Jesus College has launched its first online Archives Catalogue, which is now available to anyone interested in exploring its archival collections.
College Archivist Dr Robin Darwall-Smith has spent the past few months creating the new digital catalogue, which enables users to search easily for documents or items in Jesus’ archival collections, and provides a useful reference point for those wishing to send an enquiry to the Archivist, or to visit the Archives in person.
Dr Robin Darwall-Smith, College Archivist.
Robin explains, “The new digital catalogue provides an accessible way to find out what kinds of information our archives hold, and is available to anyone who would like to look at it. I hope that it will help to inform direct enquiries from academics, current and old members and the general public alike, and I encourage everyone to explore the catalogue and see what we’ve got”.
The online catalogue was created using Epexio, a database platform which converts archival records in to a user-friendly web interface. Robin says, “Several other Oxford colleges, including Lincoln, LMH and Magdalen, have all used Epexio to publish their archival catalogues and it seemed like a very good platform for us to use too”.
The College Archives hold a large collection of documents, photographs, and printed papers, which constitute a rich and unique resource for the study of the people, decisions, traditions and events that have contributed to the development of Jesus over the past 453 years.
Jesus College’s Founding Charter of 1571
The new digital catalogue enables users to search effortlessly for archival reference information, and includes Jesus’ founding charter, listings for financial and governance records; plans, drawings and related papers concerning College buildings; and papers on College clubs and societies. These papers include JCR minute books from 1892, and ephemera and photographs relating to the College’s sports clubs, and Jesus’s Music Society. The archives also hold material about two of our most famous Old Members, T. E. Lawrence and Harold Wilson.
Robin adds, “The new online portal forms part of a long-term project to catalogue everything in our archives. There is still so much in the archives which has yet to be catalogued fully, and, of course there are always new things coming in. For example, I have just invited old members who were up at Oxford in the 1980s and 1990s to send in their Jesus ephemera, and am looking forward to seeing what arrives”.
To view the catalogue, click here.
Homepage of the Jesus College Archives Catalogue