York St John Historical Archive

     The material in the historical archive relates to the history and development of the Church colleges in York and Ripon from their founding to 1976. It covers not only the records of the buildings and administration, but all aspects of student life and academic achievement. There is also additional material which charts the progress of the National Society and the York Diocesan Society, from 1812, in founding schools in Yorkshire and surrounding counties, and gives insight into the way these societies operated. The archive as a whole contains a variety of material, such as minute books of the Diocesan Society and management committees of the colleges, exam papers, plans of the buildings, correspondence on the many diverse topics relating to the administration of a Church college, and photographs and prospectuses.

     Following the establishment of the National Society in 1811, the Yorkshire Diocesan Society for the Education of the Poor in the Principle of the Established Church was founded in 1812, to supervise the building and organisation of National schools throughout the diocese. By the 1830s it was clear that a training college was needed to provide for the growing number of teachers. The Training School for Masters duly opened its doors in York in 1841 and moved into its new building, on the present site, in 1845. A Training School for Mistresses used the original building vacated by the men. In 1862 the Women's Training School moved to a new site at Ripon and was administered by the Diocese of Ripon, which had been created in 1836. These two Training Schools were administered separately until 1976 when they were merged into the College of Ripon and York St John. During a short period in 1990s the name was changed to the University College of Ripon and York St John, and, more recently, with the sale of the site at Ripon in 2001, the college has settled on the name of York St John.