Related & Contextual Series

These series provide the regional and imperial context for North Borneo’s history. They are held at the UK National Archives and are part of the same e-archive listing.

Straits Settlements

CO 273 — Original Correspondence (2383 volumes)
The largest series in the archive. Secretary of State correspondence covering the Straits Settlements (Singapore, Penang, Malacca) and their relationship with surrounding territories. Contains detailed sub-files from the 1920s-1930s including political intelligence bulletins, opium policy, Singapore naval base, immigration, and labour. North Borneo appears frequently in the context of regional policy.

CO 425 — Entry Books (8 volumes) — Correspondence entry books of despatches, offices and individuals.
CO 426 — Register of Correspondence (42 volumes) — Straits Settlements registers.
CO 486 — Register of Out-letters (17 volumes) — Out-letters register.

Federated Malay States

CO 717 — Original Correspondence (1964 volumes)
Colonial Office correspondence with the Federated Malay States. The FMS was the dominant economic and political entity in the Malay Peninsula — its policies on rubber, labour, and finance directly affected British North Borneo.

CO 786 — Register of Correspondence (19 volumes)

Maps and Plans

CO 700 — Maps and Plans, Series I (27 volumes)
Pre-1940 maps and plans relating to Colonial Office territories. Includes maps of Borneo, boundaries, and administrative divisions.

CO 1047 — Maps and Plans, Series II (42 volumes)
Post-1940 maps.

CO 1054 — Maps and Plans, Post-1940 Collection (7 volumes)

Photographic Collection

CO 1069 — Colonial Office and Successors Photographic Collection (77 volumes)
Photographs of colonial territories including North Borneo, Sarawak, and Brunei. A visual primary source for the colonial era.

Post-war regional administration

CO 1022 — South East Asia Department: Original Correspondence (453 volumes)
Colonial Office correspondence from the South East Asia Department covering the post-WWII period — the key administrative unit overseeing British territories in the region.

CO 1030 — Far Eastern Department and Successors: Original Correspondence (732 + 474 volumes)
Far Eastern Department correspondence covering the transition from wartime to post-war administration.

CO 954 — Borneo Territories: Original Correspondence (43 volumes)
Correspondence specific to the Borneo Territories as an administrative grouping.

CO 992 — North Borneo, Brunei and Sarawak: Registers of Correspondence (5 volumes)

Singapore and Malayan Union

CO 953 — Singapore: Original Correspondence (139 volumes)
CO 991 — Malayan Union and Singapore: Registers of Correspondence (7 volumes)
CO 1010 — Singapore: Registers of Correspondence (5 volumes)

Constitutional and political

CO 889 — Federation of Malaya Constitutional Commission (Reid Commission): Minutes and Papers (3 volumes)
The commission that drafted Malaya’s constitution. Background context for Malaysia’s formation.

CO 1040 — The Rajah of Sarawak Fund: Papers (9 volumes)
Financial papers relating to the Rajah of Sarawak Fund and associated 1912 Trust Fund.