Category: contributors

Exploring the Battersea Polytechnic Archive

/ Jane Ronson / Leave a comment

Archives Hub feature for November 2024

Visitors to University of Surrey Archives and Special Collections are sometimes surprised to discover that we hold much by the way of a historic institutional archive: surely as one of the new universities of the post-war era, built on a greenfield site in the Surrey Hills, our records can only go back so far? Yet although the University was established in 1966, its history dates back over half a century earlier, when it existed as the Battersea Polytechnic – and we are immensely fortunate to hold a rich and varied archive collection from this predecessor era.

A display of archive documents, photographs and artefacts.
A display of items from the Battersea Polytechnic Archive.

The history of the Polytechnic dates to the late-nineteenth century. Founded in 1891 as the Battersea Polytechnic Institute, it was originally a very different sort of institution from a modern university. Trades-focused evening classes predominated the teaching offering, with few students studying for degree-level qualifications. There were even secondary schools run out of the Polytechnic during the daytime!

Over the course of the early twentieth century however, the proportion of students undertaking advanced study for University of London degrees steadily grew, and the Polytechnic gained a reputation for expertise on scientific and technical subjects. In 1956, the Polytechnic was recognised as a College of Advanced Technology, and it was renamed Battersea College of Technology the following year. The College continued to go from strength to strength, and following the 1963 Robbins Report – which called for the expansion of higher education in the United Kingdom – it was recommended that Battersea should become a new University in its own right.

black-and-white photographs of students working in a library.
Students at work in the Edwin Tate Library at Battersea Polytechnic, 1920s (Ref No: BA/PH/2/7/2).

Our Battersea Collections

The Battersea Polytechnic Archive comprises original records and papers spanning the entire length of the institutions’ history. Key series within the archive include: formal records of the governing body; regular publications such as the Calendars (Prospectuses) and the Annual Reports of the Principal; records of Battersea Students’ Union, which offer a fantastic insight into student life at the Polytechnic; records relating to the foundation of the University of Surrey and the move to Guildford; and an extensive collection of photographs showcasing the history of the Polytechnic, its staff and students.

black-and-white photograph of students on open-top buses.
‘The first Poly Rag, 1919’ – this photograph of students on open-top buses is one of the earliest surviving references to Rag Week we hold in the archive. (Ref No: BA/PH/8/1).

In addition to the institutional archive, we also hold the Remembering Battersea Oral History Collection. This fantastic resource arose out of a project run by the University of Surrey between 2014 and 2016 with funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund, with the aim of recording and preserving the experiences of the last generations of Battersea students and staff from the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. Comprising over 70 interviews, the collection provides wonderful insights into life at Battersea: from experiences of living in student digs to recollections of anarchic RAG Week activities, including the infamous Head of the Lake contest on Battersea Park Boating Lake.

Exploring the Polytechnic Archive

Our collections on Battersea Polytechnic are a great resource for studying the University’s past – but they also have a far greater research potential. The archive can be used for studying the history of education: for instance, publication series such as the Calendars provide a detailed overview of how academic disciplines and methods of study evolved over the early twentieth century.

Likewise, the Polytechnic’s records have much to offer for researchers looking at histories of youth and student culture: the meeting minutes and publications of the Students’ Union provide a fascinating insight into student perspectives and attitudes from different eras. Our oral history interviews also offer first-hand accounts of students’ experiences during the rapid social change of the post-war era: the recordings provide detailed accounts of students’ working and social lives, and how their experiences were shaped by attitudes towards gender and class.

Three archive documents. The rules and the dinner menu bear the crest of the Polytechnic. The handbook features a photograph of a student with suitcases on the front cover.
Three items from the records of the Battersea Students’ Union: the Union Handbook for new students, 1960/61 (Ref No: BA/G/3/1/4); the Rules of the Students’ Union, [1949], (Ref No: BA/G/1/1/2); and the menu card for a dinner in honour of the Students’ Representative Council, 1952 (BA/G/4/1/1).

The Battersea Polytechnic Archive is also surprisingly international in character: the sets of student registration cards from the middle of the century reveal a student population drawn from around the world. Reports of international events in the student magazines Polygon and Bat-Chat likewise suggest a student body proud of its international ties.

Of particular note are the records of the Polish University College. Established in the 1940s by the Polish Government in Exile, the Polish University College was an important base for many Polish academics and scientists opposed to the Soviet-backed post-war Polish government. The College was absorbed into Battersea Polytechnic in the early 1950s, and some of the records of this unique institution survive within the archive.  

Discovering Battersea Stories

Working on the Polytechnic Archive, one is always struck by an awareness of all the individual stories of past students and staff contained within. We’ve worked with the University’s alumni team to support outreach events for Battersea graduates and their families, using our collections to help people reconnect with their memories of their student days. The archive is also a great resource for family history research, and we’re always happy to assist with genealogical enquiries.

Perhaps nowhere is this sense of an archive of individual stories more striking than in the Polytechnic’s records from the First World War. Large numbers of Battersea students served in the conflict, and the pages of Battersea Polytechnic Magazine are filled with glimpses into their experiences: reports of action and bravery; letters sent back from those on the front (stripped of any information that might inadvertently help the enemy); and, sadly, lists of those who died in the fighting. These accounts provide a solemn but important record of the sacrifices made by the students of the Polytechnic, and we have used these stories from the archive to support the University’s Remembrance activities.

a published letter from a student serving as an officer in the First World War. Locations and other details have been redacted.
Letter from Battersea student Thomas W. Lonsdale to the Principal of the Polytechnic, Dr Rawson, as published in the Battersea Polytechnic Magazine, vol. 7, no. 37, Nov 1914 (Ref No: BA/G/3/2/2/7).

The University of Surrey is proud of its roots in Battersea, and in the Archives & Special Collections team we’re always on the look-out for ways to make our Battersea collections more accessible. Work is currently underway to improve access to the Battersea Polytechnic Archive, including making previously uncatalogued items available to the public for the first time. We also regularly take in donations of keepsakes and memorabilia from former students and their families, so that these incredibly important personal stories of Battersea are preserved for future generations.

Simon Mackley
Archivist
University of Surrey Archives & Special Collections

Related

Descriptions of other archives held by University of Surrey Archives and Special Collections can be found on Archives Hub here: https://archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk/search/locations/5c9a11a1-d2e4-33c6-9161-1238e0ee2635

All images copyright University of Surrey. Reproduced with the kind permission of the copyright holders.

Archive and manuscript collections of the Society of Antiquaries of London

/ Jane Ronson / Leave a comment

Archives Hub feature for October 2024

The Society of Antiquaries of London was founded in 1707 and received its Royal charter in 1751. It is a Learned Society, with the stated aim of “the encouragement, advancement and furtherance of the study and knowledge of antiquities and history in this and other countries”.

Originally a peripatetic organisation (which is just a fancy way of saying we held show-and-tell sessions in various taverns around central London), it moved into Somerset House in 1780. The advantage of fixed premises was the ability to begin collecting a large range of printed books and historical objects as well as manuscripts, thus forming the beginning of the Society’s collections.

Close up of illuminated text, featuring a coloured square image of man with a long grey beard
Unfinished illumination in ‘The Preface of Snorri Sturluson’ and ‘The Story of the Ynglings’ by William Morris, MOR/01/02

150 years ago, in 1874, the Society moved to its current premises in Burlington House on Piccadilly, where we are yet again running out of shelf space as the archive and manuscripts collections have steadily grown. They comprise the organisational records of the Society, medieval manuscripts (including beautiful Books of Hours and not one but three copies of Magna Carta) and personal, usually academic research, collections of Fellows and associated historians. In addition the Archivist is responsible for the collections of photographs, early 20th-century glass slides and two of the largest collections in the country of heraldic bookplates and brass rubbings.

‘Miscellaneous’ is a word that archivists really don’t like to use, but this collection does feature a large number of small fonds which have a specific focus on a person or a niche interest.

A prime example of the latter is the collection of Norman Ticehurst (1873-1969) on swan marks – specific shapes incised into the beaks of mute swans to identify by whom they were owned. This was practiced from the 15th to the 19th century, accompanied by the creation of official rolls that documented the marks and their legal ownership.

Swan roll in bound book form, opened to show simple black markings on a white page.
Page from the Westmorland Swan Roll, TIC/15

Ticehurst meticulously catalogued over 60 of these rolls in collections around the country, with beautifully drawn sketches of the swans’ beaks. In addition to his notes and catalogues he also donated three original swan rolls to the Society, thus suddenly making us the custodians of a subject we knew very little about! We were very lucky to have the expertise and generosity of a current Fellow of the Society who helped us to catalogue the collection in detail, bringing acquisition and research of archival material almost to a full circle.

Detailed sketches of eight different swan marks, black and deep orange on white paper.
Sketches by Ticehurst of different swan marks, TIC/07

Ticehurst was a surgeon in his day job and spent his spare time on his interests in ornithology and history. In contrast, Octavius Morgan (1803-1888), four times Vice-President of the Society, came from a privileged family and inherited a small fortune, allowing him to pursue his antiquarian studies alongside being a Member of Parliament for Monmouthshire.

Pencil sketches and text relating to church monuments
Sketches of monuments in Abergavenny Church by Octavius Morgan, MOA/01

As well as specific notebook on his interests in local studies such as monuments in Abergavenny church and multiple volumes of historical notes on Monmouthshire, the Octavius Morgan collection includes a volume describing “two tours in Great Britain made by Charles Octavius Morgan with members of his family”. We were even more excited to discover that he actually made these tours while a rather grumpy teenager – 16 and 17 respectively.

Book open to show journal entry entitled North Wales, black ink on white paper.
First page of Octavius Morgan’s journal of his travels in North Wales, MOA/04

In 2022 we received funding from the University of Oxford for a recent PhD to intern with the Society and work on the Morgan travel journals. In addition to digitising and transcribing them, he created a map of the Morgan family’s routes through Northern England and North Wales, which can be accessed here. The relevant entries are transcribed at every stopping point, so you can share in his delights at the “most beautiful” road to Brecon and suffer in “a very bad inn” in Llandovery. The digital copy of the journal is available on the Society’s own catalogue.

Elaborate illumination, mainly in blue, gold and red, showing series of interconnected round and oval images
Illuminated B from ‘Beatus vir’ in the Lindsey Psalter, MSS/0059

There is not enough space to do justice to every unexpected find in the collections, but whether you’re interested in Pre-Norman crosses in Staffordshire, glass quarrel panes, megalithic monuments, medieval tiles, the history of horses, holy wells, armorial book stamps, military architecture in Malta or ancient bridges you may find that at some point a Fellow of the Society shared your passion!

Kat Petersen
Archivist
Society of Antiquaries of London

Related

Descriptions of other collections held by the Society of Antiquaries of London can be found on Archives Hub here.

Images copyright Society of Antiquaries of London. Reproduced with the kind permission of the copyright holders.

The English Opera Group archive – ‘We believe the time has come when England can create its own operas’

/ Jane Ronson / Leave a comment

The English Opera Group collection forms part of the Britten Pears Arts Archive which documents the lives and work of composer Benjamin Britten and his partner, singer Peter Pears, as well as their wider collaborative relationships through the papers of singers, librettists, producers, designers and other creatives with whom they worked. Of all the collections in our archive perhaps this one illustrates the workings of these creative partnerships most effectively. Opera is a collaborative art form – a union of several different arts. It requires the talents and inspiration of people from music, literature, drama, painting, and stage and costume design, as well as the skills of electricians, carpenters, costume makers and administrators. The archive of the English Opera Group documents the process of creating an opera from planning to performance as well as the people involved from the Board of Directors to the singers on stage.

The English Opera Group was founded in 1947 by Britten, librettist and producer Eric Crozier, and artist and designer John Piper. These three creatives regretted that England had never had a tradition of native opera but depended instead on a repertory of foreign works. Their aim therefore was to encourage British composers to write for the operatic stage and poets and playwrights to write libretti – and so build a repertory of English opera.

First page of the document setting out the aims of the English Opera Group, black and red ink on white paper.
The aims of the Group published in 1947.

They considered the best way to achieve this was to focus on the creation of chamber operas requiring small numbers of singers and players. These chamber operas would be suitable for simpler staging, for performance in either large or small theatres or halls and be easier to take on tour. They would therefore require less financial commitment and could be presented by companies who lacked the resources needed to present the large-scale grand operas of the traditional repertory.

Black and white photograph showing a group of six people in an ice cream parlour, eating ice cream.
Britten and Pears with members of the cast of The Rape of Lucretia during the Group’s tour to the Netherlands and Switzerland in 1947 (photographer unidentified).

Britten, Crozier and Piper produced their first chamber opera in 1946 – Britten’s The Rape of Lucretia written for 8 singers and an orchestra of 12. The success of this experiment encouraged them to continue their work by establishing a group of singers under their artistic direction. The new opera company was launched with the creation of Britten’s second chamber opera Albert Herring in 1947.

Front side of a flyer advertising the 1951 Opera Ball, mainly black text on discoloured white paper.
Flyer advertising the 1951 Opera Ball held in aid of the Group.

Despite working with the reduced forces of a chamber opera, financial assistance from the Arts Council did not cover the Group’s costs and so the English Opera Group Association was founded a year later in 1948 to provide support as well as a link between performers and audience. The Association raised funds through subscriptions, concerts and events, including Opera Balls with the attendees dressing up as operatic characters. The Association’s first president J.B. Priestley was sympathetic to the Group’s aims and methods believing that small-scale chamber operas suited the ‘British character and genius’.

Close up photograph of a typewritten letter, to a Miss Wood from J. B. Priestley, dated 10th February 1949.
Letter from J.B. Priestley accepting the position of President of the EOG Association. Reproduced by kind permission of the Estate of J.B. Priestley.

The English Opera Group continued to create first productions of new chamber operas by Britten – with first performances taking place at the annual June Aldeburgh Festival of Music and the Arts. In 1951 the Group set about its aim of encouraging further British composers and writers to write for the operatic stage with its first commission – The Sleeping Children with music by Brian Easdale and libretto by Tyrone Guthrie. Over the next 23 years the Group commissioned and produced ten further operas for chamber forces with music by British composers, including operas by Lennox Berkeley, Malcolm Williamson, William Walton and Harrison Birtwistle.

Colour photograph showing a scene from a 1968 production of The Burning Fiery Furnace, with a group characters on a small circular stage.
Production of Britten’s second parable for church performance The Burning Fiery Furnace 1968 (photographer: John Richardson).

In 1964 the Group gave the first performance of Britten’s Curlew River – his first parable for church performance – a new experiment in composition and production and based on the Japanese Nō drama Sumidagawa. The Group toured widely throughout the UK and abroad, performing in the USSR in 1964, and at Expo 67 in Montreal. In 1975 the Group was expanded and reformed as the English Music Theatre Company, the change of name reflecting a broadening of repertory to include, as well as operas, operettas and musicals. The company produced its last opera and ceased to operate in 1980 due to financial difficulties.

Colour photograph of the pages of an open score book, showing a production score music on the left-hand page and notes and diagrams on the right-hand page.
Production score with stage management’s copious notes and diagrams.

The archive of the English Opera Group, later the English Music Theatre Company, is extensive, providing information on the operas produced and people involved throughout its history. There are papers relating to policy and planning, organisation, publicity and finances; files concerning artists and personnel, performances and tours. The creative process is recorded in production scores with rehearsal markings, technical and wardrobe files, set designs and production photographs. We have recorded oral history interviews with former members to provide further insights into the Group’s story. This collection has recently been catalogued and is now available for research.

Judith Ratcliffe
Archivist, Britten Pears Arts
The Red House, Aldeburgh, Suffolk
www.brittenpearsarts.org

Related

English Opera Group / English Music Theatre Company archive
Correspondence of Benjamin Britten
Correspondence of Peter Pears

Nancy Evans and Eric Crozier papers

Descriptions of other collections held by Britten Pears Arts Archive can be found on Archives Hub here:
https://archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk/search/locations/db6ce751-8321-3ca4-9e5b-79f76ef04ac0

Previous Archives Hub feature on Britten Pears Arts Archive collections

The Imogen Holst archive: papers of a passionate and open-minded woman musician

Images copyright Britten Pears Arts Archive and the Estate of J.B. Priestley. Reproduced with the kind permission of the copyright holders.

An Archives Hub Dive: Never Work with Children or Animals!

/ Jane Ronson

Archives Hub feature for August 2024

As many a TV presenter, veterinarian or teacher will tell you, working with children or animals is never without some form of event. Inspired by both the ideas of working animals and how children are influenced by literature and media, this trip into Archives Hub will focus on both!

Animals have been bred for specific jobs for hundreds of years, from Border Collie sheepdogs in rural areas to German Shepherd police dogs in cities.

Police dogs specifically have their own entry in the Hub, in the Records of the Association of Chief Police Officers: Minutes of the Police Dog Sub-Committee and Police Dogs Working Group. This file is part of a wider Police Dog Sub-Committee in the Hull University Archives, Hull History Centre: http://archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk/data/gb50-udpo/udpo/2/5/14

Colour photograph showing German Shepherd puppies with Police helmets.
‘Day 352 – West Midlands Police – Puppies’ by West Midlands Police, used under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 license.

Sticking with more domestic animals, dogs are not the only species with jobs. Horses have had many occupations, from colliery horses, horse drawn transport and working at mills:

The Mills Archive contains a series of digital photographs (with higher resolution versions available on request), including those of horses working on a pump engine!: Yorkshire mills, north Wales quarries, horse mills . This folder is included in the Roy Gregory Collection: http://archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk/data/gb3132-royg

Colour drawing of a brown horse, with brown background.
McCance, William, ‘Animal drawing – standing horse with collar 1911-1912.’ Art, Design and Architecture collection. Glasgow School of Art Archives and Collections. GB 1694 NMC/1771.

And we simply can’t ignore the presence of circus or fairground animals within the archives, with The National Fairground Archive containing descriptions of working animals in circus grounds, or featuring in their posters: NFA Poster collection.

Also, another repository features photographs of elephants being trained alongside horses for the circus in the early 20th Century – a particular highlight!: Training by Kindness. These photographs are part of the Roslin Slide collection, held by the Edinburgh University Library Special Collections: http://archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk/data/gb237-coll-1434

Black and white logo for the BBC Written Archives.
BBC Written Archives Centre logo.

When there are thoughts of circuses, there are often thoughts of children in the audience. And it is media influences on children documented in the archives that we shall move onto next. There are two specific areas Archives Hub covers particularly well: television broadcasting and literature.

Insect Circus colour poster, advertising performances at Hoxton Hall, London, during December 2005.
Insect Circus poster 2005, copyright © 2024 Insect Circus Society.

The BBC Written Archives Centre has a great selection of papers relating to different children’s programming spanning decades, with it being clear where there are often animals, there will be some form of them featuring in a broadcast for children. As will be of no surprise, there are a great number of files surrounding Blue Peter!

  • Children’s Programmes  – These papers relate to the creation, production and broadcast of children’s television programmes of various types and genres, including talks programmes, documentaries, outside broadcasts, series and serials, puppet shows, stories, plays, cartoons, child participation and magazine programmes. This makes up the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) collection of the BBC Written Archives Centre: http://archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk/data/gb898-bbc

Likewise, two of our Hub contributors include dedicated children’s literary archives. The first of these is the aptly named Children’s Literature Collection, held by the University of Roehampton Archives and Special Collections. This collection comprises of published books and resources relating to children’s literature. Including 40 children’s literature journals, reference works such as “Children’s Literature Review”, biography and autobiography of children’s authors and illustrators. Also, children’s books of historical interest and significance, mainly from the 19th and early-20th Centuries are present alongside adaptations of children’s books into film, TV and audio: Children’s Literature Collection.

The second is the Seven Stories Archive, containing works from over 250 authors and illustrators, with over 36,000 texts present: Seven Stories Archive.

  • Some highlights include the Phillip Pullman collection and the Judith Kerr collection – so you can simultaneously research the magical Oxford of His Dark Materials and the misadventures of Mog the Forgetful Cat!
Black and white photograph of a group of children playing with wooden pins in the road. With cottages in the background.
“Wallops – nine pins” by Werner Kissling. From the Leeds Archive of Vernacular Culture (LAVC) at the University of Leeds LAVC/PHO/P1748.

Results relating to children’s media is not limited to specialised archives, with much available to those looking at one specific work – for example The Wind in the Willows, which has been adapted to multiple genres and is found in the following very different archives:

Needless to say, working with children or animals is well documented in the archives – though they may not offer much advice on avoiding mishaps!

Previous features on similar topics

The Archive of Barbara Mildred Jones (1912-1978): artist, designer, author and curator

/ Jane Ronson

Archives Hub feature for July 2024

Born in Croydon, Barbara Mildred Jones was a painter, author, collector and curator. Jones’ father was a saddler and proprietor of a leather goods and trunk shop, and it was here that Jones first encountered traditional handicrafts, a subject she would remain passionate about throughout her life and career.

After receiving a scholarship to Croydon Art School which she attended from 1931-33, Jones studied at the Royal College of Art (RCA), first in the Department of Engraving before transferring to the Department of Mural Decoration, graduating in 1937 following in the footsteps of John Piper, Eric Ravilious, and Edward Bawden. Jones shared their concern with British landscape and architecture, which she documented as objects and artefacts representative of English everyday life. 

Black and white photograph of Barbara Jones. She is shown seated, holding a sketchpad and looking straight into the camera. Dated 1951.
Portrait of Barbara Jones, BJO/5/9. © John Vickers, 1951.

Jones first gained recognition for her murals with commissions as early as 1937 in private homes and London restaurants. She produced murals for the Council of Industrial Design’s (CoID) Britain Can Make It exhibition (1946), Things for Children section, Design Fair (1948), for which she painted a 3-panelled piece titled Animal, Vegetable, Mineral that hinted at the distinctive ways Jones organised objects, and was heavily involved in the Festival of Britain (1951), designing the Coastline of Britain, Seaside section, and the Outside Broadcasting mural for the Television Pavilion, as well as working on the Lion and Unicorn Pavilion and the Battersea Funfair. She also produced murals for Orient Line ships (1949-1960), continuing to receive mural commissions in both public and private spaces, to a total of 29 in her career.

Jones’ first book, Isle of Wight, a survey of historical and tourist sites, was published in 1950. This was followed by a series of articles written and illustrated for Architectural Review (1944-9) that become her second book Unsophisticated Arts, (1951) which, along with the concurrent Black Eyes & Lemonade exhibition (co-curated with Tom Ingram) at the Whitechapel Gallery, London, introduced Jones’ expertise in what she referred to as popular, or vernacular art to the world. Jones was fascinated with ephemeral and mass-produced objects and spent her career researching, collecting, exhibiting, and writing about items she felt had been overlooked.

For Jones, the objects of the everyday – canal boats and wax figures, food and drink packaging, and the deviant art of tattoos, had just as many important aesthetic qualities and characteristics as rare and precious objets d’art, a classification she was more than happy to subvert. Jones aimed to show we are surrounded by art through her murals, publications and exhibitions, but also through the work she did for educational initiatives including the School Prints series (1945) that brought contemporary art to children, for which she produced the lithograph Fairgrounds, her illustrations for the CoID’s educational booklet This or That (1947), as well as the many teaching positions she held throughout her career.

Illustration of two black eyes (one above the other), with bright yellow background and the text Black Eyes and Lemonade, Whitechapel Art Gallery.
Black Eyes and Lemonade artwork, BJO/1/4.

Not limited to the page or canvas, Jones was a regular guest on the BBC covering topics such as canal boats, taxidermy, the coronation of HRH Queen Elizabeth II and royal memorabilia, another interest of hers. The latter was also the focus of the Royal Occasions exhibition she curated at the Tea Centre, London (1953), contributing memorabilia from her own collection, and designing illustrations for the exhibition guide.

Jones’ third book Follies & Grottoes (1953), is a monumental work injected with Jones’ enthusiasm and wit, exploring two of her passions, travel and craft, and documents the diverse architectural follies erected throughout Victorian Britain, the first survey of its kind. Jones continued to collect new and interesting follies, both in Britain and abroad, and a revised and updated edition was published in 1974.

Cover of the book Follies and Grottoes, showing the illustration of a pink archway, through which a series of three follies and grottoes can be seen, on a slight slant, casting shadows and with blue sky in the background.
Follies & Grottoes, 1953, cover illustration, BJO/2/3/7

Jones’ subsequent books cover other every-day topics such as furniture design or watercolour painting, though Jones explored the most vernacular subject of them all in her book Design for Death (1967). Diverse social and cultural traditions and their manifestation through and with objects are recurring motifs in all of Jones’ work: fairground architecture was as fascinating as coffin design, puppets as noteworthy as ceremonial dress, and she adored fêtes and processions of all kinds. Her love of processions reached its peak in her curation of the Lord Mayor’s Show in 1963.

Jones was a member of many notable design organisations, including the Society of Industrial Arts, the Society of Mural Painters, the Royal Anthropological Institute, the Society of Authors, and the Society of Lithographic Artists, Designers, Engravers and Process Workers.

Page of handwritten draft text, titled Popular art. Blue ink on plain cream paper, with several crossings out.
‘Popular Art’ draft, BJO/3/2/4
Illustration in black ink of the fountain in London's Piccadilly Circus, topped by the statue of Eros (Anteros). The fountain is surrounded by and filled with people, some of whom are waving placards and coloured union flags. The background is of broad horizontal stripes in blue, white and orange.
Simpson (Piccadilly) Ltd brochure cover: BJO/3/5/4

Her expertise in such vanguard subjects and her unique style made her a popular choice for publishers and she contributed chapters and illustrations to many publications throughout her career, many of which are documented in the archive.  

The archive consists mostly of research and reference material, manuscripts and typescript drafts of Jones’ published and unpublished works, as well as correspondence and personal papers that document the diverse professional and personal networks developed throughout her career. The archive was transferred by the estate of Barbara Jones in two stages, first in 2009, followed by a larger deposit in 2015, complimenting other collections in the University of Brighton Design Archives such as the archives of James Gardner and the Design Council, both of whom Jones worked with.

Jen Grasso
Digital Content and Systems Co-ordinator
University of Brighton Design Archives

Related

Barbara Jones Archive

Descriptions of other archives held by University of Brighton Design Archives can be found on Archives Hub here: https://archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk/search/locations/a6626a00-aaa0-30a9-8b3f-5e6309d94163

All images copyright University of Brighton Design Archives. Reproduced with the kind permission of the copyright holders.

Oxford House in Bethnal Green: An Archive of London’s East End

/ Jane Ronson

Archives Hub feature for June 2024

Introduction

Oxford House was founded in 1884 as a ‘settlement house’ for graduates of the University of Oxford volunteering in East London. To celebrate our 140th anniversary, Oxford House has been working for two years on a National Lottery Funded Project to celebrate this anniversary, ‘Through the Lens: Women Pioneers, Youth Social Action and Celebrating Our Somali Community.’ This has involved zine-making with local students, running local photography exhibitions, recording new oral histories with community members who have contributed to the history of the house, and the mammoth task of cataloguing and digitising our archive.

While some of our material is still housed at Tower Hamlets Local History Library and Archives,10,000 pages of archives are now accessible on our new website, available to the wider public for the very first time. This material ranges from our Victorian arrivals book, documenting the movement of students in and out of the building, to 1970s campaign posters created by activist groups who used Oxford House as their base to advocate for change and propose innovative and groundbreaking social schemes. Alongside these are a rich photographic archive which documents the heart of Oxford House throughout its lifetime – its people.

Our Founders

Black and white photograph, dated circa 1890, showing the Founders of Oxford House from Keble College, Oxford. Group of eleven men, forming two rows, with the exterior of Oxford House in the background.
Founders of Oxford House from Keble College, Oxford. Oxford House, c.1890. I/OXF/A/6/2/1 (Tower Hamlets Local History Library and Archive)

Though, as ‘settlement’ implies, there was indeed an undeniably strong vein of paternalism to educate the lower classes, the reformist social movement sought to provide practical support to the community of East London, such as legal advice and labour exchanges. Our archive is flush with records that set out the early aims for the house – ‘to provide a centre for religious, social, and educational work among the poor of East London.’ One of the most evocative items from our early collection is our arrivals and departures book. Dated from 1910-1938, this was where many from Oxford and beyond noted their comings and goings. It captures the energy of not only the house but of the interest in the wider settlement movement from both a national and international audience, with entries from visitors hailing from New York, Copenhagen, Zurich, and Port of Spain Trinidad.

Black and white photograph, dated circa 1910, of the register recording the our arrivals and departures at Oxford House. The book is open, showing handwritten entries.
Register of Arrivals and Departures. Oxford House, c.1910s. OH/8/1/1 (Oxford House)

World War Two

Our records from the WWII era are especially poignant. Located in heavily bombed East London, Oxford House acted as a shelter for up to 300 members of the local community at the height of the Blitz. Away from the East End, Oxford House organised the evacuation of local children to free boarding schools in Wales and Herefordshire, where many city-born children visited the countryside for the first time. While there are few photographs from the inside of the house during this period, Annual Reports from our archive capture the spirit of the time. ‘The House and all that for which it stands shall not die, but shall blossom in the future from the new life which has been born in it during this year of suffering,’ wrote Chairman Walter H. Moberly in 1941.

Black and white photograph, dated 1940, showing a crowded air raid shelter during World War Two. Men, women and children are almost all seated, some at tables, holding teacups and making paper chains. In the background are bunk beds and a staircase leading up.
Bomb shelter in Second World War. Oxford House, 1940. OH/9/7/1 (Oxford House)

During this time, Oxford House continued to run clubs and events for members of the community who remained in East London – from sport activities to dance evenings. Significantly, it was during this period that women became an increased presence within the public life of the house. Women have always played a role at Oxford House, yet our early archive often records them only as unnamed domestic servants under ‘housekeeper’ or the like. Molly Clutton-Brock, a campaigner and the wife of the Head of House, Guy Clutton-Brock, took a lead on establishing clubs for women and girls during the war. This was a marked change as Oxford House transitioned post-war from a male-dominated settlement house to a community centre model.

Post-War Social Action

Some of our most dynamic archival records date to the post-war period, when by the 1970s, the East End was buzzing with community spirit and activism. Oxford House was home to many campaigns and social groups, and our archive has a wealth of photographs and posters from this era – as pictured, for example, a health stall hosted in our Cafe where the community could come to receive health advice and information. The Oxford House Social Club and the Oxford House Youth Club were both set up in this era, and our archive once again has a fantastic collection of photographs of activities, events and festivals hosted in and beyond Oxford House.

Black and white photograph, dated circa 1970s, showing two women and one man in conversation. In the background a covered table is visible with the sign stating Health Stall hanging above it.
Health Stall. Oxford House, c.1970s. OH/9/2/9 (Oxford House)
Black and white photograph, dated 1974, showing a poster titled They Shall Not Pass, produced by the Tower Hamlets Movement Against Racism and Fascism. The poster includes a poem and details of a poetry reading event taking place on the 4th November that year. The event is to 'celebrate the East Enders victory over fascism October 1936'.
They Shall Not Pass! The Tower Hamlets Movement Against Racism and Fascism. Oxford House, 1974. OH/8/3/2/1 (Oxford House)

Our archive also holds the records of many social action campaigns from the late 20th century to present – such as the Tower Hamlets International Solidarity campaign (THIS) 1981-1988 collection, the Families Unit 1977-1981 collection, and the Somali Projects 1985-2023 collection. East London’s Somali community has played a long-standing significant role at Oxford House, with the establishment of Somali Week Festival and the Somali Arts Project designed to platform the creativity and culture of refugees and migrants who came to the East End.

Black and white photograph leaflet, dated circa 1990s, titled A Centre for Somalis, and featuring the image of a man and woman, either side of a smiling child.
A Centre for Somalis leaflet. Oxford House, 1990s. OH/5/12/7 (Oxford House)

Our NHLF project and 140th Anniversary celebration is culminating in an exhibition, History House. Items from our archive throughout the decades will be exhibited for the first time to share untold stories of the house and those who have worked here and called it home throughout time. We would love for you to visit.

Emily Hughes
Archivist, Oxford House in Bethnal Green

History House is open 6th June – 20th December 2024, Monday to Friday 10am-5pm, at Oxford House in Bethnal Green, E2 6HG. Our archives are open by appointment, please email OHarchive@oxfordhouse.org.uk.

Related

Oxford House Archive, 1898 to present day

Images copyright Oxford House and Tower Hamlets Local History Library and Archive. Reproduced with the kind permission of the copyright holders.

Refugees in the public eye: World Refugee Year 1959-60 in the Humanitarian Archive

/ Jane Ronson

Archives Hub feature for May 2024

In 2022, the Humanitarian Archive at the University of Manchester Library received one of its first collections. This archive, which was launched in 2021, aims to collect papers relating to humanitarianism, particularly from individuals or small organisations, or which relate to topics, points of view and events which are generally underrepresented in archives.

This collection consists of a small box of ephemera, memorabilia and papers concerning World Refugee Year 1959-1960, donated by Peter Gatrell, Professor Emeritus of History at the University of Manchester. This collection, built up by Professor Gatrell over the course of writing his book Free World? The Campaign to Save the World’s Refugees, 1956-1963, gives a fascinating insight into how the general public (particularly in the UK) interacted with this international campaign and the topic of the refugee crisis more broadly.

World Refugee Year was set up as an international response to raise money for and awareness of refugee crises happening around the world. The birth of the idea came from a group of British journalists who had previously reported on this topic: Timothy Raison, a journalist for the Picture Post and the New Scientist, Trevor Philpott, Colin Jones and Christopher Chataway, a journalist and former Olympic athlete and the first winner of the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award in 1954. The plan gained momentum, sparking interest among representatives of UNHCR, the World Council of Churches and the UK Foreign Office. The resolution to support World Refugee Year was passed by the UN in 1958, with the intent of encouraging financial contributions from ‘Governments, voluntary agencies and the general public’, and ‘to encourage additional opportunities for permanent refugee solutions, through voluntary repatriation, resettlement or integration, on a purely humanitarian basis and in accordance with the freely expressed wishes of the refugees themselves’[1]

At an international level, one of the biggest fundraising campaigns was the production of commemorative stamps across several different countries, as a ‘manifestation of world solidarity’.[2] Those who took part were required to include a World Refugee Year logo somewhere in their design, but aside from that they could interpret the theme how they wanted. Publicity regarding the campaign was broadcast through print and screen media, including planned magazine articles on Yul Brynner’s collection of them (Brynner was an advocate for World Refugee Year who became a special consultant to UNHCR in 1959).[3]

A stamp album and a collection of first day covers in the World Refugee Year collection show how diverse these interpretations were. Some countries chose a simple design, simply foregrounding the logo.

Colour photograph of the interior of a stamp album displaying World Refugee Year Stamps from Afghanistan and Nicaragua. Four stamps framed with text in French and Spanish (dated 1960).
World Refugee Year Stamps from Afghanistan and Nicaragua. World Refugee Year Collection, WRY/1/11, The University of Manchester Library.
Colour photograph of the first day cover for Luxembourg's World Refugee Year stamp, featuring biblical imagery and text in French (dated 1960). World Refugee Year Collection, WRY/1/6, The University of Manchester Library.
The first day cover for Luxembourg’s World Refugee Year stamp. Two stamps on cream card, with a postal stamp dated 7 April 1960. World Refugee Year Collection, WRY/1/6, The University of Manchester Library.

Others took this further, featuring biblical and Christian imagery, as with Luxembourg’s design.

Colour photograph of the interior of a stamp album displaying the World Refugee Year Stamps from Guatemala and Guinea. Ten stamps. on cream card. World Refugee Year Collection, WRY/1/11, The University of Manchester Library.
World Refugee Year Stamps from Guatemala and Guinea. World Refugee Year Collection, WRY/1/11, The University of Manchester Library.

Others, like Guatemala, took the opportunity to commemorate a contemporary humanitarian organisation, by involving the red cross in their design.

Oxford, London and Cambridge punt race souvenir programme. Black text and illustration on cream paper, showing figures punting as part of the design. Dated 4th and 5th March. World Refugee Year Collection, WRY/1/7, The University of Manchester Library.
Oxford, London and Cambridge punt race souvenir programme. World Refugee Year Collection, WRY/1/7, The University of Manchester Library.

The UK notably, did not submit a design. A letter from Ernest Marples of the UK Post Office to Lady Elliot in the House of Lords states that the occasion does not fit with their usual criteria for issuing stamps, and that ‘we are constantly being bombarded with requests to issue stamps to assist this or that good cause’, and if they agreed to do this it would be impossible to ‘draw the line’.[4]

Despite being an international campaign, World Refugee Year focussed on engaging the general public. Many local and school committees were set up in the UK to run events, and a variety of organisations took the opportunity to get involved. The University of Cambridge held a ‘Fiesta’ day to coincide with an Oxford, Cambridge and London punt race. Other events on this day included plays, music, punt jousting, a tug of war and (quite jarringly considering the light-hearted nature of the other events) a display of ‘Authentic Refugee Huts’ in King’s College, Cambridge.

World Refugee Year aimed to capture the attention and efforts of children in particular. Schools were encouraged to set up committees and run events, and items to buy, and collect were produced, like the stamps, and the badge seen on the right below.

World Refugee Year yellow and black round badge and brass oval lapel pin, displayed on black and white background. Both items feature an outstretched hand. World Refugee Year Collection, WRY/1/5, The University of Manchester Library.
World Refugee Year badge and lapel pin. World Refugee Year Collection, WRY/1/5, The University of Manchester Library.

The World Refugee Year Collection in the Humanitarian Archive does not go into great detail about the planning of the campaign (this information is held by the UN archives in New York), but it does show something more personal. They give a glimpse into how the UK public engaged with the issue, with the events, and publications that were produced to commemorate it.

Flora Chatt
Humanitarian Archivist
University of Manchester Library

Related

To find out more about the Humanitarian Archive at the University of Manchester, please visit our subject page.

Browse all The University of Manchester’s Special Collections descriptions to date on Archives Hub

Previous Archives Hub features on The University of Manchester Library collections

The Christian Brethren Archive

The Editorial Correspondence of C.P. Scott in the Guardian archive

A Spring in Your Step

James Phillips Kay-Shuttleworth – pioneering educational reformer

Bicentenary of the birth of Charles Dickens

Charles Wesley (1707-88)

Robert Donat

All images copyright The University of Manchester. Reproduced with the kind permission of the copyright holders.

[1] World Refugee Year | UNHCR

[2] Aide-Memoire, A Special United Nations Stamp Plan, MHCR/126/59, WRY/1/8, World Refugee Year Collection, University of Manchester Library

[3] Joint UNHCR/UNRWA stamp project: Information Services memorandum. WRY/1/8, World Refugee Year Collection, University of Manchester Library

[4] Letter from Ernest Marples to Lady Elliot of Harwood in the House of Lords, 19 March 1959. WRY/1/8.

Cynefin and the school collections at Carmarthenshire Archives

/ Jane Ronson

Archives Hub feature for April 2024

Work has begun on re-cataloguing the school and education records held by Carmarthenshire Archives.  The collection consists of the records of over 120 elementary schools, as well as school plans, photographs and minutes of various education authorities. Progress has been steady, and we aim to have the catalogues available on Archives Hub by the end of the year.

The work on re-cataloguing the collections also ties in with the planned development of an archive service for schools and colleges in the Carmarthenshire area.  The new Curriculum for Wales was introduced in 2022 and core to the humanities programme is a sense of “cynefin”.

“Cynefin” as defined by the new Curriculum for Wales is “the place where we feel we belong, where the people and landscape around us are familiar, and the sights and sounds are reassuringly recognisable.  Though often translated as ‘habitat’, cynefin is not just a place in a physical or geographical sense: it is the historic, cultural and social place which has shaped and continues to shape the community which inhabits it”.

The new curriculum allows learners of all ages to experience a range of stimuli that enthuse and inspire them to imagine and be curious, and to explore, discover and question through a range of opportunities.  This includes visits to libraries, archives and museums; engaging with structured enquiry and cooperative learning; to use artefacts and texts of historic and religious significance; and to work with individuals, experts, groups and organisations that have particular potential to provide stimulating contexts for learning.

The result has been an increase in schools requesting workshops linked to their locality and a good place to start is always with the school records, particularly the logbooks and admission registers.

Dating back to the 1870s in most instances, the school log books in our collections can help tell the story of a local community and illustrate the way an area responds to national events such as the two world wars as well as local events such as bad weather, harvests, and epidemics.

Image showing extract from handwritten Llwynhendy School logbook, dated 4 September 1939.
Extract from Llwynhendy School logbook, 4 September 1939. Item reference GB 211 OF/E 11/1/4.

Some examples I have recently come across include the staff of Llwynhendy School preparing to receive evacuees at the out break of the Second World War in September 1939. The admission register for the same school confirms that evacuees arrived at Llwynhendy from London, Liverpool and Birmingham.

Meanwhile in Bynea School in 1941, during an air raid warning the children were dressed and equipped with their gas masks ready for a speedy escape.  Instead, the children all stretched themselves out under the desks until the alert passed.

Image showing extract from handwritten Clawddowen School logbook, dated 5 May 1899.
Extract from Clawddowen School logbook, 5 May 1899. Item reference GB 211 OF/C 8/1/1.

In 1899, the school mistress at Clawddowen School was struggling with poor attendance. The very wet weather appears to have been putting most children off attending school. Although, even when “the weather is beautifully fine for good attendance…the children are kept home to assist in gardening and harrowing”. It was a battle the school mistress was never going to win.

At Llanfihangel-ar-Arth National School in 1868, the master was having a different problem.  His opening entries in the logbook record that “the children are not progressing satisfactorily owing to their ignorance of the English Language” and “the same difficulty is expressed still with the children in the want of English”. Another entry also records that “formerly they were accustomed to be taught in Welsh and the transition from Welsh to English is accompanied with many difficulties”. Today, nearly two thirds of Carmarthenshire primary schools are Welsh medium, and there are four bilingual secondary schools and one Welsh medium school in the county.

Image showing extract from handwritten Llanfihangel-ar-Arth National School logbook, dated 14 January 1868.
Llanfihangel-ar-Arth National School logbook, 14 January 1868. Item reference GB 211 OF/G 3/1/1.

As work continues on the collections, I am certain to find more examples that will help tell the stories of our local communities.

Katie Millien
Archivist
Carmarthenshire Archives

Related

Descriptions of other archives held by Archifau Sir Gaerfyrddin / Carmarthenshire Archives can be found on Archives Hub here:
https://archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk/search/locations/f495f0b0-5f93-3196-9e02-bd21d10e66e2

All images copyright Archifau Sir Gaerfyrddin / Carmarthenshire Archives. Reproduced with the kind permission of the copyright holders.

Cataloguing the Thackray Museum of Medicine Archive

/ Jane Ronson

Archives Hub feature for March 2024

The Thackray Museum of Medicine houses an incredible collection of 50,000 objects and 25,000 books, journals and catalogues, and the collections focus on responses to people’s medical and healthcare needs – the innovation, enterprise, technology and collective effort to make us well. But it is also home to several gifted medical archives, over 200 of which have remained largely unexplored until now. Since November 2022, the Thackray Museum of Medicine has begun to catalogue its archive through appointing a qualified archivist for the first time, and with the help of volunteers, over 100 collections have been catalogued and made available on the Thackray Museum’s online catalogue.

Colour photograph showing a selection of catalogued items on display in the archive at Thackray Museum of Medicine. The items are presented on top of a large blue cabinet and a wooden desk.
A selection of catalogued items on display in the archive at Thackray Museum of Medicine.

The primary focus of the archival collections is the medical supply trade, particularly surgical instrument makers. The first items to be acquired, and the most significant, were the company archive of Chas. F. Thackray, the former Leeds-based medical supplies company, the success of which ultimately paved the way for the museum to be established in 1997. The Thackray Company archive covers the life of the firm from 1902-1990 and contains items such as trade catalogues, press cuttings, surgical instrument drawings and a unique series of notebooks compiled by Thackray representatives who travelled to countries across the world to sell medical equipment and to perform fact-finding missions into these countries’ medical capabilities.

Series of pencil drawings of surgical instrument design for Charnley’s “G Clamp” manufactured by the Chas. F. Thackray Company, circa 1950s.
Drawing of surgical instrument design for Charnley’s “G Clamp” manufactured by the Chas. F. Thackray Company, circa 1950s.
Colour photograph of a group of Thackray Company notebooks, displayed between metal bookends on a tabletop. The notebooks are of slightly varying sizes, all have dark red spines. One notebook is in the foreground, open at a report on a visit to hospital in Beira, Portuguese East Africa, in 1931.
Thackray Company notebooks, open at a report on a visit to hospital in Beira, Portuguese East Africa, in 1931.

There are two reasons the collection stands out. Firstly, the collection contains a unique series of notebooks compiled by Thackray representatives who travelled to countries across the world to sell medical equipment, and to perform fact-finding missions into these countries’ medical capabilities. It provides insight into the medical practices of different countries during the 1930s and describes their prowess in using technology. Secondly, as the Thackray Company worked with Sir John Charnley, the founder of modern hip replacements, from 1947 onwards to design instruments for hip surgery – work which helped hundreds of thousands of people around the world – this collection would be of interest to NHS communities and voices from the wider public who have had experience of hip replacements, and researchers of the subject. The Thackray Company archive is one of two large collections held in our archives; the other is that of the Oxford Knee archive, a business archive which relates to the development of the Oxford Partial Knee implant 40 years ago, the invention of which revolutionised orthopaedic surgery and became one of the most successful knee replacements in the world.

Our archive also holds a collection relating to Dr Scholl’s foot company, a company that you may have seen advertised while visiting Boots and/or shoe shops. Our collection of Scholl material includes the founder, William Matias Scholl’s certificate qualifying him as a physician and surgeon from the State of Illinois Department, and the collection also contains company magazines between 1929 and 1972 including copies of ‘The Scholl Link’ published for employees in the United Kingdom who served in the war, and a special issue commemorating ‘VE Day’ in May 1945. Other organisational collections catalogued thus far include that of the Calenduline Company – a Chicago-based company that manufactured treatments for the eye and throat; the Eschmann Equipment company, who were pioneers in making operating tables; and the Downs Surgical Limited company – a collection of material relating to a manufacturing company who were pioneers in making high-quality medical instruments, particularly those used in ear, nose and throat surgery.

As well as organisations, the museum has acquired many personal papers of local doctors, nurses and surgeons since it opened in 1997, and these have now been catalogued and made available on our website. As an example, this has included the personal papers of Pauline Sellers, who qualified as a nurse in Mirfield and then worked at the Royal Air Force Hospital at Nocton Hall. While at Nocton Hall, Sellers took part in theatre performances and joined Nocton Hall Theatre Group, playing Mrs Wagstaff in the play ‘Dry Rot’. She also accompanied Princess Alexandra on a royal visit in July 1969, showing the Princess around one of the children’s wards. Other collections of personal papers catalogued include the Leeds-based urologist Leslie Pyrah who was the first professor of urology in the United Kingdom and set up the first renal dialysis unit in the UK; the archive of Michael Martin OBE who worked for the Royal National Institute for the Deaf for 35 years; the archive of David Wilson, who worked as a consultant in accident and emergency medicine at Leeds General Infirmary, and the papers of Henry Shucksmith, who was honorary assistant surgeon to the General Infirmary at Leeds and numerous hospitals in the area including St James’s and Seacroft. As well as recording his professional articles on the topics of vascular surgery and breast cancer, I have been able to uncover unusual items in his papers, such as a nice Christmas card with a drawing of a surgeon carving a turkey on the front, sent to him by friends of his from his days serving in the Territorial Army during the Second World War.

Christmas card sent to Henry Shucksmith, circa 1940s. The drawing on the front of the card shows a surgeon carving a turkey.
Christmas card sent to Henry Shucksmith, circa 1940s.

Volunteers have helped to catalogue collections also and two of volunteers, both called Sam, catalogued the collection of Herbert Agar, a Leeds-based surgeon who specialised in obstetrics and gynaecology. They have also contributed to cataloguing prescription books, and books in our archive that contain formulas and recipes for food, drink and ailments, dating back to the 17th century. Despite not having any experience of archival work before they started, volunteers have contributed to cataloguing a dozen collections from the archive thus far, and gained skills in cataloguing, digitisation and basic conservation tasks along the way.

Display of handwritten recipe and formula books held in the Thackray Museum of Medicine Archive. The books are held open with glass weights and cords.
Recipe and Formula Books held in the Thackray Museum of Medicine Archive.

The recipe and formula books are among the most interesting items within the archives and contain recipes for all manner of food, drink and various remedies, including biscuits, Stilton Cheese, toothpaste, fish sauce and ailments for gout and headaches amongst others!

We are constantly cataloguing new collections and placing them onto the Archives Hub as well as our own catalogue regularly, and our collections would be of interest to anyone studying the history of medicine and healthcare. If you are interested in finding out more about our collections, or want to make an appointment to view them, please contact us at collections@thackraymuseum.org  

Robert Curphey
Archivist
Thackray Museum of Medicine

Related

Descriptions of other archives held by Thackray Museum of Medicine can be found on Archives Hub here: https://archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk/search/locations/da5db37f-9a3b-3538-8901-627a707c8623

All images copyright Thackray Museum of Medicine. Reproduced with the kind permission of the copyright holders.

The Open University Archive: An Introduction

/ Jane Ronson

Archives Hub feature for February 2024

About Us

Established on the official granting of a Royal Charter in 1969, The Open University turns 55 this year and remains a world leader in distance learning – it is the largest university in the UK by student number. The Open University Archive is housed within the Betty Boothroyd Library on the main university campus at Walton Hall, Milton Keynes, and operates to serve staff, students and external researchers alike.

Photograph showing The Open University Charter document, with a large red wax seal attached.
The Open University Charter, granted 1969.

The collections of The Open University Archive largely delineate into three categories:

• Teaching Materials. Due to its distance learning remit, unlike many other academic institutions The Open University is in the rare position of being able to retain copies of all the teaching material offered to students since the first courses were launched in 1971. This includes: physical module books and units; the original Home Experiment Kits which were issued through the post along with the teaching material; historic audio-visual content originally broadcast on the BBC and other platforms; and most recently the teaching websites on which content is now accessed by students.

• Historical Open University Material. This category covers a wide variety of content – some of it concerned with the governance of the university such as committee papers, and other collections more relevant as social history like the regular newspapers produced for both staff and students. We also retain university serials – both for internal and external publication – a vast photographic archive, and a complete set of OU prospectuses. Outputs from many of the research groups which have been based in the university’s faculties are also retained in our Academic Archive.

• Special Collections. These are collections which have come to us via donation and are usually either focused around unique projects, or are the papers of significant Open University figures. We worked with former OU Chancellor Baroness Betty Boothroyd to accession a collection of her papers, largely covering her time as Speaker of the House of Commons. We also have the papers of Lord Perry of Walton (Walter Perry), the university’s first Vice-Chancellor, and Baroness Lee of Asheridge (Jennie Lee), who as Minister for the Arts was instrumental in the formation of The Open University.

Baroness Lee of Asheridge, standing behind a microphone stand, with a foundation stone in the background.
Jennie Lee

The Open University Digital Archive

The Open University Digital Archive was launched in 2015 in order to make audio-visual and other historic material available (where possible due to copyright and intellectual property restrictions). It contains a growing number of OU television and radio programmes, along with images, texts and graduation ceremonies. Where the content cannot be – or has not yet been – made available, there is usually a metadata entry at least in order to aid researchers, who may be able to arrange to come in to the Archive and view them in person.

There are currently around 1,500 audio or video files publicly-accessible on the Digital Archive, including some of the very earliest Open University TV broadcasts, and around 800 images.

Alt text: Black and white photograph of a television studio. A presenter is being filmed, with camera crew and equipment in the foreground. Cables and lighting are visible.
Open University filming.

The Digital Archive can also act as a ‘shop window’ for Open University projects, events and people from the past 55 years, and contains both short ‘Featured items’ and longer ‘Exhibitions’ which tell specific stories about the university and related partners using video and audio clips from elsewhere in the collections. For instance, one popular exhibition covers the full life of Jennie Lee – before, during and after her involvement with the OU.

A reasonably recent addition to the Digital Archive is the Sampson Low Collection (selected content is also collected in an exhibition). This collection features over 200 digitised letters from two volumes of letters written to – and kept by – the Victorian bookseller Sampson Low (1797-1886). It includes letters by clients and friends, amongst them Charles Dickens, Florence Nightingale and the Duke of Wellington. Our Digital Archive Developer has created an application which allows readers to view the original digitised letter alongside a text transcript of the content.

Photograph of the Sampson Low Collection, comprising two volumes of over 200 letters. There is a closed book with a black and brown leather cover entitled Autographs. This is overlapping with another volume that is open to display one of the letters.
Sampson Low volumes

Day-To-Day

There is not really any ‘standard’ working day in The Open University Archive. Incoming queries can take us in any direction and it is difficult to predict what researchers are going to ask for permission to see. We do have a dedicated Research Room which allows any in-person researchers to spread the materials out, or refer to content on any number of legacy formats or devices. In most weeks the Archive team has at least one pre-arranged researcher appointment in the calendar, and it can often be several.

Although the variety of requests is wide, the Jennie Lee papers are one of our more frequently-requested collections, and we field a regular amount of Open University alumni asking for information about the content of modules they may have studied in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s.

We are a small but busy Archive – when we’re not fielding enquiries or helping researchers, we are usually to be found digitising material or cataloguing new collections.

Colour photograph of the interior of The Open University Archive reading room.
The Open University Archive reading room.

Matthew Taylor
Digital Archivist
The Open University

Related

The Jennie Lee Collection, 1906-1995

The Walter Perry Collection, 1926-2003

Descriptions of other archives held by The Open University can be found on Archives Hub here: https://archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk/data/GB-2315

All images copyright The Open University. Reproduced with the kind permission of the copyright holders.