The material for a history of St Catharine's College is to be found for the most part in the Muniment Room, or Treasury, as it, and its predecessor in the original College buildings, are styled in the old records. This is at the south-west corner of the staircase now known as Old Lodge, and although separated from it to-day formed a part of it when the Master resided there, who as Keeper had direct access to the store-place of the College archives and of the College chest and valuables. The room is suited to its purpose, and the documents are well preserved. A few of them, including the charter of Edward IV, have been transferred to the Library in order that they may be more easily shown to visitors.

Several past Fellows have seriously studied the muniments. One of them, Daniel Milles, Fellow from 1650 to 1656, made out lists of Masters and Fellows, giving short descriptions of the Masters down to Dr Brownrigge. Of all these workers none can be compared to Dr Henry Philpott, Master from 1845 to 1861. In the latter year he published through the Cambridge University Press forty-seven historical documents, while the manuscript notes he made for a College history formed the chief material used by the late Bishop G. F. Browne for his well-known work, St Catharine's College.

In 1930 Mr E. A. B. Barnard made a complete catalogue of the College documents, a copy of which has been deposited in the Cambridge University Library. In general, these documents are of the usual type—legal deeds, letters, books of account, admission registers, and so on. One manuscript, however, needs special mention.