These records document the actions of the High Court of Admiralty and colonial Vice-Admiralty courts spanning the years 1604-1809. Included are reproductions from the Criminal as well as Instance and Prize Courts. The collection includes libels, allegations, indictments, exhibits, interrogatories, depositions, proceedings, commissions, claims, attestations, affidavits, ships' papers, and intercepted letters. Topics include piracy, the Virginia Company, and colonial administration. Geographically the collection covers New York, Massachusetts, Maryland, Virginia, South Carolina, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, New York, the Bahamas, Barbados, Jamaica, England, and other territories.