Our history
St John’s is among the oldest Durham colleges, founded in 1909 as a theological college for the training of Anglican clergy.
Although the College began with just £2 in capital, support grew quickly, and by 1912 it occupied several houses on the South Bailey, where the College Reception remains today. In 1919 we became a full constituent college of the University, expanding and flourishing over the following decades.
In 1958, Cranmer Hall was established as a distinct but integral part of the College to train ministers for ordination, while members of John’s Hall studied for Durham University degrees in all disciplines, as they do today.
In 1966, St John’s became the first Church of England theological college to train men and women together. This commitment to equality continued, and in 1973 John’s became the first college in the University to become co-educational. Our first female Principal, Ruth Etchells, was appointed in 1978.
Our home in the heart of Durham’s historic peninsula reflects our ethos of honouring tradition while shaping the future. The College estate combines listed historic buildings and purpose-built modern facilities – from converted Georgian townhouses once home to the Bowes family, ancestors of the present King and founders of the Bowes Museum, to the 12th-century Chapel of St Mary the Less. Our Learning and Resource Centre and College Library, opened in 2018, embody this same spirit, offering beautiful modern spaces for study, teaching, and community life.
John's Through The Decades
Foundation of St John’s College as a theological college for the training of Anglican clergy.
1909
1913
Construction of Cruddas, the College’s first purpose-built student accommodation
1919
St John’s becomes a full constituent college of Durham University
Students are able to study for degrees across the full range of subjects offered by the University
Student numbers reach 100 (83 ordinands and 17 in other fields)
1954
Establishment of Cranmer Hall as a distinct part of the College
1958
1966
Women admitted to Cranmer Hall, the first Church of England theological college to train men and women together
St John’s becomes co-educational and establishes the Senior Common Room
1973
The Cellar Bar opens
1977
Ruth Etchells appointed as the first female Principal
1978
1981
Regular contracts help to launch the College’s summer conference trade
Leech Hall opened by the Queen Mother
1987
1st ever student drama production in the Leech Hall, Blood and Ice, a feminist piece that centred Mary Shelley.
The Garth student accommodation block, with ensuite rooms and accessible features, is built
2014
2018
The Learning and Resource Centre, including the Sir William Leech Library, opens
The David Wilkinson First Generation Scholars Fund launched
2023
Did you know?
Our College mascot, Olav the Alligator, was named after King Olav V of Norway, who visited John’s in the 1960s. The original Olav was proudly paraded outside Palace Green to mark the royal occasion, and the name has stuck ever since.
A history of our leadership
Explore the individuals who have shaped our community’s direction.
Principals of
St John's College
- 1909 – 1911: Sidney Nowell Rostron
- 1911 – 1919: Dawson Dawson-Walker
- 1919 – 1945: Charles Steel Wallis
- 1945 – 1953: Ronald Williams
- 1954 – 1969: Jim P. Hickinbotham
- 1970 – 1978: John C. P. Cockerton
- 1978 – 1988: Ruth Etchells
- 1988 – 1992: Anthony Thiselton
- 1992 – 1999: David V. Day
- 1999 – 2006: Stephen Sykes
- 2006 – 2023: David Wilkinson
- 2023 – present: Jolyon Mitchell
Wardens of
Cranmer Hall
- 1968 – 1970: John C.P. Cockerton
- 1971 – 1979: Tim Yeats
- 1979 – 1983: Christopher Byworth
- 1983 – 1992: Ian Cundy
- 1993 – 1996: John Pritchard
- 1996 – 2004: Steven Croft
- 2005 – 2011: Anne Dyer
- 2011 – 2016: Mark Tanner
- 2017 – 2023: Philip Plyming
- 2023 – present: Nicholas Moore
In the John’s Chronicle
8 January 2025
A Time of Change: John’s in the 1970s with Ian Bunting
Imogen Taylor, the Head of Alumni Relations, had the pleasure of sitting down to talk with Ian Bunting, who was Director of Pastoral Studies for Cranmer Hall between 1971 and 1978. They reflect on this ‘transitional’ time in Ian’s life at Durham and the relationship between Cranmer Hall and the rest of St John’s College.
11 August 2024
From the Archive: the Gender Desegregation of College Accommodation, 1974
As John’s continues to celebrate fifty years of women at St John’s, Editor Toby Donegan-Cross finds out about the reasons for and process by which college accommodation became desegregated.
12 February 2022
A footnote in the history of Fair trade
John’s in those days was in transition. The 1960s were hammering on the door of an institution which, though less than 60 years old, had positioned itself where the Victorian met the medieval.
Snapshots through the years
St John’s has over 100 years of stories.
