Papers relating to fundraising for the buildings of Bedford College, 1897-1981, notably minutes, 1897-1905, and correspondence, 1905-1917, of the Endowment and Buildings Fund Committee; minutes and papers of various Appeals Committees, 1906-1916; correspondence, 1910-1933, concerning financing of building schemes at the Regent's Park site; papers of the Extension Fund Committee, 1919-1932, including committee minutes, minutes and correspondence of the Publicity Sub-Committee, appeal letters, programmes and leaflets for fundraising plays. Material relating to building and development at the Regent's Park site, 1910-1947, including architects' correspondence, mainly from Basil Champneys, concerning plans for the new Bedford College buildings at Regent's Park and the progress of the building work, 1910-1917; Champney's plans, 1913, for the Administrative Block, Senior Common Room, and Science Blocks A and B; plans by Haddocks of the Bursar's Office, 1922; plan and elevations of South Villa, 1926, by Simpson and Maxwell Ayrton; engineer's plans for the Botany Greenhouse and the heating system in the Physiology Laboratory, 1925; plans and watercolour impressions of the Tate Library, 1910, by J R Smith; coloured plans for the layout of rooms in the Physiology Laboratories, [1913]; Maxwell Ayrton's plans, 1925-[1930], for the Tuke Building; correspondence and plans relating to the drainage system at Bedford College, 1920-1947. Papers concerning post-war rebuilding of the Regent's Park site, 1942-1980, notably plans, 1942-1957, by Maxwell Ayrton of Oliver Block, the Herringham Building, the North Science Block (Darwin Building), and extensions to the Tuke Building; correspondence, papers and plans relating to the Tuke-Darwin Infill, 1966-1972; correspondence and plans relating to the Development Programme, 1964-1980, including a report on future library accommodation in the Acland Building, 1971, and proposed plans for an Oliver Infill, a Bedford College Union Society Building and a North Spur, 1979-1980; correspondence concerning the purchase of land for sports facilities, 1922-1925 and 1969-1971. Bursar's papers, 1924-1985, relating to the maintenance of Bedford College buildings, including minutes of the Premises Sub-Committee (Bursar's Meetings), 1965-1976, and minutes and papers of Special Bursar's meetings, 1982-1984; minutes, papers and accounts, 1966-1981 of the Refectory; Bursar's correspondence, 1924-1959; Bursar's working papers, 1978-1981; Bursar's copy of a management study on the efficiency of the Bedford College Administration, 1971, and the Peat-Matwick Report on the financial implications of the merger with Royal Holloway, 1983; minutes and papers of the Safety Committee, 1974-1985, and the General Services Sub-Committee, 1979. General material relating to the Bedford College Halls of Residence, 1873-1982, including legal correspondence concerning the lease and purchase of residential properties, 1922-1953; minutes and papers of the Lodgings Sub-Committee, 1892-1921, formed to vet accommodation offered to students; bound volume of letters offering lodgings to students, 1934-1937; correspondence concerning general policy matters, 1956-1974, and financial management, 1974-1982, of residential Halls; minutes and papers of the Halls of Residence Sub-Committee, 1976-1978; Boarding House accounts, 1873-1901. Correspondence and papers relating to the purchase, lease and maintenance of specific properties used as Halls of Residence, 1895-1985, namely 7, 8, 9, 10 and 28 York Place; South Villa; 17, 20, 35, 36 and 37 Dorset Square (Notcutt House); Bedford College House (Adamson Road and Buckland Crescent), later Lindsell Hall; Hanover Lodge, including plans and Warden's papers; Tennyson Hall; York Gate and Nottingham Terrace; The Holme; Broadhurst Gardens; Nottingham Place (Rachel Notcutt Hall); and St John's Lodge.

Records relating to buildings, services and maintenance of property of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, 1936-2001.

The records are arranged in the following series:

G1, Sale of 58 Queen Anne Street and purchase of 27 Sussex Place, 1953-1972;

G2, Sussex Place: miscellaneous material relating to electrical & audio-visual systems, rating, car parking etc, 1959-1971;

G3, Sussex Place: material relating to the proposed library extension, 1966-1972;

G4, Sussex Place: material relating to projection and other communication equipment for the Nuffield Hall, 1968-1969;

G5, Sample material relating to furnishing and heating of RCOG premises, Queen Anne Street; to plaques and other inscriptions relating to bequests; and to redecoration and cleaning, RCOG Sussex Place, 1952-1970;

G6, 27 Sussex Place: records relating to proposed extensions and developments, 1979-1984;

G7, 27 Sussex Place: material concerning the redesign of the garden, 1983-1984;

G8, 8 Kent Terrace and 27 Sussex Place: College Surveyor's reports and associated correspondence, 1985-1998;

G9, 27 Sussex Place: records relating to second floor extension, 1986-1990;

G10, 27 Sussex Place: correspondence and papers concerning installation of the College stained glass dome, 1989-1991;

G11, 27 Sussex Place: College Secretary's general correspondence and papers relating to accommodation needs and alterations, 1989-1993;

G12, 27 Sussex Place: records relating to construction of the Education Centre, 2000-2001.

Papers relating to Standing Committees of Bedford College, including Minutes, correspondence and papers of the Finance Committee, 1889-1985; Minutes of the Financial Management and Investment Sub-Committee, 1982-1985; Minutes of the Policy and Estimates Committee, 1972-1979; Minutes, correspondence and papers of the Standing Committee on Laboratory Expenditure, 1944-1985; Minutes of the Committee of Education, 1868-1909; Minutes, 1903-1907, and reports, 1937, of the Physical Education Committee; Minutes of the Professors' Meetings, 1881-1909; Minutes of the Loan Fund Committee for the Training of Teachers, 1892-1896.

Papers relating to the Building Committees of Bedford College, including Minutes and papers of the Premises Committee, 1908-1915; Minutes and papers of the South Villa Demolition Committee, 1919-1921; Minutes of the Building Fund Committee, 1908-1914; Minutes of the Building Committee, 1926-1932; Minutes of the Committee for Alterations to the Library, 1931-1932; Minutes and papers of the Reconstruction Committee, 1943-1967, and its Sub-Committee, 1947-1949; Minutes of the Buildings Committee, 1954-1978; Minutes of the House Committee, 1876-1975; Minutes and reports of the Household Management Committee, 1972-1978; Minutes of the Estate Management Committee, 1978-1983.

Papers relating to Special and Ad Hoc Committees of Bedford College, including papers of a Special Committee, 1878; papers of a Special (Treasury Grant) Committee, 1905-1906; papers of a Special Joint Committee (Acland Committee), 1901; papers of a Special Committee on Organisation and Finance, 1901-1919; and papers of a Special Committee on the Admission of Men, 1963-1964; papers of a Joint Committee of Governors and Council to Review the Charter and Statutes, 1966; papers relating to the Mallaby Report on machinery of government and the Ward-Jackson Review of Committee Structure, 1968-1969; papers of a joint Committee of the Councils of Bedford and Westfield Colleges, 1979-1982; papers of a Joint Planning Committee of King's College London and Bedford College, 1981; papers of a Joint Planning Committee of Royal Holloway and Bedford Colleges, 1982; papers of Joint Meetings of the Councils of Bedford and Royal Holloway Colleges, 1983-1985; papers and correspondence relating to the merger of Royal Holloway and Bedford Colleges, 1982-1983.

Material relating to Bedford College Library, 1849-85, notably Minutes of the Library Committee, 1886-1983; Library working files, 1918-1985, on subjects including war arrangements, grant, University libraries, estimates and expenditure, staff and salaries and departmental matters; correspondence between the Librarian and the Secretary of the Council, 1889-1950; Library correspondence relating to alterations and repairs, 1932-1954; Library lists and registers, 1849-1985, including a Visitors' Book, 1953-1985, and Withdrawals Registers, 1917-1922 and 1954-1974; papers relating to insect problems in the Library, 1951; Doris Bains's statistics book and Library Staff Book; miscellaneous literary works, [1940-1959]; University Grants Committee (UGC) liaison reports, 1964; papers relating to the reclassification of the Library stock, 1969-1970; Library Accessions Register, 1897-1971; Pamphlet Accessions Register, 1921-1971; Donations Register, 1963-1970; plans by Maxwell Ayrton relating to the Tate Library extension, 1932-1950; plans by Easton and Robertson relating to the Tate and Herringham Library extension, 1961-1963.

Minutes of the Committee of the Managers of the Residence, 1869-1899; financial material, including Account Book, 1860-1880, Bank Books, 1876-1927, bills and receipts, 1876-1891, and a tax forms, 1924-1926; legal documents, 1870-1894, including a Declaration of Trust, Tenancy Agreements, and lawyers' bills; letters, 1888-1892, from Elizabeth Ann Bostock and Eleanor Elizabeth Smith to Blanche Shadwell and Lucy Russell, Honorary Secretary of the Council, mostly concerning plans for building the Shaen Wing at York Place; general papers and correspondence, 1856-1905, including reports on the drainage at Bedford Square, notes on teaching and curriculum, notes concerning the winding up of the Trust, and the finances of Bedford College, letters concerning the administration of the Residence and the Reid Trust, and death certificates of Shaw and Eldebrook; Report and correspondence of the Residence Sub-Committee concerning the choice of a site for new buildings and the raising of funds, 1901-1907, including papers relating to an offer by the Trustees to give the capital of the Residence Trust to a fund being raised for the rebuilding of the College; correspondence and papers, 1873-1928, relating to the removal of Bedford College to Baker Street and Regent's Park. Plan for a tablet commemorating Sir Hildred Carlile, [1914].

Legal Records: Charters and Bylaws (1462) - date

Court and Council : Court of Assistants 1745-1827; Council 1827-date; Council in Committee 1963-1989; Revision committee 1981-1987; Nomination Committee 1934-1970; Annual Reports of Council 1884-date

Secretariat: Correspondence, arranged by subject c.1880-1983; Letterbooks 1810-1866, 1900-1925; General Purposes Committee 1808-1962; Joint Secretariat Committee 1961-1974

President: Committee of President and Vice President 1836-1855; Presidential Committee on Examinations 1985; Presidential Committee on the College's Educational Policies for the Future 1981-1982; Presidential Correspondence 1945-1948; President's Conversazione 1899-1934; President's newsletter 1967-1991

Museum: Board of Curators 1800-1844; Museum & Building Committee 1799-1814; Museum Committee 1844-1988; Hunterian Trustees 1805-present; Letter books 1800-1883; Museum Accounts 1800-1832; Annual Reports 1827-1946; Correspondence 1845-date; Special Collections Committee 1989; Donations Registers and Correspondence 1802-1967; Human Remains [archaeological Finds} 1907-1937; Visitors 1805-1989; Odontological Museum correspondence 1943-1989;

Building: Building Committee 1844-1966; Committee on Accommodation 1982; Committee on the Extension of the College Buildings 1885-1891; Furniture & Building 1966-1992; Hospitality & Catering Committee 1956-1988; House Committee 1944-1961; Building Estates Committee 1989-1992; Property Committee 1978-1982; Rebuilding of College 1946-1955; Plans for rebuilding 1957; Correspondence 1910-date, photographs 1880-date.

Examinations: Court of Examiners 1796 -1832; Registers 1745-1983; Committee of Management Conjoint Board 1884-1929; Letters books 1832-1865; Committee on Courses 1981-2; Working Party on Future of Examining Board In England 1972-1981

Membership: Signature books 1800-1970; Apprentices 1800-1846; Death Registers 1800-1889; Membership lists 1788-1970; Discipline Committee 1915-1955; Licentiate registers 1885-1898; Certificates 1850-1870; Register of Certificates 1821-1835

Fellowship; Fellowship Election Committee 1943-1975; Fellows Committee 1988-1999; Overseas Fellows Committee 1986-1989; Honorary Fellows 1900-1978; Fellows & Honorary Fellows photo albums 1840-1968;

Lectureships & Awards: Lectures & Orations 1810-1842; Erasmus Wilson Committee 1879; Jacksonian Lectureship Committee 1800-date; Prize & Medal Committee 1956-1987; Macloghlin Scholarship committee 1965-1975; Joseph Toynbee Memorial Lecture Committee 1988; Lionel College Memorial Fellowship Committee minutes 1982-1985; Norman Capener Travelling Fellowship Advisory Board 1981-1988; Ratanji Dalal Research Scholarship Committee 1963-1990; Tudor Edwards Memorial Fund Committee 1989; Walker Prize Committee 1956-1980; Windsor Prize Committee 1982

Publications: Transactions Committee 1841-1842; Annals Committee 1947-1989; Almanacks 1903-date

Annual Meetings: Annual & Provincial Meetings Committee 1965-1966;

External Affairs: External Affairs Board Minutes 1989-1992; International Relations Committee 1983;

Finance: Accounts 1745-1974 ; Committee of Auditors 1811-1888; Finance Committee 1888- 1977; Cashbooks 1887-1959; Finance & General Appeal Committee 1967-1972; Building Committee Accounts 1806-1838; College Chest 1978-1982; Committee on Income & Expenditure 1868

Fundraising: Appeals Committee 1956-1978; Restoration funds records 1945-1956

Library: Library Committee 1833-1989; Acquisitions 1833-1850; Letter book 1828-1851; Correspondence 1935-1965; Donations 1868-1957; Purchases 1887-1952; Visitors 1889-1946;Binding 1856-1951; Books Received 1839-1951; Periodicals Received 1881-1938; Binding 1951-1964

Media: Audio Visual Techniques Committee 1980-1982;

Surgical Specialities & Training: Examiners in Anatomy & Physiology Minutes 1880-1918 ; Examiners in Midwifery minutes 1852-1857; Board of Examiners In Dental Surgery 1860-1909; Board of Surgical Specialities 1976-1988; Committee on Higher Specialist Assessment in General Surgery 1984; Committee on Training of Surgeons later Surgical Training Board minutes 1959-1971; Courses & Lectureship Committee 1982; Committee on Courses 1981-1982; Special Advisory Committee on General Surgery 1978-1981; Surgical Teaching Films Committee 1985-1986; Joint Committee for Plastic Surgery, Postgraduate Orthopaedic Training 1948-1959; Postgraduate Education Committee 1947-1959

Research Laboratories Committee 1890-1905; Ethical or Research Ethics Committee 1974-1983; Hunterian Institute Board Minutes 1986-1989; Hunterian Institute Academic Advisory Committee 1986-1989; Institute of Basic Medical Research Correspondence & Minutes 1946-1983; Joint General Board 1966-1983; Joint Research Board 1975-1979; Museum & Research Committee 1937-1974; Research Establishment at Downe Management Committee minutes 1974-1977; Research Grants & Development Committee 1979-1985; Research Ethics Committee 1985-1992; Streatfield & MacKenzie Mackinnon Research Fund Committee 1989; Anatomy Correspondence 1948-1980

Club College Council Club minutes, photographs, correspondence 1931-date

Dinner: Hunterian Festival programmes 1881-1975; Buckston Browne 1928-1956

War: Committee of Reference 1916-1919

Records, 1891-1970, of Regent Street Polytechnic, comprising:
Governing Body minutes, 1891-1970, attendance books, 1954-1970, and related papers; Finance and General Purposes Committee minutes, 1891-1932, 1951-1960, and attendance books, 1949-1958.

Deeds, leases, agreements, schedules, licences and correspondence, 1891-1970, concerning Polytechnic affairs and premises, including Langham Place, Riding House Street, Great Portland Street, and other sites, and use of the Polytechnic Theatre (Marlborough Hall), Regent Street, as a cinema;
papers, 1889-1970, relating to the Charity Commissioners' Scheme for the Polytechnic.

Financial records, some relating to Trusts and prizes, 1891-1970, including balance sheets, accounts and financial statements, 1891-1895, 1899-1904, balance sheets and accounts, 1939-41, ledgers, 1892, 1902-1970, journals, 1939-1956, various cash books, 1905-1970, invoices, 1905-1911, 1959-1965, correspondence and papers concerning overdrafts, 1927-1954, record books, perhaps recording payments to government-sponsored students, 1919-1923, applications for and papers relating to grants from the City Parochial Foundation and London County Council, 1891-1960, and other papers relating to funding and regulatory bodies, including the Board of Education, papers relating to the Quintin Hogg estate and investments, 1903-1970, and the Kynaston Studd memorial fund, 1940s, and Polytechnic Benevolent Fund minute book, 1938-1965.

Administrative papers and correspondence of the Polytechnic and its officers, 1902-1964, relating to premises, finance, staff and salaries, library, enrolments, fees and examinations; correspondence and papers on fundraising and rebuilding, 1909-1916, including Building Committee minutes, 1908-1911, and plans, agreements and press cuttings; correspondence and papers on fundraising and extension, 1926-1929; correspondence, plans and other papers, 1911-1946, relating to premises including Cavendish Place and Langham Place; correspondence and papers relating to administration and facilities of the Quintin Hogg Recreation Ground, Chiswick, 1904-1960s, including the Trustees' minute book, 1932-1959; papers relating to proposed re-organisation, 1959-1969.

Records of the Education Department, including prospectuses, 1892-1970, and records relating to examinations, results, certificates, and medals awarded to students, 1891-1970;
papers of the Teaching Staff Association, 1963-1970;
records of the Polytechnic Institute, comprising membership records for men, 1891-1958, and women, 1904-1960, and subscription ledgers for men, 1891-1937, 1952-1963, and women, 1904-1937, 1952-1960; papers relating to World War One, 1914-1915, including three volumes on members on active service.

Papers, including ephemera, on Polytechnic jubilees, public and social occasions, and official visits, 1904-1964, including the royal visit, 1912, the opening of the stadium at Chiswick, 1938, coronations, 1937, 1953, and Hogg centenary celebrations, 1964.

Rules, 1913; printed annual reports, 1931-1938, 1952-1970, and typescripts, 1938-1941; staff handbooks [1954], 1964 and undated; student handbooks, 1961-1970; lecture notes and exam papers for the P.O. Workman's course, 1929-1933; class notebook for Electro-Technology, 1930s; lecturer's notebook detailing classroom allocation, staff teaching hours and student enrolment numbers, 1930-1945; The Polytechnic Magazine, 1891-1971, which includes detailed information on Polytechnic business and activities; miscellaneous other publications, including The Polytechnic: its genesis and present status (1892), The Polytechnic Portrait Gallery (1894), comprising portraits of staff and members, an honorary membership ticket, 1895, student magazines, 1936-1969, and miscellaneous articles, typescripts and cuttings on the Polytechnic, 1892-1968; volumes of press cuttings and scrapbooks of ephemera, 1893-1947, including Polytechnic activities, rebuilding, and J E K Studd.

Textbooks written by members of the Polytechnic teaching staff, including
Theory and Analysis of Ornament - Applied to the Work of the Elementary and Technical Schools by Francois Louis Schauermann, 1892; The Polytechnic Coat System by Dr Thomas Darwin Humphreys, 3rd edition, n.d. [1900]; A Manual of Boot and Shoe Manufacture designed for the use of technical students by Herbert Hill and Henry Yeoman, 3rd edition, 1900; Building Construction and Drawing - first stage (or elementary course) by Charles F Mitchell, assisted by George Mitchell, 6th edition, 1902; Engineering Drawing : Principles and Practice of Draughtmanship by W. Weeks, n.d.; Polytechnic Technical Scales by C F Mitchell, n.d.; Hasluck's Recitations volume II: Hasluck's Recitations for Ladies compiled and adapted by Mr and Mrs S L Hasluck, 1903; Indiarubber and Gutta Percha - A Complete Practical Treatise by T Seeligmann, G Lamy Torrilhon and H Falconnet. Translated from the French by John Geddes McIntosh, 1903; Carpentry Workshop Practice by C F and G A Mitchell, 1904; Brickwork and Masonry: A Practical Textbook for students by Charles F Mitchell, 1904; The Polytechnic Cookery Book by M. M. Mitchell, 1907; Pumps - Their Principles and Construction - a series of lectures delivered at the Polytechnic Institute, Regent Street, London by J Wright Clarke, 2nd edition, 1919; Speech Training in the School by Marjorie Gullan, 1929; A Modern French Course for Beginners by A C Clark, 1930; General Electrical Engineering edited by Philip Kemp, 1943; A Modern German Course - Part 1 and Part 2 (2 volumes) by A C Clark and W O Williams, 1947; Fitness for All by Joseph Edmundson, 1953; The Pan Book of Swimming and Water Sports by Joseph Edmundson, 1965.

Photograph album, c1899, including photographs of activities and buildings; other negatives, prints, and plates, comprising buildings and premises (exterior and interior shots), including Langham Place, Regent Street, Little Titchfield Street, and the Quintin Hogg Recreation Ground, Chiswick; educational aspects, including Polytechnic Schools, libraries and laboratories, and window displays and exhibitions; events, including the royal visit, 1912, Lord Mayor's Show, 1922, 1928, annual fetes, 1927-1932, and Coronation concert and dance, 1953; personalities, including members of the Hogg family, Robert Mitchell, and J E K Studd; photography students' work, 1960-1970. Some earlier photographs were taken by the Polytechnic School of Photography.

Material relating to the Hogg family, 1855-[1970], includes articles about Quintin Hogg, 1888-1949; miscellaneous of Hogg's letters, mainly copies (originals dated 1882-1903), some relating to the Polytechnic; books by or associated with Hogg, 1855-1900; papers relating to his death, funeral and monument, 1903-1907, including printed material and a volume of press cuttings on his achievements; and information on other family members. Material relating to other Polytechnic notables comprises T H W Pelham's Recollections of the pre-historic days of the Polytechnic (1914); miscellaneous papers relating to Robert Mitchell, comprising a letter to E J Painter, 1929, a cutting on his death and orders of service for memorial services, 1933, and Ethel M Wood's Robert Mitchell (1934); miscellaneous correspondence and papers relating to John Edward Kynaston Studd, including programmes for social events, 1922-1935, his The origin, history, and present work of the Polytechnic [1932], papers relating to his death, 1944-1945, and A L D Hamilton's Kynaston Studd (1953); printed material on other members of the Studd family, 1914-1962.

Archive, 1754 to date, of the Royal Society of Arts (RSA; formerly the Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, or Society of Arts), created by the Society in the course of its activities, and comprising records of its administration (Ref: AD), and records of its activities and events (Ref: PR), also including some printed material dating back to 1634.

Administrative records of the Society include:

Records of Miscellaneous Committees to discuss the programme and administration of the Society, including the Committee of Correspondence and Papers and the Committee of Miscellaneous Matters, 1754-1848 (Ref: AD.MA/104).
Records of the Society from 1754, later the Council (established 1845) (Ref: AD.MA/100).

Records concerning Chairmen of Council (from 1846) and Council membership (Ref: AD.MA/102).

Records of Secretaries (administrative head of the Society), after 1994 known as the Director (Ref: AD.MA/101).

Records of Presidents (Ref: AD.MA/103).

Records of Membership/Fellowship, relating to subscribers to the Society, originally termed 'members', referred to as 'Fellows' from 1908 (Ref: AD.MA/900). (The archive does not include extensive biographical information on RSA Fellows, although dates of membership of Fellows are usually recorded.)
Records concerning the Society's House in John Adam Street from its design and construction by the Adam Brothers, including correspondence, papers, notes, leases and other legal documents, relating to administration, management, alteration and repair of the building (Ref: AD.MA/300).

Records of various House Committees set up at different times to look at the building, its use, function, administration and management (Ref: AD.MA/305).

Accounting and financial records produced by various committees including the Accounts Committee and Finance and General Purposes Committee (Ref: AD.MA/400).

Annual Reports recording the Society's activities over the year, initially within the Journal (from 1852), but later as a separate publication (Ref: AD.MA/701).

Records relating to general lectures (developed from the 1850s when the Society ceased the award of premiums for inventions), with correspondence mainly concerning administrative arrangements for speakers and publication of their texts (in the RSA Journal) and suggestions for topics for discussion (Ref: AD.MA/800).

Records relating to the RSA Silver Medal awarded annually for the most interesting lecture over the preceding year (Ref: AD.MA/803).

Records relating to production of the Journal and other publicity, promotion and communication (Ref: AD.MA/203).

Donations and collections, comprising objects and artefacts donated to or bought by the Society (Ref: AD.MA/204).

Records of the Society's activities (such as award schemes, exhibitions, conferences, seminars and lectures), including joint initiatives with a range of other organisations, include:

Guard Books (30 volumes), 1754-1770, containing correspondence and papers about all Society activities and committees, on a range of subjects (Ref: PR.GE/110).

Manuscript versions of the Society's Transactions, comprising draft versions of the printed Transactions, including drawings, plans and diagrams in support of claims for premiums and awards. Also general correspondence to the Society on various 19th century campaigns, conferences and committees, covering subjects including lectures (arrangements for dates, speakers, chairmen, participants; suggestions for subjects, submission of lecture texts, corrections to texts, requests for tickets/programmes, acceptances, apologies for non-attendance etc), examinations (requests for syllabus, copies of certificates, programmes, rules; complaints, arrangements, agreements with colleges, details of examiners etc), membership (requests for information, applications, replies to circulars, notes accompanying subscriptions, resignations, complaints), Council/committee chairmen (intention to attend meetings, acceptances, general arrangements for meetings, requests for information, dates, times etc), Journal (receipt/non-receipt of copies, reciprocal arrangements with other libraries, requests for extra copies, corrections to proofs, advertising, arrangements for making blocks, photogravures etc), House (letters from freeholders, solicitors, contractors; booking of rooms), staff (applications for employment, testimonials, sick notes etc - a very small number of items), general (invitations, letters from bankers, auditors, business circulars, requests for funding, suggestions for campaigns, policies, events etc), and including artistic copyright, uniform musical pitch, domestic economy, art workmanship, musical training, food committees, patent law reform, prevention of fires in theatres and education exhibitions (Ref: PR.GE/118-19, 121).

Records relating to Premium and Programme committees (Ref: PR.GE/112); Albert Medal (founded 1863) (Ref: PR.GE/101); Memorial Tablet (blue plaque) scheme (founded 1866) (PR.GE/122); War Memorials Advisory Council (established 1944, disbanded 1948), concerning memorials of the Second World War (Ref: PR.GE/117); Exhibition of Exhibitions (1951), concurrent with the Festival of Britain, to commemorate earlier ground-breaking Society exhibitions on contemporary art (1760), industrial design (1847-1850), photography (1852), industry (1761), and the first international exhibition (1851) (Ref: PR.GE/102); R B Bennett Commonwealth Prize (endowed 1944) for outstanding contribution to the promotion of the arts, agriculture, industries and commerce of the Overseas Empire (Ref: PR.GE/116); Commonwealth Committee (Ref: PR.GE/113); proposals and planning for the Festival of Britain (1951) (Ref: PR.GE/103); events for the RSA Bicentenary (1954) (Ref: PR.GE/107); Benjamin Franklin Medal (instituted 1956) (Ref: PR.GE/100); Trusts, bequests, fundraising and development (Ref: PR.GE/111).

Records relating to manufacture and commerce, including the Paris Exhibitions (1844-1900) (Ref: PR.MC/109); Great Exhibition (1851) (Ref: PR.MC/107); International Exhibition (1862) (Ref: PR.MC/108); Chicago Exhibition (World's Columbian Exposition, 1893), British Section (Ref: PR.MC/112); Industry Year/Industry Matters (1986) (Ref: PR.MC/100); Tomorrow's Company (begun 1994), concerning the role of business in a changing world (Ref: PR.MC/115); Redefining Work (launched 1995) (Ref: PR.MC/116); Forum for Ethics in the Workplace (1997) (Ref: PR.MC/117); Manufacturing, Wealth Creation and the Economy (1998) (Ref: PR.MC/118).

Records of subject-based standing committees set up by the Society from 1754 to judge awards and premiums in particular areas, including minutes and correspondence about awards and attendance at and structure of committees: Agriculture (Ref: PR.MC/103), Chemistry (Ref: PR.MC/105), Colonies and Trade (Ref: PR.MC/104), Manufactures (Ref: PR.MC/102), Mechanics (Ref: PR.MC/101), and Polite Arts - including prints, drawings and other artwork submitted for award (Ref: PR.AR/103).

Records relating to fine and applied arts, including exhibition of works of Ancient and Medieval Art (1847-1850) (Ref: PR.AR/105); exhibition of the works of William Etty and William Mulready (1848-1849), including general correspondence, printed matter, catalogues, press cuttings, tickets and notices about mounting of exhibitions, and attendance (Ref: PR.AR/112); British Art in Industry Exhibition (1935) to publicise good design in articles of everyday use (Ref: PR.AR/101); Humorous Art Exhibition (1949-1950) (Ref: PR.AR/100); Art for Architecture scheme (from 1990), aiming to enhance the urban environment by encouraging cross disciplinary approaches to building and landscape projects, and associated with the Jerwood Art for Architecture Award (introduced 1994) (Ref: PR.AR/110); Shakespeare in Schools (begun 1992), a pilot project to introduce Shakespeare to children (Ref: PR.AR/108).

Records relating to promotion of design, including the Design Bursaries Board, Design Committee, the Design Board, Design Advisory Group and Design Section (Ref: PR.DE/106-7); Industrial Art Bursaries Competition (started 1924), succeeded by the Design Bursaries Competition, Competition of Industrial Designs and Student Design Awards (Ref: PR.DE/100); Royal Designers for Industry (RDI) scheme (created 1936) to encourage a high standard of industrial design (Ref: PR.DE/101); Bicentenary Medal (instituted 1954) for exceptional influence in promoting art and design in British industry (Ref: PR.DE/102); Presidential Awards for Design Management (instituted 1964) to recognise outstanding design policy (Ref: PR.DE/105).
Records relating to education, including the RSA Examinations Board (PR.ED/100); the Education for Capability programme (initiated 1979) to counteract academic bias in British education and promote practical, organising and co-operative skills (Ref: PR.ED/107); the future of Technological Higher Education in Britain (1982), a study group to consider the problems facing Britain in the development of technological higher education (Ref: PR.ED/118); Home-School links (from 1988) (Ref: PR.ED/108); Parents in a Learning Society, a development project to involve parents in education and assess home-school work (Ref: PR.ED/104); the National Advisory Council for Careers and Educational Guidance (established 1994), to promote and advise on provision of guidance for learning and work (Ref: PR.ED/103); Education Futures (2000) (Ref: PR.ED/116).

Records relating to the environment, including the Campaign for the Preservation of Ancient Cottages (begun 1926) to protect cottage architecture, establishing a fund which purchased or restored cottages near Worthing, at Bibury, Gloucestershire, West Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, Chiddingstone, Kent, and elsewhere (Ref: PR.EN/100); three 'Countryside in 1970' Conferences (1963-1970) (Ref: PR.EN/104); Environment Committee (formed 1971) to identify and anticipate major environmental problems and provide a forum for discussion (Ref: PR.EN/107), which began the Pollution Abatement Technology Award Scheme (PATAS) (1983-1986) (Ref: PR.EN/103), succeeded by the Better Environment for Industry/European Better Environment Awards for Industry (BEAFI/EBEAFI) (1987-1991) (Ref: PR.EN/101); the Environment Committee's sub-committee the RSA-Cubitt Trust Panel (to 1991), devoted to the built environment and working with the Cubitt Trust to convene conferences, seminars and an annual Cubitt Lecture (Ref: PR.EN/106); After the Earth Summit - What Next? (1992) (Ref: PR.EN/128); RSA Environmental Management Awards (begun 1993) (Ref: PR.EN/102).

The Early Library (Ref: SC/EL/1-5), comprising c500 printed works collected by the Society before 1830, including journals and periodicals, and c300 pamphlets and tracts covering broad-ranging topics relating to premiums and awards of the various sectional committees (Agriculture, Polite Arts, Chemistry, Manufactures, Mechanics, and Colonies and Trade), and including extracts from proceedings of other societies and learned institutions.

Sharpey-Schafer's correspondence is extensive. In addition to his own correspondence it includes papers of William Sharpey, saved by Sharpey-Schafer after his death, 1836-70 and n.d. There are significant numbers of letters from William Sharpey himself, Sir Michael Foster, Sir John Burdon-Sanderson, Sir William Osler, George John Romanes, Sir Victor Horsley, Sir James Paget, Lord Lister, Sir Charles Sherrington, Sir William Gowers, Thomas Henry Huxley, John Newport Langley, Sir Edwin Ray Lankester, Ernest Henry Starling, Allen Thomson, Sanger Monroe Brown, Sutherland Simpson, Francis Gano Benedict, Harvey Cushing, Albrecht Kossel, Karl Hugo Kronecker, Carl Ludwig, Charles Robert Richet, and Masaharu Kohima.

Material relating to Sharpey-Schafer's career at UCL includes correspondence on his controversy in the Neurological Society with Sir David Ferrier, 1887-88, and papers relating to the rebuilding of University College Hospital in 1895.

Material relating to Sharpey-Schafer's career at Edinburgh University includes correspondence on the forced resignation of William Cramer from the department of Physiology on grounds of German nationality, 1914, and papers on the opening of the department of Animal Genetics in 1930.

Other papers reflect various aspects of Sharpey-Schafer's scientific interests, including the history of the Physiological Society (with several letters from Archibald Vivian Hill), artificial respiration and bird migration. There are also numerous letters in response to his controversial address to the British Association in Dundee in 1912, and correspondence on the position of scientists in post-Revolutionary Russia, 1918-21.

There is a substantial correspondence on the various textbooks Sharpey-Schafer wrote or to which he contributed, 1910-34.

Sharpey-Schafer's personal papers include correspondence with his wives and children, 1876-1935, scrapbooks of press cuttings, c. 1899-1930, and a large collection of photographs, mainly portraits.