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University of Bradford >> Library >> Special Collections >> Bradford Technical College Archive
The Bradford Technical College eventually became the University of Bradford.
The story of the University of Bradford began in 1832 with the founding of the Bradford Mechanics' Institute. Bradford's wool industry was growing quickly. Leading nonconformists felt morally obliged to improve the education of the people streaming into the city to work in the mills. The Institute's lectures and classes originally emphasised general education, but the dominance of wool meant scientific and technical topics were most popular.
The mill owners often did not encourage efforts to educate workers, valuing instinct and common sense rather than theory, and unwilling to share their secrets with competitors. The Institute founded a School of Industrial Design and Art in 1848 which was not well supported. Attitudes changed as European wool industry competitors began to overtake Bradford in the 1860s, and the 1870s depression harmed trade. In 1863, the Institute was able to establish professionally run classes including textile topics. The shock of the poor response to Bradford textiles at the 1878 Paris Exhibition meant further action was possible. A small Weaving School was opened in 1878 in the Institute, which was soon enlarged to form the Bradford Technincal School.
The first building for the new Bradford Technical School was opened in 1882, by the Prince of Wales. The purpose of the School was clearly to support local industries, "technical, scientific, artistic and general instruction in the various processes involved in the production of Worsted, Woollen, Silk and Cotton fabrics ..." Four departments were created: Textiles, Art and Design, Engineering, and Chemistry and Dyeing. Soon after, the School was re-named Bradford Technical College, possibly in response to the Yorkshire College of Science at Leeds.
The College was run by a Council, including its President, local industrialist Sir Henry Mitchell. Subscriptions from Bradford mill owners were supposed to fund the College, but these were not forthcoming. Eventually, in 1899, after the death of Sir Henry, the dire financial situation led the Council to hand control to Bradford Corporation. At this point there were 143 full-time day students and 623 regular evening students.
The change meant the College was run by a board of aldermen and councillors, who had narrow ideas about what should be taught: vocational subjects, and not at university level. The original Technical Instruction Committee was replaced by the Education Committee of Bradford City Council in 1904. In the same year, the Art Department was re-constituted as a separate School of Art.
The College continued to develop. By 1930 there were Departments of Textiles, Chemistry, Dyeing, Civil, Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Commerce and Banking, Pharmacy and Biology, Physics and Mathematics. To cope with the expansion further buildings were added in Carlton Street and Great Horton Road.
Should the College become a university? The idea of a technological university in Bradford had been suggested by the M.P. for the city, W.E. Forster, as early as 1868. Talks were held with Leeds University about amalgamation in 1913, but foundered on the issues of funding and governance.
In 1920, Harry Richardson, a physicist, was appointed Principal. From Manchester, he brought new perspective and commitment to seeking University status for the College. But he was in a sense too late. The country now had a binary system of tertiary education, thanks to the creation of the University Grants Committee in 1919. Colleges in Sheffield, Leeds and Manchester had "evolved" into universities in time. Richardson's task would be much harder.
He was however tireless in his pursuit of it: he "bombarded the bastions of political power ... with endless letters and pleas and accusations", wrote letters, addressed meetings, lobbied Parliament and local politicians. He changed his approach many times, always ready to find a new angle. At the same time, he ensured the College had very high academic standards. Perhaps these rather than the "tangled web" of his political methods ultimately won the day.
Just after Richardson announced his retirement in 1956, the Ministry of Education issued a White Paper on Technical Education. Among other provisions, a small number of technical colleges would "concentrate entirely on advanced studies ... undergraduate, postgraduate and research". Bradford was later named as one of these Colleges of Advanced Technology. The new college was confirmed as Bradford Institute of Technology by the Hives Committee in 1959, while the name of Bradford Technical College was retained as an institution to undertake work of a level below Higher National Certificate
This narrative is based on The University of Bradford: origins and development, by Robert McKinlay. The story continues on the BIT Archive web page.
The Archive is full of detail and interest about the growth and development of the College. It includes:
Further information about the Archive is available as a collection-level entry on the Library catalogue. For further information or to use the Archive, please contact the Special Collections staff.
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