Skip to main content
Library Services

CHRONOLOGY OF WESTFIELD COLLEGE

11 Feb 1882

11 Feb 1882, the first meeting took place to discuss the proposed establishment of a Ladies College in London using an endowment of £10,000 from Miss Ann Dudin Brown.

1882

Rev. James B Fleming was elected as the first Chairman of Council.

2 Oct 1882

The College for Ladies at Westfield located in Maresfield Gardens in Hampstead opened with 5 students. Constance Louisa Maynard was the College's first Mistress and Miss Katherine Tristram was the only resident staff.

1882-1889

The first teaching staff were appointed comprising: Miss Katherine Tristrum (1882-1888) who left in 1888 to take up an appointment as the Head of the Bishop Poole Memorial School in Osaka, Japan. Miss Frances Gray (1883-1894), Resident Lecturer. Miss Mary Petrie, Visiting Lecturer, Miss Anne W Richardson, Resident Lecturer and Miss Josephine Willoughby (later Mrs Adams Clark), Resident Lecturer (appointed Jan-April 1887). Miss Beloe, Resident Lecturer (1889).

21 May 1883

The Trust Deed was drawn up, establishing the constitution of the College and the Council.

1886

The first graduands of Westfield were presented for London degrees: Anne Richardson, Marie Pechinet and Emily Thompson.

1887

The College began to be referred to as Westfield College.

1890

The College purchased Kidderpore Hall (later known as Old House) on Kidderpore Avenue, West Hampstead.

1891

The New Wing (later known as Maynard Wing) was constructed. It was designed by Robert Falconer MacDonald, and provided accommodation for residents, a dining hall and an attic laboratory.

25 March 1891

Lady Day 1891, the College relocated to permanent purpose built buildings in Kidderpore Avenue. The name of Westfield College was formally adopted.

1892

The first issue of Hermes was published, a magazine for alumni.

1894

Rev. William Hagger Barlow was elected to Chairman of Council.

1896

Miss Lilian Janie Whitby was appointed as lecturer in mathematics.

1898

The University of London became a teaching body as well as an examining body.

1899

Miss Sturdwick (left in 1905) and Caroline Skeel were appointed. Miss Skeel had been a Visiting Lecturer since 1895.

1900

Westfield College Association was founded.

1902

Miss McDougall was appointed to the post of Classics Lecturer. Westfield College was admitted as a School of the University of London in the Arts.

1903

The new building (later known as the Skeel Building) was completed. It housed a purpose built Library and lecture rooms.

October 1905

The South Wing (later known as the Dudin Brown Wing) was completed.

1906

Miss Ellen Marion Delf was appointed to teach Botany. This led to the founding of the Botany Department at Westfield.

1907

Caroline Skeel resigned.

1908

Lord Alverstone, Lord Chief Justice of England, was elected to Chairman of Council.

1910

The University of London approved the Laboratory for preparation of students for the final BSc Exam standard in Botany.

1911

Caroline Skeel returned to her former post.

1913

Charlotte Paquier, Lecturer in French since 1899 and also Lecturer at East London College, left. It was under Intercollegiate teaching programmes that men students first appeared at Westfield, namely to take Miss Paquier's course.

September 1913

Sept 1913, Miss Maynard resigned as Mistress of Westfield College. Miss Agnes de Selincourt was appointed to Principal of Westfield College.

28 July 1914

Outbreak of World War One 28 July 1914.

1915

The first Divinity Lecture given by William Temple took place. Miss McDougall left to become the first mistress of the Women's Christian College in Madras, India.

October 1915

Oct 1915, the University of London recognised the Botanical Laboratory for Honours work, which allowed Westfield students to sit for Honours BSc as Internal students.

1916

Rev. William Temple was elected Chairman of Council.

1917

31 Aug 1917, Death of Miss de Selincourt from a tetanus injection following a bicycling accident. Appointment of Miss Anne W Richardson as Acting Principal.

1918

The I Fang Girls Collegiate School was opened in China by former Westfield College student Pao Swen Tseng. Miss Tseng was the first Chinese woman to obtain a London Honours Degree in Botany.

1919

Amendment of the Trust Deed. The University of London established the University Grants Committee (UGC) to advise the University Treasury on grants to universities and colleges.

May 1919

Miss Bertha Surtees Phillpotts became Principal of Westfield College.

11 November 1918

World War One came to an end when the armistice was signed.

1920

Miss Evelyn Gedge was appointed Secretary to Council. The Westfield College Union Society was established, with the Principal as Honorary President.

January 1921

Sir Thomas W.H. Inskip (later Lord Caldecote) was elected to Chairman of Council upon the resignation of William Temple, who become Bishop of Manchester.

1921

Miss Eleanor Lodge was appointed to Principal of Westfield College. Miss Lodge began a College Log Book, recording key events. A wooden building which became known as 'The Hut' was erected to serve as a Botanical Laboratory. The University of London Union was launched.

1922

The Bay was completed, (on a site formerly occupied by the Conservatory, that had been demolished in 1914). It was used to house a domestic block containing new kitchens and servant's quarters, and an extra reading room.

1925

Miss Anne Richardson retired. Miss Skeel advanced to Chair and became Westfield's first Professor.

1926

When Bernard E.C. Davis became Reader in English and Head of Department he also became the first man on the full-time staff.

9 March 1927

H.M The Queen [Queen Mary] visited the College.

1927

The Chapman Wing was completed. The decision was taken to name individual College buildings. The Old Wing was renamed Maynard Wing, the New Wing was renamed Dudin Brown Wing, the new building was named Chapman Wing and the New Library was renamed Skeel Library.

1928

Miss Skeel resigned on grounds of ill health. She was the founder of Westfield's School of History.

1928

Under the University of London Act 1926, the position of Westfield College as a School of the University was confirmed.  The Head of Westfield College was included among 9 Heads of Schools of the University to be members of the Senate.

May 1929

May 1929, Miss Lodge became the first principal to take her place on the Senate of the University of London.

21 June 1929

The College Chapel opened and the foundation stone was laid in dedication to Miss Richardson in July 1928.

1931

Dorothy Chapman was appointed Principal of Westfield College.

1932

Westfield College jubilee year.

19 July 1933

Grant of the Royal Charter, Incorporating the College.

January 1934

Grant of the College Arms.

1935

Completion of the Orchard Wing.

1 September 1939

Outbreak of World War II.

1939-1940

Mrs Mary Stocks was appointed as Principal of Westfield College in 1939. Westfield College was relocated to St Peter's Hall in Oxford once war broke out. The Orchard building was let to the Tavistock Clinic from 1939, and the Young Women's Christian Association let the College buildings from 1940. In 1940 Selincourt Hall suffered bomb damage.

May 1941

A large part of the College buildings, including Old House, were requisitioned by the Admiralty for training the Women's Royal Navy Service.

January 1944

The Heads of Department were given a place on the Council for the first time.

August 1945

Westfield College returned to London.

1946

Divinity Lectures were revived under the title Maynard-Chapman Divinity Lectures were opened to the public.

1948-1950

In 1948 Ellen Delf Smith retired. In accordance with a decision by the University of London, Westfield College ceased to admit students for a natural science degree. As a result between 1948 and 1950 Westfield gradually relinquished teaching Botany.

1951

Miss Kathleen Chesney was appointed Principal of Westfield College.

1953

Rev Ellison was elected Chairman of Council.

1960

Westfield College was formally acknowledged by the University of London as a School in the Faculty of Science.

October 1961

The new Science Building was completed. Westfield College began offering degrees in Botany, Zoology, Physics and Chemistry.

22 May 1962

Queen Elizabeth II formally opened the Science Building.

October 1962

Mrs Pamela Matthews was appointed as Principal of Westfield College. She resigned in 1965.

1966

Dr Bryan Thwaites was appointed as Principal of Westfield College. No.3 Kidderpore Avenue was purchased by the College.

1969

Computer Services were established, as they were connected through a data link to the new central University computer.

1971

The new Caroline Skeel Library was completed.

October 1971

The first students were admitted to study Computer Science at the new Department of Computer Science and Computer Unit.

1972

A new purpose built Halls of Residence in Kidderpore Hall was completed. The University of London's Murray Report was published. It expressed concerns about the smaller Colleges, and placed the future of Westfield College as an independent institution in question.

1973

The Botany Department was renamed Botany and Biochemistry Department to more accurately reflect its activities.

1979

Westfield College began to co-operate with Bedford College in teaching Classics. The Westfield College Development Trust was founded.

1982

A decision was made to transfer the Science Faculty to Queen Mary College. The Queen Mother's Hall of Residence was completed.

1984

Prof. John Varey was appointed as Principal of Westfield College. Most of the Science Faculty including Physics, Chemistry, Botany and Biochemistry and Zoology, and 68 members of staff were transferred to Queen Mary College in Mile End. Computer Science teaching was transferred to Kings College. Negotiations for collaboration with the Central School of Speech and Drama were rejected by the University.

1985

The University of London Jarratt Report was published.

1985-1988

Negotiations took place for possible mergers with the Royal Veterinary College, Imperial College, Kings College, University College and Queen Mary College.

March 1987

The Council agreed to a full merger with Queen Mary College.

1988

The University Grants Committee and the University Court approved plans to sell the Hampstead Campus as part of the Queen Mary and Westfield College merger and use the funds for new constructions and modifications to the Mile End Campus.

1 November 1988

The Westfield Trust was formed.

February 1989

The first meeting of Westfield Trust took place.

27 July 1989

Queen Mary and Westfield College were created by the approval of the Queen Mary and Westfield College Act.

1 August 1989

Queen Mary and Westfield College was inaugurated. All departments were transferred with the exception of the Department of History of Art which transferred to University College London.

1989

Half of the Hampstead Campus was sold to Kings College for occupation from 1992.

1992

Westfield College was transferred from Hampstead to Mile End to complete the inauguration of Queen Mary and Westfield College.

Back to top