The collection reflects the records made and collected by a working historian. It includes: a small amount of material related to his personal life; files of notes, research material, photographs, plans, sketches, and correspondence probably used to produce his books; correspondence with other naval historians and enthusiasts; manuscripts and typescripts of monographs and essays; and a collection of transcripts and manuscripts of historical source material. An overview of the collection appears in Volume 2 of the GUIDE TO THE MANUSCRIPTS IN THE NATIONAL MARITIME MUSEUM, edited by R.J.B. Knight.

Administrative / biographical background
Michael Arthur LEWIS was a prominent naval historian, educator, and writer. In 1913, he joined the staff of the Royal Naval School at Osborne, and transferred to the Royal Naval College at Dartmouth in 1922. From 1934 to his retirement in 1955, he was Professor of Naval History and English at the Royal Naval College, Greenwich. He died in 1970. He was, as some items of correspondence he received shows, an active member of the Society for Nautical Research. He was also heavily involved in the Navy Records Society, for whom he edited a manuscript written by Admiral William Henry DILLON which is listed here as LES/6/7. He had close professional ties to many other naval historians, including Sir Geoffrey CALLENDER (1875-1946), the first chair of Naval History at Greenwich and the founding director of the National Maritime Museum; Sir Julian CORBETT (1854-1922), lecturer at the Royal Naval War College, Greenwich; Lieutenant Commander George Prideaux Brabant NAISH (1909-1977), Keeper and Historical Consultant to the Director at the National Maritime Museum; Roger Charles ANDERSON (1883-1976), Trustee of the National Maritime Museum and Chairman of Trustees 1959-1962; Leonard CARR-LAUGHTON, Admiralty Librarian; and David BONNER-SMITH, one of Carr-Laughton's successors as Admiralty Librarian. Close ties to his colleagues allowed Professor Lewis to accumulate research materials, notes, and typescripts they created; item descriptions note the actual or likely creator of these collected materials. Bundles of notes or correspondence often contain other material, including photographs, plans, and sketches; letters; articles; and manuscript or typescript drafts. Descriptions list the type, but not content, of this additional material. Items in LES/2 (research materials) may complement items in LES/3 (correspondence). Interested researchers may also wish to consult the following records held at the National Maritime Museum: Navy Records Society (NRS) (with permission of its Honorary Secretary); Society for Nautical Research (SNR); NAISH, Lieutenant Commander George Prideaux Brabant (NAI); CORBETT, Sir Julian (COR); ANDERSON, Roger Charles (AND).