| Description | Elizabeth Taylor Cadbury wrote this article for the December 1948 edition of the Woodbrooke Journal. George and Elizabeth Cadbury founded the Woodbrooke settlement in 1903 when they gave the house and grounds of Woodbrooke in Selly Oak, their family home from 1888-1894, for the establishment of a residential Quaker College in Selly Oak. Elizabeth Taylor Cadbury maintained a close involvement with Woodbrooke throughout her life.
In this article Taylor Cadbury describes the foundation of Woodbrooke in the early twentieth century which developed out of enthusiasm for a permanent settlement expressed at theological Summer Schools organised by the Society of Friends in the late nineteenth century. Taylor Cadbury notes that her American cousin, the Quaker academic Rufus Jones, had delivered the inaugural address at the first Summer School to be held at Woodbrooke in July 1903. She also refers to Rendel Harris, the college's first Director of Studies. Taylor Cadbury concludes her address noting that for forty five years Woodbrooke had 'faithfully interpreted the hopes and ideals of its Founders'. |