St John's College Archives contain records of the growth of the administration, benefactions, finances and property of the College since its foundation in 1511. They also include some deeds and financial records of earlier foundations annexed to it, namely the Hospital of St John the Evangelist Cambridge, the Hospital of St Mary at Ospringe, and the Priory of Higham, Kent, and of the Priory of Broomhall, Berks; and household accounts of the Foundress, Lady Margaret Beaufort, 1498-1509. Among the records of the Cambridge Hospital of St John is a thirteenth-century cartulary whose numerous deeds shed light on the people, property and occupations of Cambridge and the surrounding countryside.

These resources are available for use by the members, staff and students of St John’s, the wider academic community and the public. The Archives acquire, preserve and make accessible the records of the College, its members, staff and students.

Off the shelf is a fascinating blog created during the process of cataloguing the collections at St John's.

The relocation the College’s entire archival collection of papers, books and maps to the School of Pythagoras Archive Centre in July 2014 provided us with an excellent opportunity to focus on unprocessed and undiscovered items within the collection.

Archival cataloguing is hugely important because it greatly facilitates access for researchers, by identifying and explaining the context and content of the material. The product of this work is an online catalogue, which is fully text searchable. Additionally, cataloguing work helps to ensure that the archive material lasts for future generations, by highlighting the need for vital preservation work.

Read the blog

A series of exhibitions take place in the College Archive Centre every term, but for those who cannot attend they are also available online as virtual exhibitions. Follow the links below to take a look at some of our recent and past displays.

Lady Margaret Beaufort, 'Domina Fundatrix'

Women and landholding in mediaeval Cambridge

The Festive Season in Tudor St John's

The Crown: Documents under the Great Seal of England

Keys, top hats and banners: A porter's life.

Keep off the grass: St John's gardeners through time.

Master's Chefs: Kitchen staff at St John's College.

This Woman's Work: Female staff at St John's 1650-2011

"Head of the River!" The first 100 years of the Lady Margaret Boat Club

Food and St John's

40th anniversary of the admission of women undergraduates

The Archivist provides inductions for undergraduate and postgraduate students, introducing them to the wealth of material available in the College Archives.

We welcome small group visits by students, members and staff from College (and University) departments, including general familiarisation visits for newly-inducted students and timetabled teaching sessions involving hands-on use of archive documents and rare books designed for specific course modules.

The Archives fully support the College teaching programme across the different Departments and Schools. Recent inductions have included students from Politics, Psychology & Sociology and History. The collections of historical material held in the Archives provide an invaluable teaching resource and College Tutors who think their students might benefit are encouraged to contact the Archivist.

Downloads

PowerPoint presentation on using archives for dissertations.