CHURCH SCHOOL JUBILEE

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A Rousing Jubilee Celebration

OLD SCHOLARS HONOUR FIRST "HEAD"


Striking evidence of the affection that dwells in the hearts of past teachers and scholars was afforded on. Saturday on the occasion of the Barnoldswick Church of England School's jubilee celebrations. To the very day, it was the 50th anniversary of the school's beginning, January 6th, 1884. The festivities were on a much larger scale than those originally designed, but, thanks to the adaptability of the organisers, the whole affair ran smoothly.
The first stage consisted of a tea party in the main hall of the school and this lasted from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Four sittings were required to accommodate the 400 guests, and in order that the intervals might not seem wearisome, the officials turned the remainder of the school into a series of smoke rooms and conversation lounges. Many people had travelled long distances to take part in the celebrations and the true re-union spirit prevailed. An appetising meal was served by Misses S. and J. Hacking and their staff.
Subsequently, there was a social gathering in the Queen's Hall, which was filled almost to capacity. Speeches full of interesting reminiscences, presentations for long and valued service, and a variety of musical Items combined to make the evening a most enjoyable one.
An ideal chairman was Mr. R. S. Windle, a former scholar, who enlivened the pro-ceedings by his ready wit and topical humour. "It was a very happy thought of the managers of our dear old school to bring us together on this occasion, "said Mr. Windle. "This afternoon we had an opportunity of meeting many old friends, and I am sure there is no gathering in the world that could have brought so many of us together as the jubilee of the school. I want to extend to you all a most hearty welcome."
THE FIRST SCHOLARS.


Fifty years was a large slice out of anyone's life, and he was sure those who had recol-lection of the opening of the Church School must feel thankful to God for sparing them to be present on that occasion. In the early days when names were being enrolled for the new school, the headmaster, Mr. Alfred Pollard, would have seen, had he looked up from his desk, two boys "scrapping" to decide which was to be first on the register. One of those boys was David Mitchell and the other was Robert Windle. (Laughter.) "I was not much of a 'scrapper,' added the speaker, "but I think I was a bit better than the other boy; at any rate my name went down first. (Laughter.) Perhaps the reason was that Mr. Pollard knew my name because I had been one of his scholars at Salterforth School before coming to the Church School at Barnoldswick."
He felt it would be remiss of him if he failed on behalf of the old scholars to pay a tribute to their dear, respected old school¬master. (Applause.) The schoolmaster only sowed the seed; as the twig was bent the tree was inclined. A great deal depended on oneself if the tree was to be properly watered and grow to maturity. Nevertheless 'the part played by the schoolmaster in the training of a child was a big one, and he was glad to acknowledge the help and inspiration he had received from his old headmaster. He thought no tribute more fitting could be paid to Mr. Pollard than that contained in the words Pope spoke of his friend, Addison :-
He was a soul sincere,
In action faithful and in honour clear.
Who sought no title; served no private end;
But did his duty, and he never lost a friend.



The speaker's advice to parents was :— "Never be afraid of spending money on your children's education You are giving them something which, in after years, money can't buy," he declared. "Apart from a knowledge of various subjects, schools teach us the difference between right and wrong, and probably that fact has kept a great many of us out of gaol." (Laughter.) If they carried out the simple rules they learnt at the Church School they would never go far wrong. In the words of Longfellow, success was nothing more and nothing less than doing the daily task that lay before them well, and doing well whatever they had to do. Nothing was gained without hard work, and if any¬one wanted to achieve anything, they must not depend on the schoolmaster, but "put their backs into it."
ONLY THREE HEADMASTERS.


Concluding, the Chairman said they were proud to have with them the first headmaster of the Church School, which, he might add, had had only three headmasters in 50 years. They were also proud to welcome the three oldest members of the staff, and among others, Mr. A. Atkinson, a former scholar, who had been one of the school managers for a large number of years. The school had educated more than 4,200 scholars.

The next speaker was Mr. Thomas Smith, a prominent stock and share broker and company secretary in Sheffield, who was the first pupil teacher at the school. Introducing Mr. Smith, the Chairman said he owed seven-eighths of any success he had achieved to him. Mr. Smith was the man who taught him how to work. In those days there were no scheduled hours as far as they were concerned. After working ten hours a day in the factory or elsewhere, he was prepared to sit down with Mr. Smith and try to learn something a bit different. They often worked up to mid¬night and whether they went on for one or two hours longer they were not particular.
Mr. Smith, who revealed a fertile sense of humour, said that most men considered 60 years a large slice out of their life and some ladies regarded it as a tragic slice out of theirs. (Laughter.) They were met that evening to do honour, to whom honour was due:- their dear old schoolmaster, who for 39 years had charge of the Church School. He might say a great deal about education, but he would content himself by saying that the present system was not exactly the kind he would recommend. Instead of the present-day "cramming" he would prefer that steps should be taken to discover and develop what was in a child. (Hear, hear.)
Mr. Smith went on to say that the scholars produced by the Church School were "a fair good sample" and made good citizens. He was proud of his associations with Mr. Pollard, whose influence on the school and its scholars had been felt over a long period. As a boy he lived at Brogden and he well remem¬bered walking to and from the Church School. He was afraid he did not often get there on time; in fact he had been late as a scholar, late as a teacher and late as a husband throughout life (laughter). He re¬called that Mr.Pollard had once given him an essay to write on punctuality. "I was well able to write on that subject," continued the speaker, "because I knew everything about punctuality except how to practise it.” (Laughter), "I was often reminded of the old proverb: "The early bird catches the worm,' but I always thought it was the worm's fault for being up so soon." (Laughter.)
OVER STILES TO SCHOOL.

Mr. Smith then presented a handsome smoking cabinet to Mr. Pollard amid loud applause. The cabinet bore the following inscription: —
"Presented to Alfred Pollard, Esq., on the occasion of the Church Day School's Jubilee celebrations, January 6th, 1934." Gifts of two pipes and a large tin of tobacco from Mr, Windle and Mr. Smith were con¬tained in the cabinet. The recipient had a rousing ovation when be rose to respond. Mr. Pollard confessed that ho had expected only a small token and consequently, it came as a big surprise to him to receive such a handsome present. He felt it was a great privilege to take part in those celebrations, and he was glad to see such a large number taking an interest in the old school. The history of the school had been dealt with in a recent issue of "The National," the school magazine, but he would like to add the names of some who had been prominently connected with the school in its early days.


Mr. Pollard proceeded to read the follow¬ing list:—
Messrs. B. Dean, Thos. Smith, John Armistead, James Waterworth, William P. Atkinson, James Nuttall, H. Ashley, Fred Bracewell, Alfred Pilkington, — Peel, W. B. Duckworth, John Widdup, Procter Barrett, Charles Shuttleworth, John Walmsley, T. Briggs, William Lambert, James Kidd, William Perry, Harrison Bailey and William Atkinson, junr.
"If I gave a list of all the lady workers, I should require a paper a yard long," added the speaker.
Continuing in reminiscent vein, Mr. Pollard said that when the school was opened there were green fields on three sides. York Street did not go past the school, and it was the same with Wellington Street, while even Chapel Street had a wall across the top. In order to get to the school, one had to climb over stiles and pick one's way along country paths. On one occasion an inspector lost his shoe in the process.
The school began with Miss Smith and himself, and at that time the infants were combined in one room. The first assistant teacher was Mr. Anderton, of Accrington, who left to prepare for the ministry, and, unfortunately, died through overwork whilst studying. Then came Mr. Robson, who had some difficulty in finding Barnoldswick, which was not on the map. Also among the early assistants were Mr. John Armistead and Mr. Thomas Smith, the latter leaving as a pupil teacher before he had finished his time. Throughout its history the school had had splendid teachers, hard workers and loyal to the backbone. He was glad to see that several of the old teachers were still going strong.
FEE-PAYING DAYS.

"We began with 80 scholars," Mr. Pollard went on, "and at that time 'full-timers' paid a fee of 4d. and 'half-timers' 3d. a week. If they brought their money on Monday morning we were sure they were going to come the whole week. (Laughter.) There was spinning as well as weaving in Barnolds¬wick in those days, and the children who worked half-time in the spinning mills were known as 'doffers'."
The subjects taught in the schools were the "three R's." Government inspectors stayed in the town for weeks at a time, and each child had to be examined individually in reading, writing and arithmetic. Strenuous efforts had to be made to bring the more backward pupils up to the standard of the brighter ones, and this led to a certain amount of "cramming." He thought that it was much nicer teaching to-day, although there were more subjects.
On behalf of himself and Mr. Windle, Mr. Smith presented a set of tobacco pipes to Mr. E. W. Robson, former headmaster of the Samlesbury School, Blackburn, and now living in retirement at Lytham St. Annes.

Mr. Robson replied in suitable terms. "I spent nearly seven years within the four walls of the Church School working as an assistant under one of the best and ablest head teachers I have ever come across in my whole career," said Mr. Robson. For 32 years he had been headmaster of the Samlesbury School, which had been held up as an example in the House of Commons. The prominence that school had attained was due very largely to the training he had received at the hands of Mr. Pollard. The speaker laughingly recalled his first railway journey from Leeds to Bar¬noldswick, and caused much amusement by confessing his belief that "Barlick" and "Barnoldswick" were two different places. In conclusion, he congratulated the managers on the progress of the Church School, and expressed strong approval of the readiness shown by the Church people of the town to undertake any improvements recommended by the authorities.


TEACHERS' LONG SERVICE.

To commemorate their long, service, gifts of book-ends in Dalton china were handed by Mr. Smith to Mrs. Allum (34 years), Miss Waite (31 years) and Mr. Levi Turner (27 years). All three made fitting replies.

A surprise presentation of a fountain pen and cigarettes was made to Mr. H. Belshaw (present headmaster) on behalf of the school managers.
Mr. Belshaw, who was obviously' taken unawares, jokingly confessed that "the biter had been bitten" He thanked the managers for the gift and what it betokened. In the presence of so many old scholars, he felt like a little boy who should be seen and not heard. (Laughter,) Those jubilee celebra¬tions had been to him, and he felt sure to the remainder of the staff, great encourage¬ment. They had met people who had not passed through his hands, but had done extraordinarily well. They were real good men and women, and they had encouraged the staff to carry forward the work of the school.

Mr. H. Wilson, J.P. (Chairman of the Barnoldswick Urban District Council), said he had always held Mr. Pollard in high regard, adding that the members of the Council were greatly interested in all the schools in the town. Mr. Pollard had taught boys and girls the way of right living, and that work was being faithfully carried on by the present headmaster and his assistants. (Applause.)
Mr. J. Armistead, who is now a head¬master at Colne, recalled that when he began as a candidate teacher at the Barnoldswick Church School his salary was 3s. 6d. per fortnight, while his first remuneration as a pupil teacher was 5s. a week.
The last speaker was Mr. S. Bowker, C.C. (chairman of the Barnoldswick Education Sub-Committee). Mr. Bowker emphasised the value of education and pointed out that if this country was to return to prosperity with the other nations of the world, the standard must be kept up.
FIFTY CANDLES.

In the course of the evening, solos were given by Mrs. Windle, Mrs. E. Clough, Miss H. Wright, Messrs. C. Midgley (Kelbrook), Allan Garnett, M. Green and J. Hardisty, while Mr. J. Demaline (conjurer) also enter¬tained. All the artistes were old scholars.
During two intervals the following pieces were delight¬fully executed by Mr. A. C. Peckover's School Orchestra, under the direction of Miss Annie Lund "Stand Chen," "Diadem," "School March," "Hibernia," "Melodies of all nations" and "Blue Danube." Miss E. Akrigg, ALCM, was the pianist.
A large birthday cake, bedecked with fifty burning candles, was greatly admired. Mr. Pollard made the first incision, and pieces were afterwards sold to members, of the company.
For the unqualified success of the Jubilee celebrations, special praise is due to Messrs. H. Belshaw and John Peel (joint secretaries"), and Mr. A. Atkinson (treasurer).


Transcribed from “The Craven Herald” Friday, January 12th 1934
2485
John Turner September 2019

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