The archives, now in Winnipeg, has a mss. catalogue of the HBC library, ca1800s and later, described as a memorandum book with index at front and tabs used to list the books; lists of books borrowed by borrower (mostly committee members but includes Beechey, Franklin, and Richardson, and dates of loan. (The following list courtesy of Ann Morton, HBC)
Arctic Books Borrowed from the HBC by Captain Franklin
1824
Feby. 18 Langsdorff Voyage [1813]
Krusensterns “ [1813]
History of Kamchatka [Grieve, 1764?]
Sauer’s Russia [1802]
Schoolcraft’s Travels [not in HBC: “returned to Mr. Garry”
Coxe’s Russian Discoveries [1790]
Doyle on the NW Passage [1785]
Voyage to Ungava Bay [Kohlmeister, 1814?]
Scoresby’s Voyages [1820]
Travels ?
Harmons Journal [1820]
There is a note that above all returned on 2 Feb. 1825. Franklin left for North America on 16 February. He returned on 26 September 1827 and his book came out the next year.
1827
Nov. 22 Pennant’s Zoology [1784]
[???] Manuscript [several manuscripts—Fidler, Isham, etc. are listed in catalogue; unfortunately this entry is in faint pencil and the word before manuscript has yet to be deciphered—Fidler on the Athabasca would seem to be the most relevant]
Note that these (or perhaps just the Pennant) were returned by Dr [John] Richardson on 14 Feb. 1836. On the same day Richardson returned a copy of Lewis and Clark (3 vol.), originally borrowed by Nicholas Garry in 1828.
HBCA A.64/20, fo. 10d.-11