19th Annual Dinner Menu, 1921

Cabinet Pudding and An Evening Lecture

In an 1883 report to Senate, a letter written by Professor Charles Badham, Professor of Classics and Logic, to the Sydney Morning Herald was acknowledged, "…wherein he suggested the expediency of establishing a system of University Evening Lectures, enabling those who were engaged in teaching or otherwise during the day to obtain a degree. At the same time a petition, signed by upwards of a thousand residents of Sydney and the suburbs, praying for the establishment of such a system was laid before the Senate". [Ref 1].

On 24 March 1884, the first Evening Lecture was held and attended by 31 students, one of whom was female. In a University of Sydney News article celebrating the centenary of the Evening Lectures, Vice-Chancellor John Manning Ward wrote, "Professor Badham, who had been among the foremost advocates of evening classes, died too soon to be present when his distinguished colleague, Dr John Smith, the Professor of Chemistry and Experimental Physics, welcomed the first 31 students. Before delivering his lecture, Smith paid a warm tribute to Badham’s work for evening classes". Ward also recognised that the admittance of a female student would have "delighted" Professor Badham, "…for he had often spoken in favour of admitting women to University courses and degrees". [Ref 2].

In 1888, two years after the first lecture, a committee was appointed to report on the system of Evening Lectures. The report included a letter from Professor Rudolph Max, Professor of German, to the Registrar [HE Barff], which noted that, "In the last year’s French examination, the evening students did the same papers as the morning students and a far greater percentage of the former passed. The reason of this I find in the circumstance that the evening students are older and more in earnest about their work, many of them being Public School Teachers. A great number of ladies have assured me that they willingly would join my Evening Lectures if the University were not so far off, and if the avenues leading up to it were not so dark". The sentiments of Professor Max were seconded by Professor of Mathematics, Arthur Newham, who wrote, "It is hard work for any one who is employed all day to attend classes at night, and prepare the necessary work for the lectures, and the position of the University makes it harder. There are several of my pupils who do not reach home in the evenings till nearly 12 o’clock". The report, recognising the success of the Evening Lectures, recommended to Senate that they, "…should be delivered in a more central place than the University" to allow more students to attend. [Ref 3].

In April 1900, the Sydney University Evening Students Association was founded, "…with the object of promoting social relations among Evening Students, past and present". [Ref 4]. On 10 December 1921, the Annual Dinner of the Association was held at the Burlington Café. In the 1922 edition of Hermes, Honorary Secretary of the Association, Norman W Drummond called the night "…an unqualified success", remarking, "While giving an opportunity for a re-union of past and present evening students, it also provided an opportunity for a stirring utterance by the Chancellor, Sir William Portus Cullen, K.C.M.G., who appealed in irresistible tones for the support of every member of the University in the conduct and development of University affairs". [Ref 5]. Throughout the evening, monologues and musical items performed by "Messrs. Montgomerie Stuart, WH Matheson, G Morrow, L McCarthy, and RV Cleary (accompanist)" kept the diners entertained. [Ref 6].

This item is part of the University Archives' 70 Years, 70 Stories series, created to celebrate our 70th birthday on 3 May 2024. To discover more stories, explore the 70 Years, 70 Stories collection.

Ref 1: The Sydney University Calendar 1884 (1884), p. 266, [REF-00020847]. University of Sydney Archives.

Ref 2: The University of Sydney News Vol 16 No 6 (20/03/1984), p. 50, [REF-00039480]. University of Sydney Archives.

Ref 3: Senate Minutes Jun 1888 to Jul 1891 (04/06/1888 to 06/07/1891), p. 24-25, [REF-00002752]. University of Sydney Archives.

Ref 4: Calendar of the University of Sydney 1902 (1902), p. 372, [REF-00020890]. University of Sydney Archives.

Ref 5: Hermes: The Magazine of the University of Sydney Vol 28 No 1. May 1922. p. 70. University of Sydney.

Ref 6: Evening Students Association Annual Dinner Menu, 1921 (10/12/1921), [REF-00072499]. University of Sydney Archives.