Library & Archive

The Library has always played a central role in the life of the College. It remains a key part of the student experience and, together with our Archive and Special Collections, a rich resource for all members of the College.

A view of the Tate Library from the gallery

The Library and Archives have always been at the heart of the life of the College, travelling with the staff and students as they moved between cities in their early years.  As some of the older dissenting academies closed - such as Warrington and Exeter - their libraries were absorbed into the Manchester College collections. Consequently, our library and archive collections are a key resource for the study of Nonconformity and Dissenting history, with our collections especially significant in the area of Unitarianism.  And the Tate Library, built when the College moved to Oxford as the Library's reading room, is now one of Harris Manchester's most distinctive and recognisable spaces, playing a central role in our students' experience of the College.

Explore the Library and Archive

Using the Library

Information for students and contact details for visitors 

Photograph of a pile of bills relating to food from the 1960s

Our Archive

Explore our Archive and find details on how to access items

special collections photo

Special collections

Learn about our other collections, including the Carpenter Library

Latest from the Library blog

A picture of a Christmas tree in the Library

Welcome to Sophie and Christmas Vacation arrangments

A cropped photograph of a class photo from 1917 showing the students from that year. Margaret Brackenbury Crook in shown amongst her male colleagues.  The photograph is in black and white.

Women who made (Harris) Manchester College

A closer view of the Women Who Made (Harris) Manchester College portraits, mounted on the wall.

Opening of the Women who made (Harris) Manchester College

library original

Women who made (Harris) Manchester College