A Newnham Anthology

In 1871, Newnham College (then nameless) began its life in a small house in Regent Street, Cambridge, with five students, a Principal and a small band of ardent well-wishers. It had no recognition, no status, no money and no official encouragement. The first students were vividly conscious of being in Cambridge on sufferance: they were not in any sense members of the university. By 1971, Newnham had 429 students, a range of collegiate buildings on a large site not far from the town centre, and the status of a college of the university. As a chronicle of the college’s early struggle for existence and the gradual broadening of horizons as it achieved recognition, this book should interest members of Newnham, Cambridge and those concerned with the efforts of women to gain educational equality. This selection of vignettes and anecdotes should bring back to many students the excitements, hardships and rewards of a student’s life.