A Catholic mission at Talomako, Big Bay, was established in 1900 by Father Pierre Bochu, SM. In the following year, Father Casimir Bancarel arrived and remained until 1905. The dictionary is not in the handwriting of either Bochu or Bancarel. For letters by them see PMB 56.

The author of the dictionary is unknown.

Fr. Gerard Bruns was born on the 17 August 1932. He arrived in the Solomon Islands in September 1960 and worked as a Marist priest on Makira, Solomon Islands. Fr. Bruns took a great interest in the people of Makira and has documented much about the Kahua language and the culture of east Makira in the Solomon Islands. In 2008 he moved to the Marist Brothers at Tenaru Secondary School outside of Honiara. Fr. Bruns moved again and now lives at Tanagai parish centre close to the sea shore which has been his home ever since.

This collection includes typescript documents that Fr. Brun has written on his personal typewriter throughout more than fifty years of living in the Solomon Islands. The collection include grammars and vocabularly/dictionaries of the Kahua language. The collection also includes Fr John Espagne’s thesis on Makira religion, titled ‘Witless Trust’, written in 1953. Fr. Brun edited "Witless Trust" to make the text more readable and typed the manuscript himself, titled ‘Origins of Religion in Makira. Anthropological Investigations. Father Iron John Investigations 1918-2001’.
Also included in the collection is Fr. Brun's autobiography ‘Antipode’ (2015), his manuscript ‘Augunua, Among the Kahua’ (2011), which summarizes Espagne’s thesis and also the ideas of Lorensio Marau, a Makiran who had described origin stories and beliefs, developing syncretic approach to Catholicism and traditional beliefs. ‘Auguna, among the Kahua’ also contains kastom stories as well as insights into Makiran society. The collection also includes Fr. Brun's manuscript on "The evangelisation of Makira, 1845-1847; 1908-1960". Fr. Brun worked with Solomon Islanders and translated the Bible into the Kahua language.

Frank Filmer was a missionary with the Churches of Christ on Pentecost Island, New Hebrides from 1908-1919. Frank became engaged to Rosa Jane Fountain and in 1908 left to work as a missionary for the Church of Christ. He returned to South Australia and on 6 April 1909 Rosa and Frank were married in the Grote Street Church of Christ, Adelaide, South Australia. They had five children, four of whom were born in the islands. In 1923 Rosa developed malaria and died. Frank returned with his young children to Australia and worked as a Minister for the Church of Christ in Kadina, South Australia. Frank married Vera Edna Woodward on 2 November 1925 and returned to work on Ambryn as a plantation manager, where he had two more children. In 1929 they returned to South Australia. Frank later bought a dairy farm in Meadows where he and his three sons worked.

Four diaries written by Frank Filmer, 1908-1918

Reel 1:
Diary 1, 29 Feb 1908-31 Dec 1909;
Diary 2, 1 Jan 1910-31 Dec 1912
Diary 3, 1 Jan 1913-31 Dec 1915
Diary 4, 1 Jan 1916-31 Dec 1918

In 1892, Paton was Chairman of the Presbyterian New Hebrides Mission. He was a vigorous opponent of the Queensland labour trade.

Newspaper cuttings relating to the labour trade between Queensland and the New Hebrides detailing, in particular, the iniquitous nature of the trade. The collection includes an open letter by Paton, Protest against the Revival of the Queensland Slave Trade, dated February 1892, to the Premier of Queensland, Sir Samuel Griffith, and Griffith's reply.

The records comprise the following registers:<BR>1. Baptismal register, 1 January 1871 - 31 January 1971<BR>2. Register of burials, 3 March 1871 - 2 February 1971<BR>3. Register of marriages, 12 February 1871 - 6 March 1963<BR>4. Banns of marriages register, 1899 - 1921

Arundel (1814-1919) was a leading figure in the Pacific phosphate industry from 1868 until his death. See <I>Pacific Islands Monthly</I>, April 1974, pp.59-61.

The correspondence is chiefly with Lord Stanmore who was chairman of the Pacific Islands Company Ltd, and later the Pacific Phosphate Company Ltd, of which Arundel was the Vice-Chairman.

Ellis (1869-1951) was born in Queensland and educated in New Zealand. In the 1890s he became an employee of the Pacific Islands Company Ltd of London, which was involved in the guano industry on islands in the Coral Sea and the Phoenix Group. In 1900, he became curious about a rock which was used as a doorstop in the Sydney office of his company and this led to the discovery of the phosphate deposits on Ocean Island and Nauru. He was a prominent figure in the Pacific Phosphate Company Ltd in 1902. After the phosphate company was bought out by the British, Australian and New Zealand governments after World War I, he became commissioner for New Zealand on the British Phosphate Commission, which was establilshed to exploit the phosphate deposits on Ocean Island and Nauru. He was the author of three books, Ocean Island and Nauru (1936), Adventuring in Coral Seas (1937) and Mid-Pacific Outpost (1946).

The documents on the microfilm include: <BR>1. Ellis' diary for May 1900 when he went to Banaba (Ocean Island) to establish the phosphate industry there<BR>2. Clippings on the phosphate industry from various newspapers and journals<BR>3. Correspondence covering the period 1920-51

See PMB 701

The logbook and statistics cover the period 1920-49. The chronicle of important events begins with Captain Cook's discovery of Niue in 1774 and is brought down to the year 1928. The events chronicled do not necessarily concern the London Missionary Society on Niue.