The papers include notes on ordnance and shipbuilding and on the sailing trials between the St. Vincent and the Queen, 1844. There are two letters relating to the Dockyard Committee of Enquiry, 1858 to 1859, and a copy of Chatfield's dissension from its Report. There are also printed copies of Parliamentary Reports relating to the dockyards, 1805 and 1860, and a pamphlet written by Chatfield in 1834, An elementary essay on the principles of masting ships.

Administrative / biographical background
Chatfield attended the School of Naval Architecture at Portsmouth. He was Assistant Master Shipwright at Deptford, 1848 to 1853, and Master Shipwright between 1853 and 1860. He was a member of the Dockyard Committee of Enquiry, which concluded its report in 1861 and to which he attached a minority report.