Material relating to the development of the P&O group
Date1840-1987
Object numberANMS0011
NameArchive series
MediumPaper
ClassificationsEphemera
Credit LineANMM Collection Gift from P&OSNCo
DescriptionThis archive series consists of miscellaneous papers associated with the several shipping companies which combined to become the P&O group: Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company (P&O), Orient Line, British India Steam Navigation Company, Eastern and Australian Line, New Zealand Shipping Company and Federal Steam Navigation Company. It contains a range of 19th and 20th century material, including passenger tickets from 1883 onwards, and a photostat copy of memorandum and prospectus dated 1840.SignificanceIn 1987, on its 150th anniversary, P&O donated a large collection of archival documents, pamphlets and photographs, originally housed in their Sydney office, to the Australian National Maritime Museum. P&O ships have been coming to Australia since 1852. The collection spans a period of more than a century, and ranges from early passenger lists to latter-day posters; from annual reports to menu covers. Information booklets intended to promote the superior functioning of P&O vessels include instructions to commanders, guides to career opportunities and such gems as 'Asian Crew: an officer's guide'.
No less valuable than the 'official' material is the vast amount of ephemera, which for many researchers evokes the special quality of tourism. To the credit of the company, it preserved items such as brochures, flyers, press releases, publicity images, postcards and crossing the line certificates, which are now in the museum's collection. Subsidiary collections of documents relating to companies with which P&O has been associated, including the Orient Line and the British India Steam Navigation Company, provide further perspective and historical context.
