The Queen's College Record 2020

More documents

Info

Not all servants could work away from Oxford, even when these positions were available. Married servants with families likely found the prospect of months away from home after the long working hours of the terms to be burdensome. Articles One particularly sad case concerns Daniel Styles, a young college servant at All Souls, who worked as a butler’s assistant in the late nineteenth century. He was a keen cricketer with the college servants’ team, an active member of the College Servants’ Society and appeared assured of a successful career in college service. In the summer of 1892, Daniel fell ill and died of kidney failure while working as a waiter at the Granby Hotel in Harrogate during the Long Vacation. Styles left behind his pregnant widow Kate and several young children. The CSS held a fundraiser to raise money for Kate Styles to set up in business as a licensed lodging-house keeper, work she continued until her retirement. Most female college servants similarly suffered a loss of income in the vacations, but resort employment was only available for men. Outside of terms, there was little work for college laundresses and only a few senior women were employed year-round in other positions, typically as cleaners on the staircases and in the kitchens. Many of these women looked for work in private households as charwomen. During the terms Eliza Haynes, a scout’s assistant at Oriel College in the late nineteenth century, worked on the staircases in the mornings. She took on other domestic work in the afternoons, including working as a cleaner for Rev. Walter Lock, the Warden of Keble College. It was through Lock that Haynes found summer employment, traveling with Lock’s family each summer to their home on the Isle of Wight where she worked as their cook. Her daughter Alma went along as well, to provide help in the nursery with the family’s younger children. 4 Resort work paid relatively well and many servants recalled enjoying the experience. In his 1953 autobiography, Fred Bickerton, the long-serving head porter at University College wrote: ‘The under-scout had no salary from the College; he depended on what his undergraduates gave him, and the Term’s emoluments rarely came to more than ten pounds. Moreover, there were only three Terms, and they left six months in the year during which we had to find alternative employment. It was the custom for us to take jobs as waiters in seaside hotels where there was a seasonal demand. I must say the experience was useful, as well as the money, and it certainly helped us to serve more efficiently in College. I went one year to Llandrindod Wells and two years to Lowestoft and busy as it was, I always enjoyed the change of place and the crowds of new faces. …After those three years the College always found some work for me to do during the Vacations, and so I remained in Oxford.’ 5 Bob Dickens and his father, then both servants at New College, worked as waiters in the Lake District during the Long Vacations. Dickens recalled that in 1919, the lack of 112 The Queen’s College | College Record 2020
year-round employment alongside frustration with low wages motivated some college servants to join a trade union. Dickens felt that junior servants wanted unions because ‘times were “really bad”, [there was] discontent when they had to find other work in the vacations, when the College gave them only 10 s. a week retaining fee; and they found out that if people could get away in the summer… you could make half a year’s wages in 3 months. It was hard work, but it paid them to do it.’ 6 Articles Of course, to work away from Oxford in the Long Vacation was to forego the pleasures of summer sports. From at least the mid-nineteenth century, college servants were enthusiastic participants in athletics, bowls, football, tennis, cricket and rowing. There was little time for leisure during the terms, however during the vacations, servants had the use of the playing fields and the college barges. One of Queen’s beloved members of staff, Albert Piper, was celebrated for his achievements in football, rowing and cricket. An article in The Isis from 1920 describes Piper with great admiration, listing his considerable personal and professional accomplishments. A few months earlier, Piper hosted a dinner at Worcester College, part of the festivities held for the biennial Oxford and Cambridge College Servants’ Cricket Match and Boat Race, which began in 1850 and continued for a century. The competitions were usually extended into a weekends, held alternately in Oxford and Cambridge during the Long Vacations, and recalled with great fondness by many college servants. Both the article and the dinner programme were pasted into the Bursarial Diary held in the Queen’s archive, kept by the Senior Bursar Rev. George Cronshaw, who was a guest at the dinner. College life was transformed after the Second World War, and resort employment in the Long Vacations largely disappeared. The Butler’s Diary and the Bursarial Diary are just two of the sources that highlight the fascinating history of these workers; there are many more in the Queen’s Archive and in other colleges as well. In this strange summer when archives are closed, it is a particular pleasure to revisit them, along with William Owen and Albert Piper and to look forward to visiting again soon. Albert Piper, College Messenger 4 Phyl Surman, Eliza of Otmoor (Oxford, 1976). In 1904 when she was fourteen, Alma Haynes’s first permanent position in domestic service was as a housemaid to J.R. Magrath, the Provost of Queen’s College. 5 Fred Bickerton, Fred of Oxford: Being the Memoirs of Fred Bickerton, Until Recently Head Porter of University College, Oxford (London, 1953). 6 G.A. Jonge and A.J. Purkis, ‘Interview with Bob Dickens’ 20 June 1969. College Record 2020 | The Queen’s College 113
Page 1 and 2:
THE QUEEN’S COLLEGE COLLEGE RECOR
Page 3 and 4:
Kets, Willemien, BSc MSc Nijmegen,
Page 5 and 6:
CONTENTS From the Provost 6 Reports
Page 7 and 8:
From the Provost As well as dealing
Page 9 and 10:
SENIOR TUTOR’S REPORT The College
Page 11 and 12:
In association with the Department
Page 13 and 14:
seminar series held in College. Soo
Page 15 and 16:
and earlier Indo-European and Mesop
Page 17 and 18:
in Japan will also be postponed to
Page 19 and 20:
Bernhard Kasberger (Economics) This
Page 21 and 22:
and was published in June: Rilke: T
Page 23 and 24:
them if they are admitted to hospit
Page 25 and 26:
Alex Robertson (Materials) I’m no
Page 27 and 28:
In January I gave a plenary outreac
Page 29 and 30:
ACADEMIC DISTINCTIONS (* denotes di
Page 31 and 32:
FINAL PUBLIC EXAMINATIONS Biologica
Page 33 and 34:
Oriental Studies First Class Hugo C
Page 35 and 36:
COLLEGE PRIZES Alan Webster Prize:
Page 37 and 38:
Reports and College Activities The
Page 39 and 40:
the scenes with colleagues at Corpu
Page 41 and 42:
ADMISSIONS Jon Doye Tutor for Admis
Page 43 and 44:
Reports and College Activities The
Page 45 and 46:
Reports and College Activities A ma
Page 47 and 48:
Regular services have been a differ
Page 49 and 50:
Reports and College Activities A de
Page 51 and 52:
Reports and College Activities Howe
Page 53 and 54:
Reports and College Activities Defe
Page 55 and 56:
On behalf of the College, I would l
Page 57 and 58:
Since we launched the Centre it has
Page 59 and 60:
The first issue contains eight arti
Page 61 and 62: Our International Book Club gathere
Page 63 and 64: A YEAR IN THE MCR President Nadia H
Page 65 and 66: A YEAR IN THE JCR Hattie Bates JCR
Page 67 and 68: Later that term, Dr Jennifer Cassid
Page 69 and 70: During Michaelmas, due to high wate
Page 71 and 72: concerts are free, open to the publ
Page 73 and 74: QCAFC Captain: Matt Suter Following
Page 75 and 76: It is difficult not to wonder what
Page 77 and 78: Gemma quickly established herself a
Page 79 and 80: netball for only 20 minutes, typica
Page 81 and 82: But I am far more excited about the
Page 83 and 84: ATHLETIC DISTINCTIONS Blues Fred Ne
Page 85 and 86: One of the highlights of the Colleg
Page 87 and 88: Old Members’ Activities cancelled
Page 89 and 90: 40 YEARS OF CO-EDUCATION AT QUEEN
Page 91 and 92: Celebrate 40 years of women at Quee
Page 93 and 94: The first priority was to look at t
Page 95 and 96: The Network’s first online event
Page 97 and 98: 1977 Giles Orton Appointed Priest-i
Page 99 and 100: PUBLICATIONS Bettison, Norman (1983
Page 101 and 102: Teague, Anthony known as Brother An
Page 103 and 104: Comparative Literature at Columbia
Page 105 and 106: Bridging the gap between science an
Page 107 and 108: Years Name Subject 1965-1966 Robert
Page 109 and 110: College Servants and Vacation Emplo
Page 111: paid a small retaining wage, some o
Page 115 and 116: 1967 Dr B P Gardner 1968 Dr D M Lit
Page 117 and 118: of 1952. On retirement to the Engad
Page 119 and 120: introduced the notion of ‘disrupt
Page 121 and 122: The dedication he showed to his wif
Page 123 and 124: insect, a study which resulted in a
Page 125 and 126: JOHN GRAY John Michael Campbell Gra
Page 127 and 128: Martin was unusual in his sense of
Page 129 and 130: KEITH MASLIN Dr Keith Thomas Maslin
Page 131 and 132: As a tutor at Queen’s, McGuinness
Page 133 and 134: Not one for a small town existence,
Page 135 and 136: DICK STEWART Richard E. Stewart die
Page 137 and 138: PIETER ZWART Pieter loved his time
Page 139 and 140: Old Members Anonymous x23 Prof Geof
Page 141 and 142: Mr Anthony Prosser (1969) His Honou
Page 143 and 144: Major (Retd) Matthew Christmas (198
Page 145 and 146: Dr Robert Lepenies (2004) Mr Paul O
Page 148 and 149: INFOR MATION Information College Re
Page 152: The Queen’s College High Street O
show all

The Queen's College Record 2020

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?