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Brief Guide to the College Archives

Churchill College, the national and Commonwealth memorial to Sir Winston Churchill and one of the colleges of the University of Cambridge, admitted its first students in 1960. It has a special statutory bias towards science and technology because of Sir Winston Churchill's desire to rectify the shortage of technological education in the UK.

The College's prehistory spans the 1950s: various schemes for technological education were discussed, including possible postgraduate training schemes at Cranfield Aeronautical College and Birmingham University, before a suggestion was made in 1957 to found a new college in Cambridge bearing Sir Winston's name. The first appeal for funds was launched in May 1958, and a large part of the College's endowment was acquired from British and American industry because of the College's intention to maintain strong links with industry and because of its link with the name of Sir Winston Churchill.

There are several printed articles and books on the history and buildings of Churchill College which are detailed in a bibliography. Professor Anthony Kelly has written a presentation on the College's first generation of famous scientists which is available here. Items from the College Archive are regularly displayed within the College and the Archives Centre. A selection of images from the latest exhibition is also available.

The College's archives are administered separately from the Churchill Archives Centre and are classified under the following categories:

• Governing Records
• Administrative Records
• Academic Records
• Clubs and Societies
• Historical Reference Records
• Photographs
• Personal Papers

Most of the archives are fully catalogued, and access to the records is permitted to researchers, with the exception of those records containing personal, confidential or sensitive information. However, due to restrictions on space, enquiries are dealt with by post or e-mail wherever possible. For further information, please contact:

College Archivist
Churchill College
Cambridge
CB3 0DS
Telephone: (01223) 336168
Fax: (01223) 336177
E-mail: college.archivist@chu.cam.ac.uk