This book, first published in 1988, examines the origins, purposes and functioning of the civic universities founded in the second half of the nineteenth century and discusses their significance within both local and wider communities. It argues that the civic universities - and those of the northern industrial cities in particular - were among the most notable expressions of the civic culture of Victorian Britain and both a source and a reflection of the professional and expert society which was growing to maturity in that time and place. This title will be of interest to students of history and education.