In the spotlight

By Mrs Annette Carter, College Historian

Each day in my part-time role as the College Historian provides an opportunity to learn about our rich and unique past. I do a range of things, a bit of which has developed organically in my time as part of the communications team. So, while I research and write history articles for the Bulletin (and Radfordian), you might also find me proofreading, designing graphics, and curating the Radford Art Show.

One of the things that really struck me when I first started working at Radford College was that not many people knew where the name ‘Radford’ in Radford College came from. I am reliably informed by a previous archivist at the school, who was also a student at Radford College, that students used to stand in front of a portrait of The Right Reverend Dr Lewis Bostock Radford, located in the school library, and were told about the origins of the school’s name. If you’re a Collegian, maybe you remember that too? Over the years, that connection has been lost. Initially I published a Bulletin article entitled Who was Bishop Radford? and then I found myself simultaneously researching the history of the College, but also doing research about Radford, the person, who lived one hundred years prior to that. I’ve continued writing articles about particular things in Radford’s life including the establishment of Canberra Girls Grammar School and Canberra Grammar School and an Anglican cathedral for Canberra.

Thanks to the encouragement and support of my team and an emphatic ‘Yes!’ from the Radford family, I have almost finished an updated biography on Bishop Radford (it’s sitting at around 55,000 words and now needs some proofreading). The research has unveiled a complex, highly intelligent and well-educated man who had strong views on most subjects (including confetti!), but who also had the ability, particularly early in his career, to make people laugh, and was well-respected and generally well-liked by those that knew him.

One of the most surprising stories I’ve come across so far was when Bishop Radford was blackmailed by 3 people who accused him of impropriety and demanded £100 – you’ll have to read the biography to find out more.