Aberdare Hall

Aberdare Hall (Welsh: Neuadd Aberdâr) is a Grade II-listed Gothic revival hall of residence at Cardiff University in Wales. It was built at the end of the nineteenth century.

Aberdare Hall
Aberdare Hall
General information
TypeStudent residence
Architectural styleGothic revival
Town or cityCardiff
Country Wales
Coordinates51.489°N 3.184°W / 51.489; -3.184
Completed1895
OwnerCardiff University
Design and construction
ArchitectW. D. Caröe
Website
Aberdare Hall

History
Commemorative plaque above main entrance

Aberdare Hall was established in 1883 by the University College of South Wales and Monmouthshire (later University College, Cardiff, now Cardiff University) as a residence for female students. Its foundation was due to the efforts of Lady Aberdare (1827–1897)[1] (the wife of Henry Bruce, 1st Baron Aberdare) and John Viriamu Jones (1856–1909), the principal of the University College. There were few opportunities for women's higher education in Britain at the time.[2]

The first building was Keswick House in Richmond Road, which opened in 1885 with nine students.[2] The principals at this time included Ethel Hurlbatt, who later became principal of Bedford College in the University of London.[3]

The current building was built 1893–95 and was designed in the Gothic revival style in brick and terracotta by W. D. Caröe.[2] The original Corbett Road facade was asymmetic and a third gable was added after 1908 to make it symmetrical. More additions were made to the rear of the building in the early twentieth century.[4] The library wing to the north-east designed by Verner Rees was built in 1939–40, and the garden wing designed by Verner Rees, Laurence and Mitchell in 1963.[5] Alice Bruce who was the daughter of the founder and a leading educationalist was the President of the hall from 1929 to 1936.[1]

It is still a female-only hall and provides housing for 125 female students.[6]

Location

Aberdare Hall is in Corbett Road in Cathays Park, near to the Cathays district of Cardiff. It is the closest hall of residence to the main university buildings.[6]

Notes
  1. Evans, W. (2004-09-23). Bruce, Alice Moore (1867–1951), educationist. Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Retrieved 2 Feb. 2018, See link
  2. "Aberdare Hall, Cardiff University records". Archives Wales. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 29 May 2014.
  3. "Ethel Hurlbatt". Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. Retrieved 28 December 2011.
  4. "Aberdare Hall including attached NE wing at rear - Castle - Cardiff - Wales". www.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk. British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
  5. Newman, John (1995). The Buildings of Wales – Glamorgan. London: Penguin / University of Wales Press. p. 237. ISBN 0 14 071056 6.
  6. "About Aberdare Hall". Aberdare Hall Common Room Society. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
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