Pulteney Family Papers

Sir William Pulteney was the third son of Sir James Johnstone of Westerhall; however, after marrying Frances Pulteney who inherited the fortune and estate of her uncle in 1767, William assumed the family name of his wife. Pulteney was a successful lawyer in Scotland, and after moving to London he entered the House of Commons in 1768 where he sat for seven successive parliaments until his death in 1805. His estate correspondence provides valuable observations about the economic and social problems that faced the Lowlands during a period of difficult growth and development.

Correspondence addressed to Sir W. Pulteney from his two agents George Malcolm and John Maxwell, chiefly concerning the management of Westerhall Estate, Dumfriesshire, 1762-1784. There are more than 500 letter reports to W. Pulteney whose estates were at Dornock and Solwaybank in Dumfries. Other names included are Langholm, Burnfoot, Broomholm (from which Maxwell usually writes), and Woodside. Also includes correspondence from William Maxwell, George Maxwell, John Fraser, Thomas Laing, and John Scott. Further, the collection contains photocopies of correspondence with Huntington Library (1981-1982, 1984-1987); a checklist of Pulteney correspondence on microfilm; 17th and 18th-century letters and documents; Maxwell genealogy, letters, and papers; Johnstones and Westerhall; Pulteney family chronology, and other related data. See also Collection Update May 1983, No. 7 "Estate papers from Dumfriesshire, 1764-1872" by Michael B. Moir for more information. 

Microfilm purchased from Huntington Library, San Marino, California, 1982. Manuscript items (Box 1) donated by the present laird of Broomholm, Dr. Ian Maxwell of Halifax, 1982; Boxes 2-3 donated by I. Maxwell, April 2002.