Series consists of ship registration records pertaining to 34 vessels that sailed through the Port of Hamilton. The documents include builder’s certificates and ship surveys describing the size, type, dimensions and means of propulsion for each vessel, along with ownership and registration papers, bills of sale, mortgage papers, legal papers and correspondence, shipwrecks, strandings and collision reports, telegrams and memorandums, as well as general correspondence written to and from the Registrar of Shipping from various government departments, companies and individuals, regarding transfers of ownership, ship name changes, purchases and sales, as well as inquiries into the fate of particular vessels.