Because of their wealth and status, members of the Leveson-Gower family became much involved in local activities and national events and these activities are reflected in the collection. The following are just three examples.

The Dukes of Sutherland are probably best known nationally for their role in promoting the Highland Clearances, an economic policy which was applied to their vast estates in the county of Sutherland in the early 19th century. In essence the policy was developed to clear the indigent population from the interior land and re-settle them along the coast in order to improve the agricultural return from the estates. It created much misery and is still remembered with considerable bitterness today. It also helped to accelerate the emigration of many families from the area. The collection provides a vital source of original evidence for the conduct of the Clearance policy and for the role of the family and their agents in its development and application. The extensive correspondence of the agents which survives is absolutely key to our understanding what happened in this episode of Scotland’s history.

Millicent ,4 th Duchess of Sutherland (1867-1955), was a well-known figure in the Potteries. She was a social reformer, involved in many local causes. Notable among these was her campaign to eliminate the use of lead in the glazing process in the pottery industry, which resulted in lead poisoning for many women employed as ‘dippers’.

Examples of the Duchess Millicent’s other local activities were the founding of the Potteries’ Cripples Guild and the Hanchurch Holiday Home, both of which were later joined to become the North Staffordshire Cripples Aid Society. These activities earned her the local nickname of ‘Meddlesome Millie’.

During the First World War, Millicent established a Red Cross Hospital, The Millicent Sutherland Ambulance, first in Belgium and then in France. Her papers relating to this aspect of her life form part of the collection.

Three centuries earlier, Sir John Leveson’s (1555-1615) son inherited the Staffordshire estate in 1605 on the death of Admiral Sir Richard Leveson. Sir John Leveson was himself a Kentish landowner whose work as Deputy Lieutenant for Kent involved him in preparations for the defence of south-east England against possible Spanish invasion. The collection contains his extensive papers, an invaluable source for the defence of Elizabethan England against the threat of the Spanish Armada.