Figure 1.--These are some of the boys at the Aberdare Boys' Grammar School in 1957. The school looks to have a uniform, but apparently the older boys did not have to wear it. |
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Some information is available on individual schools to illustrate school uniform trends at the various types of schools. Schools have had different uniforms over time, but there is great similarities as so many schools used the same basic styles. This is especually true of the boys' uniforms. There is much more difference over time as schools are constantly updating their uniforms. HBC has acquired information on uniforms at several specific schools over time. Some of these are very well known school hile others are not widely known outside their local community. Schoolwear trends at these schools reflect overall changes in fashion trends. This was especially the case before World War II when state chools generally did not reuire uniforms. Some schools with uniforms insisted on preserving tradtional styles for their uniforms while other schools decided to keep their uniforms more in line with contemprary fashion. This provides information on how school uniform styles and regulations changed over time. The school information also illustrates the differences in schoolwear at different types of English schools.
The school was founded as the Aberdare County and Intermeduate School in 1896. The school was coeducational and began operations with 140 students. The curiculum at first included: commercial geography, history, English compositioin and literature, mathematics, drawing, Latin, modern l;anguages, natural sciences, drill, and vocal music. Instrumental music could be taken for an added fee. Instruction in the Welsh language was avilalable, but not required. There was a special curriculum for girls which included cookery, sewing, and laws of health. (Apparently these were laws the boys didn't need to learn.)
The Alderwood Primary School was one of the new primary schools opened in the 1950s and 60s following the school reforms of the 1940s. The new school building was opened in 1952 although children began attending in 1951. The school was built on the site of a wood of Alder trees giving the school its name. The architects were part of the team who designed the Festival of Britain. The building is a good example of the modern-style building constructed in the 1950s. The building on its opening contained separate Infant and Junior schools. The two schools were merged into the present primary school in 1966.
A HBC reader tells that he attended Arold House School in the late 1930s and early 40s. The school uniform at the time was corduroy shorts. The school was located at Llanddulas, near Abergele, on the northern coast of Wales. The school has a colorful history. Evelyn Waugh's uproarious first novel, Decline and Fall was based on Arnold House. Waugh himself taught there for two miserable terms in the mid-1920s, before striking out as a writer.
Archbishop Abbots School at Guildford in Surrey was I think a prep school at Guildford in Surrey. The School was established in 1855 and closed in 1933. The school building dates from 1629 and still exists in Guildford town, now in use as a clothing store. At one time it was in use as a workhouse. The school uniform consited of a school cap with the school chield, a blazer with piping (I'm not sure about the color), short trousers, and kneesocks. Here is the football (soccer) team of Archbishop Abbots School at Guildford in Surrey during 1908-09. The school is the building on the left. The photographer was W Bradden of North Street (the same street where the school was located).
Here we have an image is of the Balham Grammar School AFC 1st XI in South London. It is a card-mounted photograph of the sort that would almost certainly have been framed and glazed and probably displayed on a wall of the school in question. The play and screenwriter Rodney Ackland attended the school. It clearly no longer exists as I can find no reference to it beyond 1968. Most likely it changed name or merged with another school. The image is undated but I would suggest it is from the late 1920s. An interesting point is that not only do all the boys wear the football shirts open-necked, but they also all wear their collars up. It is unlikely that this would have been allowed for a formal photograph unless this was the accepted norm.
Barnard Castle School was founded in 1883 as a oys' boarding school. It was one of the many new public (private secondary) schools opened in the late-19th century. Britain's industrial economy and expanding Empire was created new demands for educated individuals. Today it is a co-educational independent day and boarding school. It was first located at Middleton-One-Row. It moved to a site outside Barnard Castle, this is near Furham in northern Englnd. The school has expanded to accmodate younger children in both pre-prep and prep school units. The school had a cadet program. We notice cadet J. Hewey in 1915.
Here we have an English school. We have no information about it, but it looks to us like a state primary school. We do not know where it is located. The image we have is from the 1900s, either 1904 or 09. The girls all wear dresses protected with white pinafores. We assume that means that the school required it. The boys wear a variety of suits, including sailor suits. They are almost all wearing kneepants. One boy looks to be wearing knokes and and another very long kneepants. The board with the children reads "A31" and "2". I'm not sure wht A31 means, but the 2 may mean the second year class.
This looks like a small private pre-prep day school with children up to about 5-7 years old. Notice that the children in the back row look a little older than the children in the front. The school is unidentified as The Beeches and is dated June 1937. Actually the photograph looks familiar to us, but we can't find a page we used to create with it. And as the we know the name of the school we are archiving it here. There is a name written on the back--Miss Hamikton-Pott which we assume is the director-owner of the school. There was no uniformm but the boys wear short pants and the girls summer dresses. These were basically standard fashion and school wear at the time. One notable observation is that three of the boys are wearing strap shoees rather than school sandals. By thus time strap shoes were becoming less common for boys, especially boys this age. School sandals were common but not strap shoes.
Belmont School was a private preparatory school in West Sussex. The School was founded in 1904. The original site was a house in Brighton. The School moved to the Clayton Wickham Estate at Hassocks in 1920. There were 47 boys in the school. As a result of World War II, in the course of the summer term 1940 the school moved overseas in the Bahamas. Many schools were relocated during the War, but not many were moved overseas. Thirteen boys sailed from Liverpool. Belmont became very popular with the local residents. The school returned to the Clayton Wickham site at Hassocks, which had been used by the military, in October 1944. There were 55 boys in the School.
The school was closed in 1972.
The Bolton School is an independent or private school located in Lacastershire. Bolton is near Manchester in northern England. The school has an excellent website, but there is not a good overview of the school. As with many English schools, it has a very early formation as a grammar school. The school website has an especially good historical overview of the school. It has evolved into an independent school covering a full range of primary and secondary ages. This means an infants and junior school for pre-prep and preparatory age children and a senior school for the secondary level. As with many full term colleges, the junior school ends at age 11 rather than at 13 like a stand-alone prep school. There is a separate girls division which I assume means the schools offers programs for both boys and girls, but the programs are separated. There appears to be a strong Scout program at the school.
The Bosto Grammar School ws founded by Queen Mary I, the Catholic daughter of Henry VIII who at the time was mairred to Philip of Spain. The school ws founded to replace Catholic institutions that had been closed by Mary's father and brother (Edward VI). Actually Edward had founded many schools. The school in the 20th century has had a uniform consisting of a blazer, but enforcement of the uniform standard has varied.
The Bristol Grammar School is the only selective, co-educational
independent school in the Bristol area The school has extensive facilities providing a wide choice of curriculum, sport and activities with an exceptional pastoral care system for primary school and secondary school pupils and sixth form students. The school was founded in 1532, one of several grammar schools founded in the 16th century that are still operating in Britain today. The school describes itself as one of the United Kingdom's great city schools aimed at children of above-average ability.
We do not have any information at this time on the Bourne Secondary Modern School, except that it was located in Bourne. A secondary modern was the secondary schools for the children that did not do well on the 11+ examination and thus did not win a place in the more academically rigorous grammar schools. We have an image of a gym class at the school in 1948..
Bradford citizens began thinking about a free grammar school (16th century). While schools were established for boys, there was still no secondary school for girls by the late-19th century. Parliament passed the Endowed Schools Act (1869) which was an important step in expanding the British education system. The Act helped to facilitate the foundig of many new secondary schools. W. E. Forster, the MP for Bradford, Mrs Byles and the Ladies' Educational Association in Bradford raised £5,000 to help found a girl's grammar school in Bradford. Girls' Grammar School, Bradford was formally opened (1875). They opened the school in the already cramped Hallfield Road School. The first girls were the daughters of professional men and merchants in Bradford and wider Manningham area. The fee was 12 guineas for a three term year. (free secondary schoolswould not become generally available util after World War II.) Sir Titus Salt and Mr Henry Brown provided some scholship so that academically taslented girls from less affluent families could attend. Many of the girls attended to prepare for the newly opening colleges in Oxford, Cambridge and London that accepted young women.
The School was one of the first in Britain to include Physical Education as part oif the curriculum. As was the case of many schools and British society in general. World War I was a turning point for British women. Women were mobilized for the war effort. Women as a result of men joining the military became a much larger part of the industrial work force.
Women including Bradford Old Girls served as doctors and nurses at home and on the front lines. School life did not chanbge much, but the girls pitched in by knitting socks for servicemen, making sandbags, collecting moss for dressings, and sending parcels to prisoners of war. The school also took in and supported Belgian refugees--a major international humanitarian effort. After the War a new building was found for the Preparatory Department which included boys (1929).
After cosiderable planning a new spacious purpose built school was opened (1936).
During World War II part of the school was af first evacuated to Settle, but when the Luftwaffe did not immediately attack, the girls returned to Bradford. The city did not entirely escape Luftwaffe attacks when the Battle of Britain began, but its northern location meant that it was less vulnerable than cities to the south. The School participated in charity work. Many Old Girls served in the armed forces. The preparatory (junior) schoolwas converted into a rest center for evacuated women and children from the indistrial cities targeted by the Luftwaffe. After the War, Britain began building a free state secondary system. Many grammar schools joined the state system, especially during the 1970s. The Bradford Girl's Grammar School decided to become a private (independent) school. Many boys' grammar and other private schools decided
to accept girls and become coeducational. The Shool has decided to remain a single gender school and points out, "the high position it has maintained in the school league tables has more than justified that belief".
Samuel Savery founded Bramcote School as a private preparatory school in Scarborough, North Yorkshire (1893). He began the first term with only three boys. Savery retired from the school (1911). He later became the Conservative Member of Parliament for Holderness (1927). We notice a prize giving scene at the school with the orchestra just after World wat II in 1947. The school merged with Scarborough College, situated just across the road (2012). Three staff from Bramcote School moved on when the merger took place. Following the merger, Scarborough College Junior School was renamed Bramcote Junior School, however the Bramcote School site remains unused. A college jubir school is essentially the same as a preparatory school.
Some schools have evplbed over time and in fact have finctioned as several different types of schools. Often changes at the school have reflected developing trends in English education. Brockenhurst was founded in 1909, originally as a Pupil Teachers' Centre. A Pupil Teacher's Center was a school where promising girls as young as 13 learned to be teachers. Over time the school progressed through a series of changes: pupil techers' centre, county school, county high school, grammar school, and college.
Buckden is a Church of England primary school. It is nowcalled a Church of England (Anglican) Primary Academy (Primary Academy Trust). Academy schools are state-funded schools in England which are directly funded by the Department for Education and independent of local authority control. The terms of the arrangements are set out in individual Academy Funding Agreements. Most are secodary schools, but there are sucstanial numbers of primary schools. They do not have to follow the National Curruiculum. Thedy do have to ensure that their curriculum is broad and balanced. The school is located in Buckden, a village and civil parish north of St Neots and south-west of Huntingdon. It is located in Huntingdonshire, a non-metropolitan district of Cambridgeshire and a historic county. The school is at the heart of the local community, with strong links with the local parish church of St Mary�s and the local community of Buckden. The school has a strong Christian ethos. We have no historic information about the school. We do note a scene from a school inspection, we think in the 1970s.
We know very little about the Burton Grammar School at this time. We do have an image from the word working class in 1910. All od the boys appear to be wearing knicker suits, many with Eton collars. We are unsure just what the school uniform was. It appears that suits were required as all the boys are wearing them. The Eton collars do not seem to be required as not all of the boys are wearing them. We do not know to what extent the school specified the type of suit. Apparently the school required that they be knicker suits.
Burton Leonard is a village in Yorkshire. WE note a substantial Church of England (Anglican) school. The children are posed outside the school. An English company took photographs like this throughout the country. They were than produced as post cards for local sales. The girls are wearing tams and pinafores, common schoolwear at the time. They are posed outside the dchool, arathger imposing structure fir a village school. We at first thought bit was the village church. The church can be seen in the back ground at the extreme right. The church was rebuilt in 1878 and paid for by the local land owner. The school was probably built at about the same time. The school shows a brick foundation and regular shaped stones blocks built on top. A British reader tells us, "The children look to be attending a school function which I think is connected to a traditional religious - community annual event." The photograph would have been taken in the early-20th century, probably around 1910.
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The Butlers Hill Boys School was located in Hucknall (Hucknall Torkard), is a town in Nottinghamshire, part of the industrial Midlands. Hucknall wasa a center for framework knitting before the Industrial REvolution. The economy then shifted to mining. The economy now has a mix of industry as well as a bedroom community for Nottingham workers. The school looks to be a state primary. There was an attached Infants School. We have aportrait of Class 1 in 1932. The Infant School was coed. Beginning with Class 1 the boys and girls are separated. We see thee Boys' School here. Presumably there was also a Girls' School. The boys look to be about 10 years old. They motly wear suits and ties. Several boys wear jumpers (pullover sweaters) some also with ties. All the boys wear short pants.
Bushey Hall American School was the original name of London Central High School. It was a school operated as part of the United Stztes Department of Defense Dependents Schools Europe (DoDDS-E). It was first established at Bushey Park, adjoining Hampton Court Palace (1951). The school moved to Bushey Hall, about 16 miles Northwest of London (1962). The school moved again to its final location at the USAF Air Station in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, approximately 25 miles west of London (1971). London Central High School was a typical American High School with American and Canadian students, only it was located in England. Most of the students were dependents of U.S. military personnel stationed in England, although some of the students came from throughout Europe, Africa, Asia, South America, or Saudi Arabia. LCHS was also open to local area U.S. citizens on a fee-paying basis. The other destinguishing feature of the school was that it was a boarding school. The school closed in May 2007.
Caldicott School is a boys' prparatory school. It was founded in 1904 by J. Heald Jenkins at a site near Hitchin. Soon after Scouting was founded, the School acquired a troop. a portait tha lookas to have been taken about 1919 shows the boys wearing suits with Eton collars. During World War I, a German Zephlin dropped bombs on the Hithin site. school account reveals, "Near the end of the 1914-1918 war, Hitchin was bombed by a Zeppelin. All the pupils were in bed when a huge overhead rattling noise developed - like several express trains - followed by some loud bangs, and the ground shook. Mr Jenkins came round the dormitories and took all the boys down to the dining room where apples and biscuits were dispensed. Some of the staff took refuge (very sensibly in fact) under the tables, while others thoroughly enjoyed the experience. Next day a general expedition was undertaken to inspect some holes about 10ft across and 3 or 4 feet deep fairly near the railway." The Zephlins did very little damage during the Wat, but kargely because of them, the British were prepoared when the Germans came again (1940). The boys pitched in during the Warby working on the land. also used to help the war effort by working on the land and helping out at an Army canteen. A war memorial was dedicated to pupils who died in the War (1919). The School moved to a new site located across the road from from the beautiful woolands of Burnham Beeches about 20 miles from London (1938).
The Carona Academy was a London drama schools for youngsters. It was a full time
school with other lessons besides drama, but specialising in coaching budding young actors. We have sen two names, both Caona Academy and the Sylvia Clayton Academy or School. Perhaps its most prominent student was Mark Lester. The uniform here is a classic one. It has a green cap with destinctive yellow cross. The green blazer has matching yellow trim. The boys wear grey shorts and like many younger boys wear ankle socks, rather than kneesocks, and sandals. This looks like the uniform for a pre-prep school. Many pre-prep schools had ankle socks rather than kneesocks and almost always school sandals. The white socks the boy with Mark wears especially look like a pre-prep uniform.
I have little information about this school. I do know it was Carrow School. The photograph was probably taken about 1900. I believe it is an elementary school and the children pictures are the infant's department of the school. It clearly
owes a lot to the kndegarten movement which had begun affecting England in the 1880s. The
smaller children have a Noah's Ark to play with and seem to feel quite propriertory about their animals as they are holding on to them so tightly. The older boys are occupied with different crafts, including backet weaving and modeling. Many of the children have rolled up their sleeves and all wear protecive approns, similar to pinafores. Some of the children are very yoing, the little boy in the front row (third from left), still wears a
dress.
Some information is available from Cathays High School in Cardiff. Cardiff is in Wales, but there is little difference between school uniform trends in England and Wales.
Cheltenham College is a traditional English public (private boarding) school. The school is located in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, west of London. Cheltenham College was the first of a number of new public schools opened during the Victorian era. Most of England's best know public schools date back centuries. Many new ones were founded during the Victorian era to meet the expanding needs of the growing Empire. Cheltenham College was founded as an Anglican boys' school (1841). We note an older student at the school with his mortorboard cap (1860s). The College is now coeducational.
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Christ's Hospital is a London boarding school established by King Edward VI in 1552. There were several hospital schools established. The word hospital has a different connotation in the 16th century. They had nothing to do with training doctors and were only for boys. The hospital schools were charity schools for boys who could not afford to pay for their education. A pupil at the school writes, "In your section on uniforms, you mention early charity schools as pioneers of the uniform. I happen to attend one of these schools. We are the original and the only enduring example. We still wear our "Housey" uniform and are referred to as the Bluecoat school. In 1985 on the reunification of our boys and girls schools, a complimentary uniform was designed for the girls who had not had a uniform early on. We have slightly differing combinations for different occasions and in many cases our own words to describe them. The uniform has changed over the centauries since our foundation 451 years ago." [Strong]
Quite a number of British schools have amazing histories going back centuries. The City of London School like quite a few schools dates back even before the Tudors. The history ofthe school begins with John Carpenter, Town Clerk of London durung the reign of King Henry V left a bequest in his will for the education of four boys attached to the chapel of the Guildhall. Carpenter during his life had helped found a library there. The Chppel was supressed during the regign of Henry VIII (1546). Money from thevbequest still existed and the Carpenter's Children� led a wandering existence being educated in estanloshed schools, including Tonbridge School. Carpenter's bequest continued to grow as was way beyond what was needed for the Crpenter;s children. Warren Stormes Hale, a future Lord Mayor, sought to found apermnent chool with the funds (early-19th century). Thisled to foundation of the modrn school. The school adopted a Eton-style uniform. We see one boy, C. Cushen, photographed in his uniform with a classic Eton collar (1890). We have added his school report.
Clifton College is a private school which I believe would be classified as a public school. A British reader tells us, "We had grey suits, even lighter in the 1950s and flannel at that. Worsted suits, which did come up a little darker, were permitted (grudgingly) towards the end of the 1950s and were probably universal by
the mid-1960s even amongst new entrants. They were much preferred
because they looked smarter and held trouser creases so much better.
Junior boys wore short trouser suits that except for the shorts were the same as the suits worn by the older boys. Our prefects were called praeposters. They had a range of privileges denied us junior boys. They played a major role in enforcing the school rules, especially concerning the uniform. It was irritating at the time, but at least leave us with no time to explore the realms of serious misbehaviour!"
We do not have much informtion about this school yet. We know because of the text on the back of the photograph that the nane of the school, the Convent of the Cross, and that it was located near Portsmouth, apparently Waterlooville. We are not sure if the school still exists. One source suggests it became St. Edmund's Comprehensive School, but we are not sure. The school may have been founded in 1959 and the one photograph we have looks like the early-1960s. It was a time that quite a number of state schools and Catholic schools were adoopting basic uniforms. The girls at the Convent school wore gymslips or pinafore dresses with white shirts or louses and ties. They have pointed collars unlike the rounded Peter Pan collars often used for blouses. Americans call the gymslips jumpers. The girls were allowed to weat sweaters (what the Brits callm jumpers) over their gym skips. There are two boys in the group. We suspect they were probably brothers of the older girls. Exceptions like this and for other reasons were ofren made at both boys and girls school. They could also be the sons of lay teachers at the school. This shows how girls school iniforms were basically adopted from boys' uniform. The basic difference was the skirted garments rather than pants. Headwear was also different. But much of the rest was inter-changeable.
Here we see a classroom at the Cormont Road School in London. We have been unable to find any information about the school except that is was located on Cormont Road a kind of half circular road runnng around the Myatts Fields green area in Kennington/Camberwell, London. we are guessing that this is a small day prep school., largely based on how the boys are dressed and the small size of the school. We still see some Eton collars. There are only 13 boys in the school. The rather serious teacher is at the back. Notice all the stuff on the wall this is a little unsuual for the time. The photograph is indated, but looks like the 1920s. Cormont Road was a great place for the school. It was next to a huge green area where the boys could do sports or other outdoors activities in the middle of London. We are not sure what the '12' placard the boy is holding means. Perhaps is was to help ientify the class when the photrapher elivered the prints.
Cowbridge Grammar School is one of the best known grammar schools in Wales and a good example of a country grammar school. We have include the school on our English list as we do not have a section on Welsh education yet. As far as we can tll, there is little difference between Wales and Ehgland in trms of educaion, although we would be interested in hearing from our Wlh reders on this issue. Cowbridge Grammar has a considrable history. We know that it was functioning as early as 1608. In 1860 it was functioning as both a day and boarding school. One of its more famous students was the actor Anthony Hopkins, although he was not a very successful scholar while at the school. A master published a memoir based on his experiences in a boarding house at Cowbridge at the same time Anthony was at the school.
Many private schools were bastions of conservative thought. This was not the case of Dartington Hall. The school was founded by Leonard Elmhirst, an idealistic individual who dreamed of creating a utopian community with radical ideas about rural development and education. His marriage to the American railroad heiress and widow Dorothy Whitney gave him the money to actually experiment with his ideas. He bought the Dartngton Hall estate in South Devon after World War I. One author explains that the school provided "a heady atmosphere of sexual freedom and liberal thought". [Perry] Whitney's son Michael Straight arrived at the school at age 9 from America (1925). When Michael left school, seven of the 10 students are reported to have joined the Communist Party. This was at the time of first disilunionist following World War I, then the Depression and the rise of Hitler. Michael went on to Cambridge. Michael became a KGB plant in America. He was recruited by art historian Anthony Blunt. Notorious British spys like Kim Philby also came outof this inter-war environment.
Dean Grange was a traditioin English prep school. It was located in Cambridgeshire. A reader writes, "At my prep school we boys wore a uniform for all ages was a Yellow shirt (the school always stated this as 'Gold' bit it WAS Yellow! Worn with Yellow & Brown tie, brown shorts, cord or regular, beige knee or ankle socks and brown lace up shoes or sandals (optional) (Winter/Summer change). There was also an optional brown v-neck jumper and an obligatory fawn duffle coat." The school closed in the 1990s.
To our surprise there were several schools called the Dene School. We thought it was a rather unusual name. This particular schoolhool was at Saltdean, on the English southern, Channel coast, about 5 miles east of Brighton. This would have plced it during 1940 right in the path of the possible NAZI invasion. Many chools along the Channel were evacuated during the War. I think this was mostly the private schools that had buildings the military could use, but I could be wrong about that. The Dene School or Dene as it was called was not evacuated, despite Luftwaffe attackls along the coast. We have found a photograph from 1941-42. It was run by two spinster ladies: Miss Gardner & Miss Brough. I'm not sure why it was called The Dene. The school was located in a house in either Oaklands Avenue West or Bevendean Avenue West. It was quite a small school. A school like this in the 19th century might have been called a dame school.
The Leicester School Board built the Desford Boys School. It was an industrial school. An industrial school was a boarding school for juvenile delinquents who had not yet got into serious trouble. The schools were provided for by the Industrial Schools Act (1857). The idea was to provide a place for problem youths other than sending them to an adult prison. The children were generally poor and neglected. The act authorized magistrates to remove disorderly children from their home environment and placed in a boarding school. They were called industrial schools because the curriculum focused on providing the boys a trade. Desford was one of these schools. Over time it was also called an approved school.
Thomas Adcock began working as superintendent at the newly built Desford Industrial School at Botcheston (January 1881). The matron was Mrs. Adcock. The other staff included Mr. Gamble (schoolmaster), Mr. Lee (farm bailiff), Mr. Willet (mechanic), Mr. Underwood (a tailor). The first few boys (aged 10 and 14) arrived a few days after the staff arrived. They were sent by the Leicester School Board, The school officially opened a few days later. After the official opening, the boys began arriving a few at the time. Gradually the school grew 192 boys (1886). While the school was opened by the Leicester School Board, it took boys from all over the country. One report indictes, "Many boys passed through the school over the years and their experiences varied from good to bad. Some boys enjoyed their time there and others hated it." The school was closed (1978).
We note an image at the Douglas School, probably in the late 1920s. We are not sure where Douglas is. A large building in the background is apparently a hospital. Perhaps some of our British readers will recognize it. It looks to be a state primary school. The image is undatd, but the boys' clothes, including one boy wearing an Eton collar, suggests the late 1920s. The image is interesting because the boys are doing exercize on the school ground. I think this might have been called drill, but I am not sure.
One of the best known preparatory schools in England is the Dragon school. As the idea that special arrangements should be made for younger boys, a group of Oxford dons founded the Dragon School in 1877. It was initially called the Oxford Preparatory School. After the school began operating, the boys suggested calling themselves Dragons in honor of course of St George and the dragons he slew. It was increasingly common to educate younger boys in separate smaller schools designed to prepare boys for public schools. After founding the school was moved to its current location on the northern side of Oxford University. The Lynam family operated the Dragon school, helping to build its formidable reputation. Skipper Lynam (headmaster 1886-1920) and his younger brother Hum (1920-42) were in many ways educational pioneers. They believed that children should enjoy school and be encouraged to be independent. That was rather an unconventioinal attitude in the late 19th and early 20th century. (Some educators argue today that educators have taken this approach to far, instilling the iudea that all learning has to be fun.) Joc Lynam (1942-65) continued the founding traditions. One such tradition was a weekly prep learning poetry and prose as well as a continuing pursuit of debate. The school also has a tradition of involving the boys in making the school rules. Since 1965 Dragon has been operated as a charitable trust dedicated to providing all that is best in education. It is administered by a governing body. The Dragon school has not been operated with the formality of some prep schools. The boys wore a comfortable and practical corduroy uniform. The school is now coeducational.
The Drayton Secondary School in Ealing we think was a secondary modern, but are not positive. We mention the school because it along with the students were used to shoot the exteriors for 'Carry on, teacher'. The students seem to be wearing a school uniforms, but the student actors in the film do not. As the plot of the film, like most of the Carry On films was rather on the baudy side, we rather wonder if the school or educational authorities were aware of the plot when they gave permission to film the building and students. We can't find any information on the school, but do note the Drayton Manor High School in Ealing. It was founded as a grammar school (1930), but is now a comprehensive. We do not know if it is the same Drayton Secondary School where the film was shot, but it probanly was.
Boys at Dudley grammar school in the 1940s all appear to be wearing similar colored suits. One boy wears a datk suit. Another boy wears a double breasted suit. They do not appear to be blazers. There are no school badges on their coat jackets. Available photographs show what looks like all of the boys wearing short pants and kneesocks. The uniformity of their uniforms suggests that it was a school rule. We do not not know at this time what the rule was for the other forms. Quite a few of the boys in the late 1940s do not have ties and wear rather sporty open collar shirts. HBC had thought that this informal style a characteristic of Scotland, but it may have been a post-War British style that persisted in Scotland more than England.
Earleywood Prep School was a family-run prep school located at Ascot. We are not sure when the school was founded. At the turn of the century it was a smallschool with only 28 boys. A reader has found a photographic album with interesting images from the school in 1948 illustrating life of the school. The photographs depict arrival, Scout camp, marking out the sports field, sports, model sailboat racing in the swimming pool. school play, the school photograph, and finally Prize Day. Cricket team and school photograph. The school has long since closed. The battered photographic album is all that remains. It is a historic document showing typical activities at a lively prep school.
A visiting American professor tells us, "The HBC review of various schools is quite interesting. It explains a lot about the different kinds of schools in England. I used to have a good friend who was one of the masters at Eastbourne. He invited me in the 1980s to teach a class of the older boys there while on one of my sabbaticals in England. The boys wore their uniforms (short pants and
knee socks), but they were permitted to dispense with the blazers during class time. As I recall, they just wore sweaters and open-necked shirts. I was very impressed by how respectful and polite
they were to a visiting professor from America. They paid attention to my lecture and asked some good questions. Most of the boys were about 13, as I remember."
Eastbourne was a state secondary located in Darlington. A HBC reader recalls his year there. He writes, "My first "big" school was located in Darligton. It was a comprehensive school--Eastbourne School. It was a school in Darlington despite it having the same name as the South Coast town with all the pensioners. Eastbourne, the town, is a favoured retirement spot! The County had no Grammar schools. These had been closed/merged into Comprehensives or Secondary Moderns as some called them in large parts of the country after a big back-lash towards the 11+ exam. This left the country with different systems depending upon where in the country you lived." For more details see Richard's account.
We do not know what type of school this was. We do know that it was located in Egremont in Cheshire. We have a cginet card portrait taken at the Priestly & Son studio. The portrait is not dated, but looks to have been taken about 1890. This would mean that it was probably not a dame school, although some still existed. State primary schools existed by the 1890s, but there was still a need to care for younger children before they were old enough to begin primary school. The children are pre-school children. This this is a private school, something like an early pre-school. Perhaps an English reader will know what a school like this was called. There are two women to care for the children. The older boy may be related to them. Notice how popular sailor suits were for younger boys.
The traditional Eton school uniform and collar influenced English school uniforms for more than a century. Given the prestige of Eton college, many English adopted the style of the Eton school uniform with minor modifications. Gradualy English schools adopted more standard single breasted suits, but retained the Eton collar for dress occasions into the 1920s and even the 1939s at conservative schools. The style does continue to be worn at Eton College.
We notice a press photo that we do not fully understand. It is about the Fellowship Society of Euston which has "introduced many novel ideas for the children's education". They apparently operated an open-air school. The photograph shows an open-air class for boys. The boys are all working at desks. One youngster is taking a rest. Presumably he wasn't feeling well. There is a tent in the background, presumably for frefuge when it started to rain. The photograph is undated, but looks to have been taken in the late-1920s or early 30s. We have been unable to find any information on the Fellowship Society of Euston. Euston is a suburb of London. Nor do we know why the children her did not attend a state primary school.
Arundell, Anthony. E-mail message, March 22, 2004
Perry, Roland. Last of the Cold War Spies: The Life of Michael Straight, the Only American in Britain's Cambridge Spy Ring (Da Capo, 2005), 395p.
Strong, Amaryllis. E-mail message, November 12, 2003.
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