VPRS 8003 Alphabetical Card Register of Shipping : Overseas Vessels (Refer to VPRS 8639 Microfilm Duplicate Reference Copy)

This series consists of an alphabetical card register of overseas shipping maintained by the Melbourne Harbor Trust Commissioners. The register appears to have been maintained primarily to record, for each visit of an overseas vessel to the Port, the charges made for various port services offered by the Harbor Trust.A separate card was used for each vessel, the name of which was recorded on a tab at the top of each card. On the upper part of each card some details were recorded about the vessel, such as tonnage, length and whether it was an oil or coal burner. The remainder of the card was used to record details about:- The times and dates of arrivals and departures of the vessel- Where berthed and for how long- Individual charges made for such services as- shed rent/accommodation- conveniences- heating appliances- use of cranes- lighting- labour- supply of water, etc.- The vessel's agent/s- Details of charges made.Entries were made in chronological order by date of visit, while the cards themselves were filed alphabetically by the vessel's name.This series only records details of overseas vessels using the port. A separate alphabetical register was maintained for visits of interstate vessels (see VPRS 8004).The card register appears to have been established circa 1930 and data was added to the register up to 1996. Further research is required to establish whether the card register was maintained in parallel with a computerized system from 1990 onwards.

本系列档案为墨尔本港务专员委员会（Melbourne Harbor Trust Commissioners）所维护的海外航运字母顺序卡片登记册。该登记册的核心维护目标为：记录每艘海外船舶到访该港时，港务局提供的各类港口服务的收费明细。
每艘船舶对应一张独立卡片，船舶名称标注于每张卡片顶部的标签栏内。卡片上半部分记录该船舶的基础信息，包括吨位、长度，以及燃油或燃煤动力类型。卡片剩余部分则用于记录以下详情：船舶抵港及离港的时间与日期、船舶停泊位置与停泊时长、各项服务的单项收费明细（涵盖货棚租赁/泊位使用费、公共设施使用、供暖设备服务、起重机使用、照明服务、劳务服务、供水服务等）、船舶代理方信息，以及整体收费明细。
登记条目按照船舶到访日期的时间顺序录入，而卡片实体则按船舶名称的字母顺序归档。本系列仅收录使用该港的海外船舶相关信息，州内船舶的到访登记另有独立的字母顺序登记册（详见VPRS 8004）。
该卡片登记册的启用时间约为1930年，数据更新持续至1996年。目前仍需开展进一步研究，以确认1990年起该卡片登记册是否与计算机系统并行维护。