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The College Archive
The College Archive
The Queen’s College has an extensive Archive, which is entirely separate from the College Library, with records dating back to the 12th century.

The Archive has two principal sections:

College Administration

The first is formed by the records of the College as an educational foundation, including the College Statutes, Governing Body registers and papers, and bursarial and financial accounts, as well as other miscellaneous administrative documents.

There are also records relating to Provosts, Fellows and students of the College although, in the majority of cases, they tend not to be very full. It is often impossible to do more than discover at which dates a student was at the College and what degree they took. Family information or photographs are not plentiful.

Estates Administration

The second section consists of records relating to Queen’s as a landowner. Until the mid-20th century, we were financially dependent on our estates, and we held land throughout England. However, we have particularly strong collections in Berkshire, Cumbria, Hampshire and Oxfordshire.

The estate records include deeds, leases, correspondence, court rolls, and maps. These can sometimes date back to a period before we bought the land. 

The Archivist has a typescript copy of a history of the College’s estates and finances from 1460 to 1620 by J M Kaye, former law Fellow of the College, which can be made available to researchers visiting the Archive.

initial letter of a charter of Edward III
Enquiries

The Archivist, Mr Michael Riordan, welcomes enquiries from members of the public which should, in the first instance, be sent by mail to the College (addressed to the Archivist) or by e-mail to michael.riordan@queens.ox.ac.uk.

Enquiries regarding the history of the College, its members and its estates should be sent to the Archivist. However, collections of personal papers donated by members are kept in the Library and enquiries about these should be directed to the Librarian.

Where possible the Archivist will try to answer all enquiries himself, but it may be necessary for researchers to visit the Archive instead. The Reading Room is open only two days every week, so access is strictly by appointment only.