This volume is a hand-written guide to shipbuilding written by James Maw, a shipwright from Scarborough. It describes various aspect of ship building, and includes many detailed annotated diagrams. Although dated 1783, a diagram of a timber crane includes the annotation in Maw’s hand, ‘Scarborough July 27th, Friday 1804, this crane was first used for lifting Oak Timber at Mr John Tindall’s, Ship Builder’. Maw's date of birth is given as ‘around 1765’ in census records, making him 18 when this volume was compiled. This would suggest that rather than being a guide for other shipwrights to follow, it was something more like a study book created as part of an apprenticeship.

Administrative / biographical background
James Maw appears in the 1841 census in Scarborough as a shipwright. The North of England became a major shipbuilding centre following American independence, and Scarborough’s industry grew notably as a result. The Tindalls were the major shipbuilding family in the town, and it is possible, given the reference to Tindall, that Maw worked for them. The Tindall family papers are held at the North Yorkshire Record office, and reference to Maw can be found there.