Blue Plaque for Mrs Humphry Ward

Blue Plaque re Mrs Humphry WardOn Saturday 28th April 2012, one of the founders of Somerville College and its first Secretary of Council, Mary Ward (also known as Mrs Humphry Ward) was honoured in Oxford with a Blue Plaque on the house in North Oxford where she lived from 1872-1881.  Somerville Principal, Dr Alice Prochaska, spoke to the assembled company about Mary Ward’s contribution to the development of higher education for women and presented the current owners of the house with two portraits of Mary Ward.   Amongst the people at the ceremony were three great-grandsons of Mary Ward and two great-great granddaughters. 

Somerville and The Great War

Archive material by its nature needs to be preserved and protected so that it is available in perpetuity for future generations.  This means that most of the time, the archive material is locked away with limited access for scholars.  Occasionally, however, exhibitions are mounted to bring the material to a wider audience.  Somerville graduate student Teresa Franco, has created an exhibition from materials in Somerville’s archive to accompany an international conference at the Taylor Institution, Oxford on Italy and the Great War.   Here are a few photos from the exhibition. which can be found in the Taylor Institution Voltaire Room until April 27th 2012.

Use of copyright materials written by Vera Brittain by kind permission of her estate.