The papers of Henry Garmston Bottle consist of originals and photocopies bound for use of a shipboard diary which records the voyage of the Himalaya from London to Lyttelton, and starts on January 11, 1879, finishing on April 14, 200 miles short of the port of Lyttelton. Also includes a number of letters, 5 of which were written in 1879; the 6th letter in 1884. One letter, undated, is written on part of the diary. The letters tell that he worked on farms near Waimate, then moved to Oamaru where he worked on the railways. His six letters (one written on the Himalaya) are to his father (My dear Papa), his sister Nellie and his brother Fred, in England.

Includes a copy of a chapter on the Himalaya from Sir Henry Brett's book, White wings: immigrant ships to New Zealand, 1840-1902.