university of nottingham (estates & facilities dept.)
1881 - Nottingham’s first civic college Nottingham's first civic college was
opened in the city centre in 1881, four years after the foundation stone was
laid by former Prime Minister, W E Gladstone. An anonymous benefactor had
offered £10,000 for a college on condition that a suitable building be erected
by the Council and that the college should be provided with £4,000 a year. 1928
- The move to University Park After the First World War, the college outgrew its
original building. A generous gift by Sir Jesse Boot, of 35 acres of land at
Highfields, presented the solution and in 1928 the College moved to what is now
the main campus, University Park. Initially, it was accommodated in the elegant
Trent Building and was officially opened by King George V in November of that
year. Even in its early days on this site, the College attracted high profile
visiting lecturers including Professor Albert Einstein, Mahatma Gandhi and H G
Wells. 1948 – Becoming The University of Nottingham In 1948, the college was
awarded the Royal Charter and became The University of Nottingham, now able to
award degrees in its own name. During this period the School of Agriculture was
established when the Midland College of Agriculture at Sutton Bonington merged
with the University.
