James Watt & Co. Legal Records

As noted above, only three legal documents have survived: a copy of Watt’s affidavit that he was the true inventor of the press; his letters patent of 1780; and the agreement between himself, Matthew Boulton and James Keir.

While there were never large numbers of legal documents generated by James Watt & Co., there are items missing, for example any memorandum of the agreement between James Watt Jr. and Matthew Robinson Boulton, or any documentation of the transfer of the business to them. James Watt’s illustrated patent specification for the copying press will be found in the Papers of James Watt & Family (MS 3219/4/222). Why the letters patent is here while the specification is with his personal papers is unclear.

There are no restrictions on access to or use of the James Watt & Co. Legal Records. However fragile items or those in a poor state of repair may not be served at the discretion of the Duty Archivist.

The records listed here are the surviving legal records of James Watt & Co., the copying machine manufacturing business based at Soho Manufactory. James Watt patented the copying machine in 1780, and went into partnership with Matthew Boulton and James Keir in the same year. The firm also used various agents around the country, most notably James Woodmason in London. In the 1790s James Watt Jr. and Matthew Robinson Boulton took over the running of the firm, and they continued to be partners in it until Boulton withdrew from his partnerships with Watt Jr. in 1840.For more information on the people and businesses mentioned in this Introduction, see The Guide to Persons & Firms in the Archives Searchroom.