Sidgwick Avenue is a road located in western

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a College town, university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cam ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. The avenue runs east-west and links Grange Road to the west with Queen's Road to the east. The line of the road continues northeast into central Cambridge as

Silver Street ''Silver Street'' is a radio soap opera broadcast on the BBC Asian Network from 24 May 2004 to 26 March 2010. It was the first soap to be aimed at the British South Asian community, Broadcast history It was introduced in 2004 as part of the S ...

. Sidgwick Avenue is flanked by

Newnham College Newnham College is a women's constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1871 by a group organising Lectures for Ladies, members of which included philosopher Henry Sidgwick and suffragist campaigner Millice ...

, Ridley Hall, Selwyn College and the

Sidgwick Site The Sidgwick Site is one of the largest sites within the University of Cambridge, England. Overview and history The Sidgwick Site is located on the western side of Cambridge city centre, near the Backs. The site is north of Sidgwick Avenue an ...

of the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a public collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world's third oldest surviving university and one of its most pr ...

Location

The majority of the southern side of the avenue is occupied by

with Ridley Hall, a theological college affiliated with the University, to the east. The

, which is home to university faculties including Law, History, Economics and Politics, occupies much of the northern side of the road. Lady Mitchell Hall, the Museum of Classical Archaeology and the Marshall Library of Economics are also on the Sidgwick Site. To the west is the main part of Selwyn College and east of the Sidgwick site is the Harvey Court site of

Gonville and Caius College Gonville and Caius College, often referred to simply as Caius ( ), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1348, it is the fourth-oldest of the University of Cambridge's 31 colleges and one of th ...

. The avenue is quite narrow and recent proposals have considered turning it into a pedestrian thoroughfare with carve outs for cycle lanes.

History

Sidgwick Avenue's origins are somewhat unclear, however remains from the Roman period have been found near the area near Selwyn and Newnham Colleges, suggesting some early human settlement and use of the area. The avenue was used under different names in the medieval and Tudor periods, with only sections of it near the City of Cambridge being paved with cobblestones. In the 19th century, the avenue became increasingly important and it was fully paved with cobbles and paving stones, some of which can be seen today. With the growth of Cambridge colleges during the 19th century, including Selwyn and Newnham, the avenue became more busy. Today, Sidgwick Avenue has become quite developed and serves as a link between the City of Cambridge and several colleges.

Naming

According to the University of Cambridge, Sidgwick Avenue is named after

Henry Henry may refer to: People *Henry (given name) * Henry (surname) * Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry Royalty * Portuguese royalty ** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal ** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...

and

Eleanor Sidgwick Eleanor Mildred Sidgwick (née Balfour; 11 March 1845 – 10 February 1936), known as Nora to her family and friends, was a physics researcher assisting Lord Rayleigh, an activist for the higher education of women, Principal of Newnham College o ...

. The early progress of women's rights at

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world' ...

owes much to Henry Sidgwick, a Philosophy

fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

of Trinity College who championed the cause throughout his life. In 1871, with Anne Clough, the first Principal of Newnham College, and Eleanor Balfour (Sidgwick's future wife), Sidgwick oversaw the purchase of a house for five female students who wished to attend lectures but did not live near enough to the University to do so. The avenue was envisioned as home for several colleges of the university and as a cross-town route to connect the area. In 1875, the first building was built on Sidgwick Avenue site of Newnham College, now called Old Hall. In 1882, the Old Court of Selwyn College was built on the other side of Sidgwick Avenue.https://www.classics.cam.ac.uk/pdfs/faculty/Sidgwick_Site_disability_access.pdf

Gallery

File:Sidgwick Avenue - geograph.org.uk - 787272.jpg, Sidgwick Avenue with Newnham to the left and the Sidgwick Site to the right File:Newnham College, Cambridge 003.jpg, Newnham College File:Sidgwick Hall and Library - geograph.org.uk - 787408.jpg, Sidgwick Hall and Library

References

{{coord, 52.2004, N, 0.1093, E, display=title, region:GB_type:landmark Streets in Cambridge Newnham College, Cambridge Selwyn College, Cambridge