1.3 University of Bristol’s principles to guide renaming

The extract overleaf is taken from the University’s Naming Policy document, which is based on the Yale guidelines.

1.4 Legacies of Slavery Research Report

In January 2020, the University appointed Professor Olivette Otele - supported by other academics and research interns - to conduct research about the history of the University and its links with the Transatlantic trafficking of enslaved Africans. The result of this work, the Legacies of Slavery report forms can be found on the University website, and is briefly summarised here.
The report provided a comprehensive account of the origins of the University, and in particular the histories of the individuals and families that came to be benefactors of the University at its inception in 1909 and in its previous incarnation as the University College, established in 1876.

Although this period postdates the end of the slave trade in 1803, and the abolition of slavery in 1833, Professor Otele argues that the city’s ongoing wealth and success, and the wealth used to establish the University, was clearly linked with patrons that benefited from the slave trade. Otele writes:

"By the 19th century slave traders and plantation owners who had received compensation for the loss of their so-called ‘property’ had invested in other ventures and donated to various causes. 19th century Bristol was benefitting from the support of wealthy patrons, from former families of planters, to slave traders, and to staunch abolitionists. The history of the city of Bristol is therefore a multi-layered story of legally sanctioned displacement of human beings, coerced labour, trade and collaborations between various groups, exclusion as well as abolitionism and philanthropy."

(P.7)

The report examines the histories of four families which continue to be memorialised by the University today, in its building names (Fry, Wills and Goldney) and logo (Colston). Beyond individual families, the history of the Society of Merchant Venturers is also considered given its historical links to Bristol’s merchants and in particular Edward Colston, named in 1995 for the Merchant Venturers Building, part of the Faculty of Engineering. The University is also connected to the Colston name in the foundation of the University College Colston Society in 1899, at the height of the Victorian ‘invented tradition’ of Colston-based philanthropy.

The research detailed the growth of the Wills family tobacco business, which merged in 1901 with other tobacco companies to form Imperial Tobacco, today a major Bristol employer. While the research finds that the Wills family neither claimed ownership of nor traded enslaved Africans, they procured tobacco grown and harvested by slaves through brokers in Liverpool, London and Bristol. Therefore, the research report states, there can be no doubt that the Wills family’s wealth and success was achieved in part through the exploitation of slave labour.

An initial £100,000 of this wealth, donated by Henry Overton Wills III, was used to establish the University in 1909, alongside donations from the Fry family which totalled 89% of the University’s inaugural funding. Donations were also made by Henry’s sons Henry Herbert Wills and George Alfred who built the Wills Memorial Building to commemorate their father, and H.H. Wills funded the H.H. Wills Physics Laboratory and the student residence Wills Hall. A chapel is also named for Dame Monica Wills, wife of H.H. Wills, who also founded Bristol based charity the St Monica’s Trust.

Generations of the Fry family, whose businesses in Bristol are recorded since 1759, were known for their innovative chocolate products, including the early production of chocolate bars. Although as with the Wills family there is no evidence of the Fry’s having owned or traded in slaves, they used sugar and cacao grown by enslaved people in the Caribbean and later São Tomé. As prominent Quakers, the Fry’s, and to a lesser extent the Wills family were supporters of the campaign to abolish slavery. The Fry Building, which is named after a number of Fry benefactors rather than any single individual, is a significant and prominent building in the University’s estate, accommodating the School of Mathematics.

The research demonstrates that the Goldney name, which lends itself to Goldney Hall, a Clifton Hall of Residence and events venue, was inherited from the former owner of the property, which was acquired by the University after the break-up of Thomas Goldney the Third’s estate. There is clear evidence that the Goldney business empire involved the funding of sea voyages engaged in the trafficking of enslaved Africans, enabling the purchase and growth of the estate now under the ownership of the University.

Having detailed the links between the University and the Transatlantic trafficking of enslaved Africans, the report emphasises a concern that the continued ‘fascination on the alleged entrepreneurial prowess of Bristol’s forefathers’ leads to a form of erasure of the histories of African captives. Looking forward, Professor Otele concludes with recommendations on a programme of restorative justice^† within the institution and beyond, with the requirements on the University described thus:

“Restorative justice is an on-going process that is open ended and is about transformative changes that address the broader issues of systemic racism and inequalities.

• It requires a culture shift and a rethinking of the notion of philanthropic deeds.
• It entails collaborations, co-production of a restorative justice strategy and a consultative process that go beyond one-off grants and short-term scholarships.
• It provides the space for various communities to engage with the legacies of the past.”

(p.26)

1.5 Consultation

In November 2022, the University announced its intention to undertake a wide-ranging consultation with internal and external communities, focusing on the issue of renaming buildings names for individuals identified in the Legacies of Slavery research report and in accordance with its renaming policy.

7. ^ https://www.bristol.ac.uk/media-library/sites/alumni/documents/university-of-bristol-naming-policy.pdf

• ^ † Following feedback from communities about the University’s intentions and ambitions in addressing it’s legacies of the past and racial inequalities, the University decided to move forward with the term ‘reparative’, rather than restorative.