LSE history
"Self-sacrifice for the good of the community is the greatest of all human characteristics" Beatrice Webb
Introduction
This page indicates the range of archival sources held by the Library which relate to the history of the School including links to those which are available online on our Digital Library.
You will also find FAQs on common areas of research.
What records are available for the study of LSE history?
LSE has a rich and extensive archive recording its history and development of the School and its wider community. The LSE institutional collection covers both the organisational archives of the School and the Students Union as well as some ‘personal’ collections of school-related papers donated by staff and students under the LSE Small Deposits section.
Note significant collections of staff personal papers (primarily former academic staff and directors) are catalogued separately not under the LSE Institutional code (usually catalogued under their surname).
LSE History Project
A useful starting point for researching the School's history is Ralf Dahrendorf's book, LSE : a history of the London School of Economics and Political Science, 1895-1995.
We have the supporting research material collated for the book including subject based files and a photograph collection. Topics covered include the history of academic departments, LSE Directors, academic staff and significant events. The subject files are not currently searchable on the catalogue but are available on request. Many of the photographs collated for the project can be found on LSE Library flickr.
LSE History Blog
Our LSE History Blog provides a comprehensive and engaging showcase of the School’s history with articles on people, places and events. It is also a growing repository of research based on our archives.
If you’re using LSE archives for a history project then do consider producing a blog post about your findings – it’s a great way of sharing a short, accessible introduction to your work. We recommend using our contributions policy to create your proposal before getting in touch. We’d love to hear from you!
What records are available online?
LSE Publications – a searchable register of students 1895-1932 as well as the LSE Calendars which contain graduate lists, 1895-2006 so these are useful for searching for specific students.
LSE Calendars, 1895-2006, contain a wealth of other useful information such as campus maps, detailed course descriptions and reading lists, rules and regulations, staff lists, statistics and more.
The Beaver – LSE Student Union Newspaper, 1949-2012 – a very useful source of high-quality student journalism covering all aspects of life at LSE.
LSE Public Lectures, 1990-2006 – a collection of audio and video recordings of almost 1,000 public lectures delivered at LSE from 1990 to 2006, covering a wide range of topics relating to the social and historical sciences.
LSE Oral Histories – Tales from Houghton Street, an oral history interview project for LSE’s 120th anniversary.
What records are available to consult in the Reading Room?
LSE archive records include Minutes of governing bodies such as the Court of Governors and bodies such as Academic Board as well as ad-hoc subcommittees; publications such as LSE Calendars, Directors Reports, annual reports, LSE Magazine; photograph collections and ephemera and a large number of registry files on different topics (note these are not on the catalogue and have to be requested).
LSE Student Union records include minutes, correspondence, finance records, publications notably Clare Market Review (1905-) and The Beaver (1949-) as well as some records of student societies.
These collections are growing and added to LSE Digital Library.
Related collections
Papers relating to LSE can be found in other archive collections, particularly among the archives of former staff who have deposited their files in the Library. For example, the papers of William Beveridge (Director of the School, 1919-37) contain much about LSE. Some of these items are available online:
- Welcome addresses to new students, 1921-36 (BEVERIDGE/5/10)
- "Origin of social biology in the School of Economics", memo by Beveridge regarding grants from the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial, 16 July 1935 (BEVERIDGE/5/3)
- "Reflections on the School of Economics", memo by Beveridge, 30 October 1935 (BEVERIDGE/5/4)
The papers of LSE founders, Sidney and Beatrice Webb (the Passfield collection), also contain much about LSE. Beatrice Webb's diaries are available online.
Additional papers include:
- Early papers of the Library comprising appeals for books and funds, accounts and reports of the Library and the School, 1896-1908 (COLL MISC 0529)
- Reminiscences of former students, staff and governors collected as a result of a questionnaire circulated in 1943 in the lead up to the 50th anniversary (SR 1101)
Exam papers
Access the last 7 years of LSE exam papers online. We do not archive exam papers.
FAQs
Contact us
If you have any further questions or need information not available on this page then please get in contact with us so that we can advise you further.