s correspondence. Although some of Lord Jeffery Amherst’s manuscripts are available online, the vast majority of his papers are only viewable on microfilm or in-person at The National Archives in England. Frost Library holds a copy of the microfilm set of Amherst’s papers held by the UK National Archives.
Published volumes of Amherst’s diaries and correspondence:
The Journal of Jeffery Amherst: Recording the Military Career of General Amherst in America from 1758 to 1763. Toronto : Chicago: The Ryerson Press : University of Chicago Press, 1931.
Amherst and the Conquest of Canada: Selected Papers from the Correspondence of Major-General Jeffery Amherst While Commander-in-Chief in North America from September 1758 to December 1760. Stroud, Gloucestershire: Sutton Pub. Ltd. for the Army Records Society, 2003.
Manuscripts at Amherst College:
The Jeffery Amherst Collection contains a wide range of documents by and about Lord Jeffery Amherst, including many documents in his own hand. We are in the process of adding images of all of our Lord Jeffery Amherst manuscripts to Amherst College Digitial Collections: LJA in ACDC
The Plimpton Collection of French and Indian War Items (1670-1934) includes several manuscripts by Lord Jeffery Amherst. The collection includes other manuscripts, maps, and printed items about the French and Indian War, the conflict during which Lord Amherst rose to prominence. This collection will be fully digitized in the years ahead. Gift of George Arthur Plimpton, Class of 1876.
Great Britain: War Office: Amherst Papers, 1712-1786. Available in Frost Library: Microfilm 35.
Amherst Family Portraits, including the iconic Joshua Reynolds portrait of 1765, can be found in the Mead Art Museum’s Collections Database.
Manuscripts held elsewhere:
The UK National Archives at Kew hold the single largest collection of Lord Jeffery Amherst’s manuscripts, mostly within the group “Public Record Office. War Office 34.” Much of this material is included in the War Office microfilm set held in Frost Library. More information about the contents of this collection are available online. The British Library and the Kent History and Library Centre also hold materials relating to the Amherst family.