The following list of archival material relating to the history of science acquired in 1996 and 1997 by British repositories is drawn from Accessions to Repositories, an annual publication compiled by the Historical Manuscripts Commission. It is important to note that these accessions may not have been catalogued and that access may therefore be restricted. Further inquiries should be addressed to the staff of the repositories concerned.

The Historical Manuscripts Commission seeks each year to collect information from over 250 repositories throughout the British Isles. This information is made available on the Internet via the Commission's website, http://www.hmc.gov.uk. The Commission will answer limited and specific postal and email inquiries. The information is also added to the indexes of the National Register of Archives, which are available for consultation in Quality House, Quality Court, Chancery Lane, London WC2A 1HP, or via the Internet on the address above. Alternatively, electronic users can gain access to the NRA via Telnet (telnet: public.hmc.gov.uk). Readers should be aware that the manuscript collections noted in the following digest represent only a very small part of the collected information available in the NRA.