The Working Men's College, London

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The Working Men's College

Crowndale Road, Camden Town, London

1905

The Working Men's College, which first opened at Red Lion Square, was founded by the Christian Socialists in 1854, with F. D. Maurice as its principal. John Ruskin taught "Elementary and Landscape Drawing" there. The college moved from there, eventually, to these splendid purpose-built premises in Crowndale Road, Camden Town, in 1905. It still operates very actively from this Grade II listed building.

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Photograph and text 2006 by Jacqueline Banerjee.

[You may use these images without prior permission for any scholarly or educational purpose as long as you (1) credit the photographer and (2) link your document to this URL in a web document or cite the Victorian Web in a print one.]

Owen Chadwick on the Founding of the Working Men’s College

In November [F.D.] Maurice resigned his connexion with Queen’s College (a college of female education which he helped to found in 1846) and was unanimously re-elected to be principal. Lincoln’s Inn sent him a testimonial and the benchers refused to consider his offer of resignation. His Christian Socialist Bible class in Castle Street—which consisted of two tailors, two pianoforte-makers, six barristers, three clergymen, one lithographer, two members of Parliament, one city missionary, two booksellers, one stationer, one printer’s reader, one watchmaker, two law students, two Masters of Arts and one gentleman not otherwise described — presented him with a quarto Bible. On 27 December 960 working men assembled at Castle Street to present him with an address. The chairman said that it was extremely creditable to the Reverend Mr Maurice that he had given a more liberal, merciful and genial interpretation to the Holy Scriptures than was usually given to them, and on this account the working classes were grateful to him.

Maurice suggested to this meeting that education like that at King’s College should be offered to working men. Christian Socialists had for two years discussed the project of founding a people’s college. Ludlow invented the scheme. The workers suggested that as Maurice was barred from being a professor in King’s College he might become professor in a college for them. The Working Men’s College opened on 31 October 1854 with 120 students. Maurice was principal. All the leading Christian Socialists helped with teaching — Neale, Tom Hughes, who taught boxing, J. S. Brewer, the Tudor historian. John Ruskin and D. G. Rossetti joined the force of lecturers. [549-50]

Related Web Material

The college's own site

Bibliography

Chadwick, Owen. The Victorian Church. London: Adam & Charles Black. 1966.

Last modified 5 April 2016