Oxfam donates archive to Bodleian Library

 

 

Record of charity's 70-year history to be catalogued in library in Oxford, where organisation was born

 

Maev Kennedy reports in the Guardian

 

The records of 70 years of struggle to keep the world from starving, encapsulated in 10,000 boxes of archive material of Oxfam, have been donated to the Bodleian Library in Oxford.

The charity operates across the world, but began life as the Oxford Committee for Famine Relief. The first meeting was held in 1942 at the university church, St Mary the Virgin, a stone's throw from the Bodleian.

The library has also been awarded a major grant from the Wellcome Trust to catalogue the archive, which includes photographs, posters, reports, film and video, and audio recordings and oral histories. There are also photographs of the many celebrities who have supported fundraising appeals, including the Beatles, the actor Julie Christie, rock star Mick Jagger, and footballer Gary Lineker.

 Sarah Thomas, the Bodley librarian, said they were delighted to have the records of an organisation so linked with Oxford.

 "The archive will be an essential resource for a range of scholars, complementing our existing holdings in the areas of science, medicine, history and development."

 Karen Brown, chair of Oxfam, said the archive was a record not just of the charity but of the development of the international aid movement. "I hope it inspires future generations to continue striving to overcome poverty worldwide."