*UCL*Manuscripts, Archives and Art Collections Retrieval System

College Archives

The young Bentham

The College's own institutional records are located mainly in the College RecordsOffice and Library's Manuscripts and Rare Books Department, while some areheld within departments themselves.

Main archival groups include:

  • Minutes of the Council and various College committees, 1826 to date
  • Committee papers, 1836 to 1918
  • College Correspondence, 1825 to 1906
  • Student Registers, 1828 to 1907
  • Professors' fees books, 1833 to 1901
  • Financial records, 1828 to 1939
  • Applications for Professorships, 1827 to 1920
  • Archives of University College Hospital and Medical School--
  • Records of University College School, 1830 to 1907
  • Records of UCL Student societies and Students Union

    Printed matter comprises Annual Reports, College Calendars, histories,biographies, prospectuses, student journals and other College publications. Illustrative and audio-visual material includes photographs, portraits,newscuttings, ephemera and film footage. Several collections of professorial papers ,other College-related manuscript material, which complement and enhance the Administrative archives, are held separately.

    College Library

    Historical Context

    The Library was opened in 1829. Manuscripts covering a whole range of subjects have been acquired by gift, bequest andsometimes purchase throughout the College's 170-year-old history. Jeremy Bentham's own papers came to the College in1849- major interests have always centred on papers of the University's founders and their milieu, benefactors and formerprofessors, while archival material relevant to the history of the College and of higher education in general has beentransferred on a regular if not too organised basis since its foundation. This latter group is known collectively as theCollege Archives. The College's home pages provide further information on the history of the College.

    Nature of holdings

    Today the Library holds a wide variety of historical materials, including the archives of the College, unparallelled within the University, reflecting UCL's unique teaching and research strengths, ranging from medieval manuscripts, literary and scientific collections, and business archives to modern political papers. Further information on the full range of Special Collectionsand current finding aids to them is available on the Web. At present (March 1998) only the College Archives have details on MAARS (ref code LIB/CA ) ). The Library's other major collections, such as the Bentham manuscripts, the Chadwick papers, and professorial papers, are planned for inclusion at a later stage.

    Many of the series from the College's archive group used in the centenary history of the College suffered during enemyaction in World War II, and its aftermath of fire and flood, so few are complete, but much new material has also come tolight. One of the most significant surviving series (College Correspondence) consists of letters to and from the College between 1825 and 1840,charting the College's foundation, building, early struggles and development, while the Appendix to Minutes series forms an important backdrop to the Council's officially minuted deliberations held in the Records Office . The growing relationships between the administrationand the academic staff, the activities of the students, and the research and development of faculties, departments and their subjectsare recorded in the Library's holdings, while those of individual departments, for example, the Slade School focus directly on day-to-day operations and academic achievements. The College Art Collections comprise the works of art bequeathed, presented or produced by those who taught, studied or were otherwise associated with the College.

    What's on MAARS

    2108 records for nine series have so far been entered:
  • The Applications for Professorships, 872 files, 1828 to 1900, catalogued to item level
  • The Professors' Fees Books , 45 volumes, 1833 to 1881, catalogued to volume level
  • The Appendix to Council Minutes (A,C and D series), 683 files, 1830 to 1904, catalogued to file level
  • Reports to the Committee of Management and its Sub-Committee (3 series), 469 files, 1870 to 1911, catalogued to file level
  • College Correspondence, "A" series, 1825-1839, described at series level only.

    The second phase of data entry will cover the remainder of the College Correspondence (1840-1906) within the College Archives group.

    Access Information

    Access is generally granted to any bona fide researcher who needs to use the Library's manuscripts and archive collections, subject to the Library's regulations, the MAARS rules governing access and use, and the College regulations for certain classes of records, to which closure periods may be attached. In general, a 30-year closure period is applied to personal papers, 80 years for student and staff records, and 100 years for personal medical records. Uncatalogued or fragile material is generally unavailable.

    Personal visits

    Intending users are required to complete the Researcher Application Form and preferably make an appointment.Full details of opening hours and collection times are available on the Library's home pages.The Manuscripts and Rare Books Reading Room is situated on the first floor of the DMS Watson Building.

    Enquiries and services

    Limited searches can be undertaken by the Manuscripts staff using both the MAARS catalogue and traditional finding aids.Photocopying and photographic services are also available. For further information contact: mssrb@ucl.ac.uk

    College Records Office

    Historical Context

    The Records Office is part of the Central Administration Services of the College; it holds the main administrative archivedating from UCL's foundation (when it was known as the University of London) in 1826. The Records Office has developed from a central office storing the current records of the college into a repository for both the current and archival records of the day-to-day administration of the College.

    Nature of holdings

    The Records Office holds the official archives relating to the foundation of the College, and the Committee minutes of all the administrative committees since then. It holds records of students of the College from 1828, and of the personnel, bothacademic and administrative, from the 1930s, although, in some cases, it may be possible to obtain information about earlier academic staff.The Records Office also holds archives recording some of the social activities of the College, the Students Union and other student organisations.

    Many enquiries about past staff and students can only be answered fully by consultation with other departments in the MAARS network. Works of art created by individuals are recorded in either the archives of the Slade School of Fine Art or in the College Art Collections records,and the personal papers of staff and students, as well as administrative correspondence and financial records,are held in the College Library.

    What's on MAARS

    To date 818 records, detailing 19 series, are entered on MAARS (ref. code RO/CA ):
  • The main College Council (later College Committee) and Committee of Management Minutes , 155 volumes, 1825 to 1995
  • The Senate (later Academic Board) Minutes , 85 volumes, 1832-1895
  • The Appendix to Council Minutes (B series), 1 volume, 1867-1878
  • Proprietors' Lists , 5 volumes, 1826 to 1840
  • Student Registers, 22 volumes, 1828 to 1868
  • Students' and Professors' Fees Books , 66 volumes, 1828-1921
  • Student Entry Forms, 62 volumes, 1889-1902
  • Class Lists and Registers of Attendance, 389 volumes, 1835 to 1922

    These are all catalogued to volume (or file) level. Further additions to the catalogue are planned. Other records have, at present, only a general listing;for more information on these please contact the Records Office.

    Access Information

    Records of staff and students that are more than 30 years old but less than 80 years old may only be consulted with the permission of the relevant College authority, and subject to the Rules governing Access and Use .For students' records, application should be made in writing to the Registrar. For staff records, application in writing should be made to the Personnel Director. All records less than 30 years old are closed to researchers, in particular those of former students, in accordancewith the College Regulations for Access to the Records of Past Students.

    Personal visits

    The Records Office is a working office, administering the day-to-dayadministrative files of the College, therefore researchers can only be accomodated by appointment. Please contact the Records Office to arrange a mutually convenient time.All visitors are required to complete the Researcher Application Form.

    The Records Office is located in the basement of the South Wing of the Wilkins Building.

    Enquiry information

    For further information please contact the Records Office at: records@central-services.ucl.ac.uk

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    Last modified 31 March 1998