Alexander Berry and Colonial Legacies A colloquium hosted by the School of English

In 1889 the University of St Andrews received a gift of £100,000 from David Berry fulfilling the intentions of his older brother Alexander who had been a student at the University in the late eighteenth century. In 1822 Alexander Berry settled on land in New South Wales, Australia that is now the subject of a successful Native Title claim by the South Coast People and is the home of the Jerrinja people. Recent historical research has demonstrated Berry's indebtedness to the Indigenous people of the area in amassing his fortune.

The School of English, which has had a professorship named after Berry since 1897, has recently been exploring and trying better to acknowledge this history. This event is part of that process. Future recognition of the history of the bequest will be shaped by members of the communities most affected by Berry's settlement in New South Wales.

Thursday 21 September

4pm to 4.15pm – Introduction: Tom Jones and Emma Sutton, University of St Andrews

4.15pm to 5.15pm – Annemarie McLaren, The University of Notre Dame, ‘Alexander Berry at Cullunghutti — Histories and Legacies'

5.15pm to 6pm – Aileen Fyfe, University of St Andrews, ‘Philanthropy at 19th-century St Andrews: the Context for the Berry Bequest'

6pm – Reception

Friday 22 September

9am to 10am – Gaye Sculthorpe, Deakin University, ‘Some Uncomfortable Truths About Museum Collections'

10am to 10.45am – Gerry McKeever, University of Edinburgh, ‘Bibliography of Empire: Alexander Berry's University Reading'

10.45am to 11.15am – Tea and coffee

11.15am to 12.15pm – Ciaran O'Neill, Trinity College Dublin, ‘Trinity's Colonial Legacies: Instrumentality and Agency in an Engaged Research Project'

12.15pm to 1.30pm – Lunch

1.30pm to 2.15pm – Lisa Graves, Bristol Museum and Art Gallery, ‘Decolonisation Journeys in Bristol Museums: A Personal Perspective'

2.15pm to 3pm – Concluding discussion

The colloquium will also be available as a live stream. To register for the event please e-mail Laura Cameron-Mackintosh at [email protected] indicating if you will be attending in person and any dietary requirements for the reception and refreshments. For other enquiries please e-mail Tom Jones at [email protected].