Last year marked the 150th anniversary of the birth of Joseph Conrad and we have manuscripts that reveal various aspects of his career. Our Sailor's Home and Red Ensign Club records, prior to 1912 known as the Sailors' Home, include entry books for the London establishment. These give Conrad's date of entry at the London Sailors' Home, the name of the vessel he previously served on and which port she had sailed from, his age, and the date he left the home and his intended destination, among others. These details allow us to trace his movements and to assess the extent of his stay. His last stay at the home began on 19 October 1884 after he was discharged from the Narcissus.
Incidentally, Conrad was examined for his master's certificates as Second Mate, First Mate and Master in the nearby London Local Marine Board's examination rooms and he studied for them in the home's own navigation school. We hold Conrad Korzeniowski's (see image) second mate, first mate and master's certificates and applications to be examined, which give details of the vessels he served on.
His 1907 novel The Secret Agent draws its inspiration from an actual attempt to blow up the Royal Observatory in 1894. The novel also describes the Dreadnought hulk as a nearby hospital in the 'bomb outrage' chapter.
Conrad de Korzeniowski was one version of how his name was recorded in the Sailors' Home registers and he is admitted Conrad Korzenwin on 2 August 1881 into the admissions registers of the Dreadnought Seamen's Hospital. His illness is recorded as measles and was a patient there for ten days. The indexes used to locate this information are DSH/22 and DSH/122.
Personally, I feel that these records are interesting as they show a side to Conrad not often discussed or written about as he is mostly understood in relation to his career as a novelist. There is a sense that these manuscripts have been 'discovered', thus shedding new light on his seafaring career.
Another source of interest includes Conrad's connection with HMS Worcester (training ship), having sent his son Borys there in 1911. Conrad sailed past this vessel many times, with his first voyage starting in 1878.
Mike (Manuscripts)
