How Darwin Organized his Data

Darwin kept meticulous notes on the observations he made and specimens he collected during the Beagle voyage. He kept his notes organized in various ways:

Field Notebooks:
Darwin's rough notes of observations. Eighteen volumes have been preserved; the notebooks on New Zealand and Australia have not been located. The "Red Notebook" in which Darwin first hinted at his belief in the transmutation of species is part of this series. Original manuscripts are housed at Down House, Downe, England.

Beagle Diary:
Contained his personal notes on events that took place during the voyage. This is the "journal" Darwin started while waiting in Devonport for two months before the Beagle headed out to sea. The Beagle Diary should not be confused with his very well known "Journal of Researches" which he wrote after arriving back in England in 1836. Darwin sent back installments of this diary to his sisters in England. Original manuscripts are housed at Down House, Downe, England.

Zoological Diary:
Darwin's notes, in four volumes, on the plants and animals he observed during the voyage. The notes from this diary (and his Geological Diary) were used by the authors of the five volume "Zoology of the Voyage of H.M.S. Beagle" series. Original manuscripts are housed at the Darwin Archives, Cambridge University Library, Cambridge, England.

Geological Diary:
This diary comprised by far the most extensive set of notes Darwin kept during the Beagle voyage. As the name suggests, this diary, in three volumes, describes the geology of the places Darwin visited during the voyage. There are also ten additional volumes of notes, one of which contains the manuscript for Darwin's theory on coral reef formation. Original manuscripts are housed at the Darwin Archives, Cambridge University Library, Cambridge, England.

Catalogue of Specimens:
Contained Darwin's notes, in six parts, on the species of animals, insects and plants collected during the Beagle voyage. After his return to England, twelve catalogues were prepared from this diary (and from the Zoological Diary) and were used by naturalists to describe the specimens Darwin collected during the Beagle voyage. Original manuscripts are housed at Down House, Downe, England.

For more information on the above, see Correspondence of Charles Darwin, Volume 1, page 545.