A historic lane of University science buildings, named after the free school endowed by Dr Stephen Perse.
Free School Lane links Bene't Street in the north with Pembroke Street in the south. Corpus Christi College lies to the west, and the University's New Museums Site to the east. It is a historic street, home to a number of important University buildings.
The Whipple Museum is here, together with the history and philosophy of science department and the social and political sciences faculty. Engineering began here too, as did the Cavendish Laboratory, which housed physics.
The lane is named after the Free School of the 17th century, which Dr Stephen Perse paid for through his will. The money was to educate 100 boys drawn from four places: Cambridge itself, Barnwell, Chesterton and Trumpington. The school later became the first home of The Perse School, now on Hills Road. The museum now occupies the original school hall.
Friar House, on the corner with Bene't Street, is a Grade II listed timber-framed building from the early 1600s, decorated with pargeting.
Sources: Wikipedia: Free School Lane · Wikidata: Free School Lane (Q5500055)
