Catalogue description Department of Industry and predecessors: Overseas Technical Information Unit and predecessors: Reports

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Details of FV 7
Reference: FV 7
Title: Department of Industry and predecessors: Overseas Technical Information Unit and predecessors: Reports
Description:

This series contains reports of the British Commonwealth Scientific Office and the United Kingdom Scientific Mission in Washington, together with reports from United Kingdom scientific attachés, counsellors and advisers abroad.

The collection of files in this series formed a reference set, much of which is stamped "file copy". The set was kept successively by: the Overseas Liaison Division of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research; the Overseas Liaison Group and the International Scientific Relations Division of the Department of Education and Science; and the Overseas Technical Information Unit of the Department of Trade and Industry.

FV 7/148-150 are a finding aid to the contents of the series.

Date: 1945-1980
Related material:

For registered files of the British Central Scientific Office, and of its successor, the British Commonwealth Scientific Office, see AVIA 42

See also the papers of the General Science Branch of the Department of Education and Science and its predecessors in ED 273

See also Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, Intelligence Division papers in DSIR 45

Held by: The National Archives, Kew
Legal status: Public Record(s)
Language: English
Creator:

Department of Education and Science, International Scientific Relations Division, 1965-1971

Department of Industry, Overseas Technical Information Unit, 1974-1983

Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, Overseas Liaison Division, 1945-1965

Department of Trade and Industry, Overseas Technical Information Unit, 1971-1974

Ministry of Production, United Kingdom Scientific Mission, 1942-1945

Physical description: 150 volume(s)
Access conditions: Subject to 30 year closure
Administrative / biographical background:

The United Kingdom Scientific Mission (UKSM) in Washington, a war-time experiment under the Ministry of Production, was set up to facilitate Anglo- American scientific collaboration. It formed a unit of the British Commonwealth Scientific Office (BCSO), North America, which was established by UK and Commonwealth governments in July 1946 as the successor to the British Central Scientific Office in Washington. On the winding up of the Ministry of Production in 1945, responsibililty for the administration of UKSM as a common departmental service was transferred to the Department for Scientific Industrial Reasearch (DSIR), Overseas Liaison Division. The division was set up to facilitate the updating of information on scientific and technical development abroad. In about 1960 the Division became known as the Overseas Liaison Group.

The Division also became responsible for receiving and circulating reports from other British Scientific Councillors and offices overseas.

In 1965 the Group was transferred to the Department of Education and Science (DES), International Scientific Relations Division where it remained until 1971. In 1971 the Group became the Overseas Technical Information Unit (OTIU) of the Department of Trade ad Industry (DTI). When the DTI was split up in 1974, OTIU became part of the Department of Industry.

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