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The Caroline Skeel Archives Reading Room

Black and white photograph of the high voltage laboratory in 1936.  In the foreground are two metal spheres suspended above ground level.  In the background a group of four men appear in conversation whilst looking up at the spheres

In December 1934 the University decided that the college theatre should be adapted to become the high voltage laboratory, and so provided £12,000 to make this possible. In the following May the High Voltage Laboratory was opened by the Chancellor.

At the end of 1936, according to Sir Frederick Maurice, the laboratory continued to attract attention in the world of electrical engineering and that there had been a succession of expert visitors. Articles in journals such as ‘The Engineer’ and ‘The Electrical Review’ followed the work of the laboratory at Queen Mary.‘The Engineer’ revisited the laboratory in 1951 to witness the developments that had taken place since 1946.

To find out more about developments in science, see the Discovery in Science and Engineering Gallery.

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