Amy Stanning, Economic and Social History, Lancaster University (2021 Cohort)

I was incredibly fortunate to spend four weeks this summer in Ann Arbor, Michigan working in the William L. Clements Library. The Library has an extensive collection of unique archival material relating to the United States in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

My NWSSDTP funded PhD project is addressing the question, ‘Was there a Taxation Revolution in late eighteenth-century Britain?’ So why would I need to research papers at the Clements Library?

The Clements Library is home to the archive papers of William Petty, 1st Marquis of Lansdowne, 2nd Earl of Shelburne, who was British Prime Minister 1782-83. Shelburne’s papers are of great interest to American researchers as his period in office coincided with the end of the American War (1776-83) through which the United States achieved their independence from Britain, and as he was closely involved in the peace treaty negotiations.

The American War was ruinously expensive for Britain with huge amounts of expensive debt borrowed to finance the War. One of the many issues Shelburne’s Government had to deal with was stabilising the public finances by raising taxation to pay off the debt. I needed to find out which options they considered and why they took the decisions they did. The archive papers at the Clements were important as they include Treasury Board minutes, proposals to reform tax collection and to reduce the endemic levels of smuggling of commodities such as tea, tobacco and alcoholic drinks. These were smuggled in vast quantities due to the high level of taxes imposed. Having access to these papers was crucial for my project and my understanding of how taxation policy developed.

I calculated I would need to spend at least four weeks at the Clements Library and needing to travel to Michigan and find accommodation for a month, this was going to be expensive!

To help fund my trip, I applied for a grant from the DTP Overseas and UK Fieldwork fund and I was delighted that my application was successful. I needed first to check my trip would be eligible for the fund which the DTP Office kindly confirmed very quickly. Completing the application was quite simple once I had a budget, completing the case for the trip took rather more work. My supervisor Professor Naomi Tadmor was incredibly helpful in helping me make the case and explain why researching the papers in Michigan was vital to the success of my project. I can’t stress enough how important it is to leave enough time before the deadline to make sure you get the help you need with your application, and to ensure it makes your case clearly and concisely. I heard I had been successful about a month after I applied, and it was now time to start booking my trip!

Ann Arbor is a small town, dominated by the University. I arrived in their arrivals week and the place was buzzing with excitement in 30-degree temperatures and gorgeous blue skies. I had secured ‘visiting scholar’ status at the University and so was able to use their amazing facilities, hang out in the History Department and meet other PhD students. I loved being invited to a barbeque, lectures and a film screening. I was even introduced to the entire Faculty as a visiting scholar from England! I had researched which staff shared my interests and arranged several 121 meetings, being treated to lunch and drinks along the way! Being a registered student even gave me free bus fares for the whole trip!

My weekdays were spent in the archive, the staff were welcoming and friendly and really keen to help with my work. I found some wonderful documents including private correspondence showing the inner workings of Government, surprising schemes to re-organise taxes which have big implications for my research and even complete newspapers which included reports on events I had discovered in my work at the British Library!

It wasn’t all work though, The Library was closed at the weekends, so I visited Ann Arbor’s impressive museums, for art, archaeology and natural history. I discovered charming historic areas with tempting antique and clothes shops and wonderful restaurants. Although public transport in the area did not extend much beyond the town itself, I did take the coach to Detroit for a fascinating visit and made it briefly over the border to Windsor in Canada. An experience in itself, and with wonderful views of Detroit City over the Detroit River.

Living on your own in a foreign country for 4 weeks is exciting and fun, I enjoyed travel, shopping (even for groceries) and chatting to the lovely people I met everywhere. It really is true that some Americans at least are intrigued by an English accent!

My trip was a huge success, and I am grateful to the NWSSDTP for their support, and I really would encourage anyone who’s research would benefit from an overseas trip to apply for a grant. Good luck!