On 23 September 1964 the very first 89 students and 13 members of staff started at S Martin’s College.
This month, our Bowerham Road campus turns 60, so we are celebrating all things Lancaster in this edition…
Lancaster campus timeline
1873 – The War Office purchased land on Bowerham Road for £7,300 for the new barracks for the King’s Own Royal Regiment.
1876 – 1880 Building works take place, The Keep is built, styled on a medieval castle to house the armoury, barracks blocks were built, married quarters and officers mess, stables, a hospital, drill shed, stores and a large parade ground were all planned.
1880 – On 20 April, a party of 30 men under Captain Herbert Borrett, were the first to occupy the barracks.
1880 – 1959 - The barracks were occupied over the next 79 years with over 800 soldiers at a time. The troops saw active service in the Boer War, the First and Second World War and most notably in Burma for the Chindits Brigade, a special operations unit.
1959 – On 26 September, Bowerham Barracks closed. Following the Second World War the army reduced in size, and the King’s Own Royal Regiment joined together with the Carlisle-based Border Regiment and moved away.
1961 – Town Clerk Don Waddell suggests the Bowerham Barracks site for the new Church of England teacher training college. The Church of England paid £70,000 for the site.
1962 – Dr Hugh Mortimer Pollard was appointed as the founding principal of S Martin’s College and remained for 13 years. During this time the college numbers swelled from 89 to over 700. One of the many legacies he left on the campus was the fine collection of art works, most notably a piece by Dame Barbara Hepworth which can be viewed today in the library and a large piece by Bratby in the Chapel.
1964 – Dr Hugh Pollard settled upon the name S Martin’s College after the Roman soldier S Martin of Tours. Dr Pollard was adamant the ‘t’ was dropped from ‘St’ to reflect the French way. S Martin had renounced life as a soldier and devoted it to caring and teaching, reflecting the move of Bowerham Barracks from its military past to become a college.
The very first class of the new S Martin’s College start on campus, 89 students all studying teaching. Extensive building work starts on campus. Architect Charles Pike was appointed to transform the barracks into a teacher training college. Pike broke up the formal barrack square with three three-storey halls of residence, a dining hall, a long corridor providing staff offices, teaching space and a lecture theatre and a chapel, deliberately placed to provide the focal point of the campus.
1966 – William Thompson Hall (Willy Tom) is opened by Princess Margaretha of Sweden.
1967 – The college is officially opened by Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother.
1976 – Dr Hugh Pollard retires and is awarded an OBE for his work. The library opens, supported by a donation from local businessman Harold Bridges. The second principal, Robert Clayton, arrives and begins to oversee the expansion of the curriculum, diversifying into Arts BA degrees.
1988 – New nursing degrees are validated.
1989 – Ian Edynbry is appointed as the college principal.
1992 - New healthcare courses are added and result in the erection of the Dalton Building, and two new student blocks are built and named after Don Waddell.
1993 – The lecture theatre, named after first principal Hugh Pollard, is opened by playwright Alan Bennett
1997 - Professor Chris Carr is appointed as principal, following Ian Edynbry’s retirement, and oversees a huge expansion in student numbers and a period of modernisation.
2006 – The Gateway is opened, built on the site of the former PM Hall, providing a new café, students’ union, offices and a formal venue space. St Martin’s College is granted the power to award its own degrees.
2007 – The college then as part of the establishment of the University of Cumbria applied for university title and a change in name after gaining Taught Degree Awarding Powers (TDAP). The Privy Council confirmed its approval and change of name to University of Cumbria with effect from 1 August 2007.
2009 – Professor Peter McCaffrey is appointed as University of Cumbria Vice Chancellor.
2010 – Professor Graham Upton is appointed as Interim Vice Chancellor.
2011 – Professor Peter Strike is appointed as University of Cumbria Vice Chancellor.
2014 – The first students and staff from 1964 meet back together on campus to celebrate their 50th reunion.
2016 - Professor Julie Mennell is appointed as University of Cumbria Vice Chancellor. The Black Box Theatre is demolished and major campus modernisation and improvement works are planned.
2017 – The new Sentamu teaching block officially opens, named in honour of our Chancellor, the Archbishop of York Dr John Sentamu.
2024 – Major construction works take place on campus. Some of our original 1960s buildings are demolished including; Sarah Witham Thompson Halls, Gressingham and Melling Halls, Black Box Theatre, Old Dining Room and the Long Corridor. Partial demolition and conversion and change of use to the Art Studio and change of use and conversion of Barbon Hall and Hornby Hall. This area of campus is sold off and construction is ongoing to build a state of the art four-storey extra care residential building of one and two bedroom apartments.
Find out more
- We highly recommend the book ‘S.Martin’s College Lancaster 1964 -89’ by Peter S. Gedge and Lois M. R. Louden
- Our history https://www.cumbria.ac.uk/about/history/
- Our timeline https://www.cumbria.ac.uk/ten-years/timeline/
- Memory Lane https://www.cumbria.ac.uk/alumni/memory-lane/
Share your memories
Have we missed anything from our timeline? What year did you study (or work) with us? We would love to hear your memories, complete our form here.
Come back and visit us
We would be delighted to meet you on campus for an informal tour, get chance to look inside the buildings, reminisce and see how the campus is used today.
Campus tours are available to individuals, small parties or larger groups on weekdays between 9am and 5pm and must be pre-booked.
Get in touch with our alumni team to arrange your campus tour, email alumni@cumbria.a.cuk
Claim your St Martin’s College illustrated card
To celebrate our 60th birthday we have a limited run of original St Martin’s College cards, illustrated by artists Chas Jacobs. Claim your free card by emailing alumni@cumbria.ac.uk with your postal address and we will pop one in the post.
We also have a very limited run of A3 giclee prints charged at £15.50 each, purchase your print here.