Our
Archives
St Anne’s archives are housed within the College Library.
The archives consist of material on the early years of women’s education in Oxford (1870s to 1920) and would be of interest to anyone researching women’s history, particularly with regard to higher education. Our records include:
- College administrative papers, including minute books, admission registers, student files and papers on the College buildings.
- Personal collections, including the papers of Annie Rogers (1856-1937) and Bertha Johnson (1846-1927), both of whom were instrumental in the campaign for allowing women to study at Oxford.
- Papers from the early organisations that oversaw the admission of women to the University: The Association for the Education of Women (AEW) and the Delegacy for Women Students.
- Papers that have been donated by St Anne’s alumnae and fellows, including Marjorie Reeves (1905-2003) and Annie Barnes (1903-2003).
- There is also a reference collection of artistic depictions of Saint Anne, created by alumna Gilia Slocock.
Much of the material remains uncatalogued and there is an ongoing project to provide more detailed listings.
We have recently created an online catalogue database, which will be updated regularly:
The Introduction to the Archive and Guide to the Collections sections in the online catalogue give a more detailed introduction to the collections, including basic listings for those which have not yet been catalogued in detail.
General archive enquiries can be addressed to Matthew Chipping (Archivist) at archives@st-annes.ox.ac.uk
Applications to visit the Library and consult the Archive should be made using the form below. If you find relevant material in the online catalogue please quote the reference codes below.
Apply to visit archives
Our
Special Collections
The Library is primarily a working collection but includes a number of older and rarer books acquired by gifts and bequests. Among these are 10 incunabula; 56 STC; 28 Wing books; and 30 pre-1641 foreign language books. The Library also holds a 15th Century Book of Hours (pictured).
Named Collections:
Jenkins
Around 5000 volumes from the library of Canon Claude Jenkins (1877-1959). Broad in scope, the collection has particular strengths in British, European and Ecclesiastical history.
MR
A collection of 231 volumes bequeathed by Marjorie Reeves (1905-2003), a Founding Fellow of St Anne’s whose research focused on, and sparked a revival of interest in, Joachim of Fiore.
Also held by the Library are Reeve’s notes, correspondence and other papers.
RP
Rosemary Pountney (1937-2016) was a leading scholar on the work of Samuel Beckett. She began performing Beckett’s one woman plays whilst working on her thesis in the 1960s and made many tours worldwide performing and lecturing on Beckett.
Much of her collection of 187 volumes on Beckett are annotated with notes and stage directions.
Other Collections:
The Phyllis Handover bequest comprises books, working notes and correspondence on the history of book production and printing. Some of these materials belonged to Stanley Morison with whom she worked at The Times.
The archive of alumna Helen Flint is a small collection of the author’s working notes, manuscripts, drafts and correspondence.
Bertha Hensman’s papers include lecture notes from her time at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, a collection of typescripts for her books and an undated photograph album of a trip in Kashmir.
The archive of Hazel Eardley-Wilmot, author and archaeologist of Exmoor, includes correspondence, unpublished novel drafts, material about local history and archaeology.