St Edward's Rhubarb Issue 5_web (2)

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17 ST EDWARD’S r hubarb
Jack Tate, well known to many older OSE,
was a member of the Common Room from
1937-1969 and on his retirement took up the
full-time position as the school Archivist. In this
role he added another 19 years to his School
service until his death in 1988. Jack’s time in
the job was perhaps the most important in our
having the collection we have today - he was
as diligent and painstaking as Cowell and in his
time he established the basic system of record
keeping and boxing protocols that are still used
today. His own bequest of over 100 magnetic
tapes of school life 1971-1988 has proven
absolutely invaluable.
Since Jack’s death the school archives
have had many different guardians and
different locations as well! At various times
they have been housed in Big School, the
Old Library, the original indoor swimming
bath, the old changing rooms (‘Chaggers’)
and in one of the old ‘temporary’ huts
behind Cowell’s. Today they reside within
the Lemon Tree site acquired by the School
for future development in 2010. Amongst
the various recent part-time archivists have
been teachers, a spouse of a teacher and
temporary outside staff.
The collection today is still growing and
at time of writing is contained in some 650
boxes together with a great deal of indexed
ephemera including large pictures and
paintings. We also have the original Honours
Contribute to the Archives!
We are seeking the following
photographs. If you have access to any
photographs shown on this list, please
get in touch, and if possible send me
a good scan (300 dpi +) to
1st XV Rugby Football 1872-1875,
1878-1880, 1914, 1915, 1921, 1940, 1997,
2000, 2002, 2006, 2013
1st XI Cricket 1873, 1874, 1916, 1997,
2001, 2002, 2006
1st IV Rowing (Boys) 1907, 1909, 1918,
1922-1923, 1926, 1927, 1932- 1954,
1956 -1972, 1974-1980, 1982, 1984,
1987-1996, 1998, 1999, 2001-2014
1st VIII Rowing (Boys) 1888-1891,
1893-1901, 1905, 1906,11909, 1911-1924,
1926-1931, 1956, 1969, 2000, 2002, 2004,
2007
1st IV Rowing (Girls) 1986, 1991, 1997-
1999, 2001-2004, 2006, 2007, 2012-2014
1st VIII Rowing (Girls) 1985- 1991, 1993-
1995, 1998, 1999, 2001-2011
1st XI Hockey (Boys) 1930–1938, 1940-
1950, 1968, 1970-1972, 1999, 2002-2004,
2007
1st XI Hockey (Girls) 1986-1988, 1996,
1997, 2002-2004, 2006, 2013
Cowell’s 1893, 1895, 1897, 1898,
1902-1904, 1906-1908, 1910- 1918,
1926, 1927, 1929-1932, 1934-1936,
1939-1942, 1945-1952, 1958-1974,
1988, 1990-2007, 2010
Sing’s 1893, 1897-1899, 1903, 1905, 1906,
1908 -1912, 1914, 1916 - 1918, 1925-1948,
1956, 1958 - 1960, 1962–1964, 1975, 1988,
1992, 1993, 1999-2001, 2004-2006, 2009,
2010
Field House 1893-1895, 1897, 1899,
1901-1905, 1910-1913, 1915-1918,
1926-1932, 1934, 1936, 1937, 1949,
1951-1953, 1956, 1958, 1964, 1969-1973,
1988, 1999-2010
Macnamara’s 1893, 1894, 1897-1919, 1921,
1929, 1930, 1964, 1971, 1977, 1997-2010
Apsley 1897, 1899-1906, 1908-1912,
1914, 1916-1918, 1921, 1925, 1932, 1933,
1935-1952, 1955, 1957-1967, 1988, 1989,
1993, 2000-2005
Tilly’s 1920, 1921, 1925-1930, 1937-1942,
1964-1967, 1973, 1988, 1989, 1993,
2000-1010
Segar’s 1925, 1930-1932, 1935, 1936, 1938,
1939, 1944, 1946-1949, 1963-1973, 1993,
2002, 2004, 2006-2010
Kendall 2000-2007, 2009, 2010
Oakthorpe 1997-2008, 2010
Corfe 1981, 1988, 1993, 1994, 1996,
2000-2010
Avenue 2001-2010
Jubilee Copies of all Jubilee’s House photos
are already held by the Archives.
Boards from the walls of the old Big School
as well as many of the sporting shields that
once adorned the Dining Hall, a whole suit
of armour (probably dating back to one of
Cowell’s Christmas plays), numerous cups
and pewter mugs originally given out for
sporting prowess and so on.
My own official involvement has been
on a regular basis since 2008, following
five years of ad-hoc assistance and writing
various articles and books about the School’s
history. The work is as diverse as it is
rewarding with the Jubilee year in 2013 and
the anniversary of the Great War in 2014
being especially memorable. The Archives
have also been used to help produce Nicola
Hunter’s St Edward’s: 150 Years, the 2013
edition of The Roll of St Edward’s School,
co-edited with the late Derek Roe (E, 1950-
1956), and the School History by Malcolm
Oxley, as well as my own publications and
those of others related to the School. The
close collaboration with the Development
Office has proven indispensable.
The interest in the School past is always
strong and most often from the most
expected quarters - family historians,
families of those who attended the School,
researchers, authors, all kinds of specific
official and unofficial societies, OSE, existing
staff and pupils, other schools and university
archivists from all over the world.
A R C H I V E S