Mersey Docks and Harbour Board (MDHB): Records of the Dock Committee and Board Minutes.

The Minutes of the Dock Committee and its successors (MDHB) run unbroken from 1784. Before this date, the Minutes were incorporated with those of the Corporation of Liverpool. From 1846 there were also standing committees dealing with specific aspects of the business of the port and these, too, have survived complete to varying dates around 1960-1965. At various times, special committees were appointed to investigate specific issues and there are several volumes of their proceedings. There are also minutes from other bodies eventually subsumed into the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board, such as the Herculaneum Dock Company, the Birkenhead Dock Company and the Dock Audit Commissioners. These are the authentic legal records of the decisions of the port authority and the various committees. The minute books are mostly very well indexed, however, the collection itself is very extensive. In this regard it may be quicker and more efficient to use and consult either the MDHB Worked Up Papers (MDHB/WUP) or the Discussions at the Board (MDHB/DISC) when looking for specific information. For further details regarding the MDHB Collections please see Guide to the Records of Merseyside Maritime Museum, Volume 1, 1995 & Vol 2, 1998.