Dr George Alexander Turner (son of the Rev. Dr George Turner, author of 'Samoa A Hundred Years Ago and Long Before', London, 1884) was a medical missionary in Samoa from 1868 to 1879.

The journal describes two voyages through the Tokelau, Ellice and Gilbert Groups (Tuvalu and Kiribati) in the mission ship John Williams. The first voyage was from 26 May to 2 August 1874; and the second from 11 May to 21 July 1878. Much of the material is on mission matters, with occasional reference to matters of more general interest. See also the Bureau's newsletter Pambu January-March 1971:22, pp.1-6.

Richard Branscombe Chave, was born in 1849, probably in England. He was manager of the guano diggings on Starbuck Island (part of the central Line islands of Kiribati) in 1871, when the island was under lease from the British Government to Holder Bros. of London. Subsequently, Chave appears to have returned to his profession as a sailor.

In 1871, Chave, then 22, was in charge of a guano team of three Europeans and 50 Rarotongans working on Starbuck Island. When provisions began to run low, and there was no sign of a brig which was to bring replenishments, Chave and three Rarotongans set off in a large boat to try to reach Malden Island, 120 miles away, which was being worked for guano by a Melbourne company. After becoming lost and surviving a capsize, the party reached Penrhyn Island, several hundred miles in the opposite direction. Later, Chave and a Penrhyn Islander tried to sail back to Starbuck Island, but again Chave became lost and he and his companion finally drifted to an uninhabited island, which proved to be Suwarrow Atoll, where they lived for two years before being rescued. Chave's narrative gives a vivid account of his adventures up to a point where he and his companion had been on Suwarrow for about nine months. For further details, see the Bureau's newsletter Pambu, Nov. 1968:4, pp.5-9 and Jan. 1969:6, pp.6-9.

John T. Arundel (1841-1919) was a leading figure in the Pacific phosphate industry in Kiribati and Nauru from the 1860s until his death. See: Pacific Islands Monthly, April 1874, pp.59-61. For a summary of Arundel's activities from 1865-92, see film PMB MS 494. The National Library of Australia holds a number of Arundel photographic albums. The diaries have been filmed on reels PMB 480 - 492.

Diary 9 June 1870 - 31 December 1872.<BR>See also PMB 14, 498.

Please see PMB MS 480 for full entry.

John T. Arundel Diary 1881 - 1887. During this period, John T. Arundel & Co were involved in guano mining and coconut plantations in Kiribati. See also reels PMB MS 14, 498.

Please see PMB MS 480 for full entry.

John T. Arundel's Diary 1893 - 1894. During this period, John T. Arundel & Co were involved in guano mining and coconut plantations in Kiribati. See also PMB MS 14, 498.

Please see PMB MS 480 for full entry.

John T. Arundel's Diary 1895 - 1896. During this period, John T. Arundel & Co were involved in guano mining and coconut plantations in Kiribati. See also PMB MS 14, 498.

Please see PMB 480 for full entry.

John T. Arundel's Diary 1903 - 1904. In 1897, John T. Arundel & Co merged its business with trading and plantation firm Henderson and Macfarlane. They formed the Pacific Islands Company Ltd (PIC), which was based in London with trading activities in the Pacific, particularly Kiribati. In 1902, PIC became the Pacific Phosphate Company and began phosphate mining on Banaba, Kiribati in 1901 and on Nauru in 1906. See also PMB MS 14, 498.

Please see PMB MS 480 for full entry.

John T. Arundel's Diary 1914 - 1919. Arundel was involved in phosphate mining in Kiribati and Nauru. This diary was written in the final years of his life before he died in Bournemouth, England, in November 1919. See also PMB MS 14, 498.

Please see reel PMB MS 480 for full entry.

Diary of John T. Arundel, 1873 - 1880. During this period, Arundel managed guano digging in the central part of Flint Island, Kiribati. See also PMB MS 14, 498.