Catalogue description Notes (transcriptions and translations, not entirely accurate) on 1-22 and 24-38, by E[mma] E[lizabeth] Cope, with one or two deeds not found. (Previously sewn to relevant deeds.)

[Emma Elizabeth Cope, nee Thoyts (1860-c.1949) was an enthusiastic amateur historian. In 1893 she published a "guide to the reading of ancient manuscripts" : How to Decipher and Study Old Documents. Copies of her histories of Sulhamstead (1888) and the Royal Berks Militia (1897) are available in the Record Office library.

She was the elder daughter and co-heiress of Major William Richard Mortimer Thoyts of Sulhamsted Park. In 1899 she married fellow historian John Hautenville Cope of Finchampstead Park (1867-1942), one of the editors of the Victoria County History of Berkshire, author of the section on Easthampstead, and co-author of those on Clewer and Winkfield.

Certain documents collected by Mrs Cope were deposited in the Record Office after her death (ref. D/EEG).

The provenance of D/EZ 125, and its precise connection with Mrs Cope remains unclear. The documents were held in France before their purchase by the Record Office.]