The papers of Mary Caroline Moorman (1905-1994), historian, biographer and daughter of the historian G.M. Trevelyan, cover the years 1872-1992. As well as usefully supplementing the Trevelyan Archives at Newcastle University Library, they are of considerable interest in themselves.

They mainly consist of letters from Mary Moorman's parents, George M. Trevelyan and Janet Penrose Trevelyan, née Ward. They also include some letters from Mary Moorman's extended family, such as Janet Ward's mother, the novelist Mary Augusta (Mrs. Humphry) Ward, her sister Dorothy and the Philips and Price relatives.

The Napoleon Collection contains books written in French as well as English language materials, published in the Twentieth Century with the exception of three nineteenth-century items. The books relate to Napoleon (1769-1821), the Napoleonic Wars and to the French empire and include 'notes and reminiscences' as well as histories.

Newcastle University evolved from two colleges founded in the Nineteenth Century as part of the University of Durham, the School of Medicine and Surgery (established in 1834) and Durham College of Science (established in 1871, became Armstrong College in 1904). In 1937, the Newcastle Colleges became King's College and achieved independence from the University of Durham in 1963 when it became the University of Newcastle upon Tyne.The University Archive contains significant material relating to the development of Newcastle University and its predecessors. It includes Annual Reports, Senate and Council minutes and departmental publications covering many subjects.

The Nicholson Collection comprises periodicals (newspapers, magazines and magazine supplements) and a small number of letters, postcards, pamphlets and photographs, relating to Spain, Ethiopia, Britain, and Italy. These are political and religious publications, for the most part, but include national and local newspapers, roughly covering the period of the late 1930s to the mid 1960s. Also included are The Workers Chronicle from May 1926 (covering the General Strike) and two U.S. Information Service documents from 1946.

The Northumberland Handicrafts Guild was formed at a meeting held on 9th June 1900 and its aim was to promote the study of handicrafts in the County of Northumberland. There was a particular emphasis on embroidery, woodwork, basket work, leather work and weaving. Prominent members of the committee include Thomas Edward Hodgkin, Richard George Hatton, Ella Pease and Miss Noble.

This archive comprises of the annual reports of the organisation 1900 - 1936, together with a small collection of other constitutional and committee records. The collection includes also accounting material for the period 1930 - 1947 and press cuttings related to the activities of the Guild. Part of the archive is dedicated to mementos and the embroidery work of Margaret Scott, a member of the Guild in the early 1900s.

The papers of the distinguished public servant Lady Plowden (1910-2000) were generously gifted to Newcastle University Library in 2003 by the Plowden family.

Held in Special Collections, Lady Plowden's papers are an extensive and rich resource reflecting her many areas of concern. Lady Plowden held a number of high-profile public roles in the spheres of education reform and television broadcasting, most notably as Chairman of the Central Advisory Council for Education (England), 1963 – 1967, Vice-Chairman of the BBC Board of Governors, 1970 – 1975, and Chairman of the Independent Broadcasting Authority (IBA), 1975 – 1980. A large and varied number of public roles followed, many of which retained this focus on primary and pre-school education reform as well as the promotion of high-quality television broadcasting. Lady Plowden's interests were wide however and these papers also reflect Lady Plowden's roles within organisations related to Romany and Traveller education and rights, adult education, the care and resettlement of offenders, the role of voluntary work, young adult unemployment and training, and women and employment.

Lady Plowden (nee Richmond) was a niece of Gertrude Bell and a cousin of the Trevelyans of Wallington. An additional deposit of material made by the Plowden family comprise of a number of family photograph albums and correspondence files relating to the Richmond, Bell and Trevelyan families.