The Delaval Manuscripts

When John Hussey Delaval took over the running of Seaton Delaval estate from his older brother Francis, he became an avid collector of letters and docments received during the second half of the eighteenth century until his death in 1808. A collection of these manuscripts is kept in the Northumberland Records Office, England and various books chronicling the lives of the Delavals of Seaton have used them extensively to give the reader a sense of what it was like for the family to live in those times. The website 'Tomorrow's History' links you to a series of descriptions of many of those documents kept by John (and by subsequent owners of Ford Castle such as Lady Waterford). They may be found by googling 'Tomorrow's History North East' then choosing 'Browse our collections'. Page 4 takes you to "Delaval Manuscripts, The Ford and Seaton Estates". They are in alphabetical order and the following titles may be of interest:

A. An account for Jewelery
Act of Parliament re Coal Trade
Account of no of beds at Ford Castle
B. Booklet re Sugar Plantation
D. Details if Purchase of Stocks (re Miss Hicks John's first mistress)
N. Newspaper Report of Thos Knight's Jubilee

I did not find any accounts of the second Lady Delaval namely Susanna Knight who, before she married Lord John Hussey Delaval, had been his second mistress. That doesn't mean that there are none - a search of all the manuscripts may include her.