‘J.’ A Memoir of John Willis Clark, Registrary of the University of Cambridge and Sometime Fellow of Trinity College

John Willis Clark (1833-1910) devoted his life to the University of Cambridge, and this 1913 memoir by A. E. Shipley, Master of Christ’s College, was a fitting tribute to a much admired man. His father was professor of anatomy, and his maternal uncle, Robert Willis, Jacksonian professor of natural philosophy. A scholar and fellow of Trinity College, his talent and energy as an administrator led to his appointment as superintendent of the museum of comparative anatomy, and he considerably improved the museum’s collection. From natural history his interests were diverted in 1875 - his uncle died, leaving his monumental Architectural History of the University unfinished, and it was Clark who completed it in 1886. In 1891 he became Registrary of the University, which he remained until 1910, and was one of the best-known figures in Cambridge, involved with everything from administrative reform to student activities such as the triennial Greek play.