Archives Hub Contributors

University of Birmingham, Cadbury Research Library Special Collections

The library of the University of Birmingham was founded in 1880 as the library of the Mason Science College, which was the University's predecessor. The foundations of the Cadbury Research Library : Special Collections were laid by Dr K W Humphreys who became Librarian in 1952. These began with the gift of the papers of Joseph and Austen Chamberlain, followed later by those of Neville Chamberlain and Lord Avon. Our collecting policy focuses in particular on religious and political archives, together with papers of women, literary papers, public administration and items of local interest. With the merger of the Selly Oak Colleges with the University of Birmingham in 1999 the collections of the two organisations were brought together and are now administered as one entity available for consultation at the Cadbury Research Library : Special Collections in Muirhead Tower at the University of Birmingham. Special Collections material held at the University's Shakespeare Institute in Stratford on Avon is available for consultation at the Institute.

About 300 collections will be made available on the Hub in the first instance. Particular strengths are the Chamberlain Papers, the Avon Papers, the Church Mission Society (CMS), important mission collections, the YMCA archives, the Harriet Martineau Papers, the archives of the University, archives relating to religious education and training (archives of St John's College Nottingham and the archives of the Student Christian Movement and the Christian Education Movement, and theatre studies both in Birmingham and Stratford.

Special feature: Stuff the diet!

Address: Susan Worrall, Director of Special Collections and University Archivist, Cadbury Research Library : Special Collections, Muirhead Tower (LG floor), University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT

Telephone: 0121 414 5838 Fax: 0121 414 5810

Email: special-collections@bham.ac.uk Web: www.special-coll.bham.ac.uk

Browse University of Birmingham Special Collections' descriptions

Show list of University of Birmingham's descriptions