ABSTRACT
In 1851, a bequest from the wealthy cotton merchant John Owens enabled the civic-minded middle-class citizens of Manchester, England to establish an institution of higher education. The founders aimed to create a university of the highest caliber, devoted to serving the needs of one of Victorian England’s most dynamic provincial cities. By the early years of the twentieth century, what began as Owens College had become the University of Manchester, first of the English civic universities, dedicated to providing a new model of higher education stressing scientific research, practical professional training, regional service, and more open access. As a product of the energy and determination of Manchester’s middle class, the university constituted a monument to the Victorian age.
