Lot 112
Brazil and Portugal
Archive of the Finnie merchant family of Kilmarnock
Auction: 16 June 2026 from 10:00 BST
Description
Set of volumes relating to the business activities of the Finnie family, comprising:
1) Two journals and ledgers, nos 1-2, folio, paper wrappers, relating to William Finnie, no. 1 ([35] ff.) covering 1799-1808, no. 2 ([35] ff. covering 1809-22, wrappers dust soiled;
2) Letterbook, 4to, recased in quarter calf binding with crude stitching on spine, paginated (143p.), containing copies of business and family correspondence of William and James Finnie, then based in Lisbon, between 1803 and 1805, with index of addressees on final leaf and list of Finnie family members verso;
3) Ledger, folio paginated 21-40 (remaining 21 ff. blank), sheep, of Finnie Brothers in Rio de Janeiro and Lisbon covering 1815-30, William Finnie of Kilmarnock and business partners in England and Portugal, spine worn in places;
4) Three ledgers, folio, marbled paper wrappers, relating to various members of Finnie Brothers between 1829-32, each c.40 ff., spines worn;
5) Letterpress copybook, quarto, 500 ff. (ff. 350-500 blank), half leather, of Archibald Finnie (1823-85), son of William Finnie, when based in Rio de Janeiro, copies of his letters to Robert Finnie of Manchester (probably his brother (b.1826)), covering 1869-75;
6) Ledger, large folio, c. 200 ff. (paginated 1-229, remaining leaves blank), half calf, of Robert Finnie, possibly recording import of textiles from the UK to Brazil, with details of size, price sold at, British exporters, ships transporting the textiles, fabric samples pasted on some leaves, boards with dampstaining (9)
Footnote
The brothers William, James, Robert and John Finnie were members of a prominent business family in Kilmarnock with links to Portugal. Finnie Brothers initially traded as merchants in Lisbon, but after the French invasion of Portugal in 1807, forcing the royal family and the political and business elite into exile in Brazil, the firm moved with them. Robert Finnie (1783-1831) became head of Finnie Brothers in Rio de Janeiro, his younger brother John (1790-1875) moved to Brazil c.1810 and the two brothers worked in partnership, Finnie Brothers exported cotton to Britain, John becoming the Brazilian agent to the banker Nathan Rothschild, who was financing the cotton industry. Finnie Brothers returned to Portugal after the Napoleonic Wars while retaining their branch in Brazil.