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Chapter 2 / Wardens
WARDENS
ALGERNON BARRINGTON SIMEON (1846–1928),
WARDEN 1877–93
In May 1877 the Revd Algernon Barrington Simeon changed
his title to become the first Warden of the School and
appointed the Revd Herbert Andrew Dalton to take his place
as Headmaster. Simeon was born in 1846 in Devon. He was
in New Zealand for a while as a young boy with his family,
and after they returned to England in 1856 lived at Hursley,
Hampshire, where John Keble was the local vicar and where
the young Simeon first learned about the Oxford Movement.
He and his brother attended Winchester College from 1859,
in those days a school of which Simeon’s wife later wrote
in her memoir of 1929 that corporal punishment was to be
endured stoically. He then went up to Christ Church as an
undergraduate in 1866 and there became closely involved with
both the Oxford Movement and Thomas Chamberlain.
Since Simeon was the driving force behind the School’s
move to Summertown, and was personally financing the huge
building programme to house 63 (soon to rise to over 100)
pupils, teaching and domestic staff, he was naturally intent on
supervising all the work, despite his bout of diphtheria in the
final days at New Inn Hall Street.
Simeon built the heart of the School as we know it: the
Quad (called then the ‘Meads’) was formed from a turnip field;
the School Buildings on the north side (1873), the Chapel
(1877); the Lodge (1880) on the west; Big School, now the
Library (1881, first used on Simeon’s birthday) on the east; and
the New Buildings (1882) on the south. An indoor swimming
pool was built next to the gymnasium in 1887, and at that stage
the fields across the Woodstock Road were rented for sport;
the Meads was also used for sport. The School was owned by
Simeon entirely until 1890, when he handed it over to Trustees,
who were assisted by a Council of Governors, to which they
also belonged.
Simeon had a great deal on his hands with the building
work, but additionally had to endure criticism from many
local churchmen and members of the general public
locally for building a Chapel for the School rather than
using local churches, and also because it was claimed that
the School was practising ‘popery’ and the pupils were
Right: The stamp inside a
‘Basher’ (straw boater) which
was part of the School uniform.
It had to be worn to go into
Summertown.
Below left: A cartoon of Warden Simeon showing him every inch the High
Anglicanpriest,yetdisplayinghisenergy.Inthebackgroundarethenorthrange
ofbuildings,includingtheChapel,standingonitsownbeforethecloisterswere
added. The artist is unknown.
Below left (main picture): Bursey, the Warden’s manservant, with ‘Punch’,
collecting Simeon from the Warden’s House in 1881. The house was later
extended and Bursey sits where the Warden’s Dining Room now is.
Above: Common Room, 1875.
Back row (left to right):
A. Manier, Revd E.F. Letts,
Revd T.T.C. Cowie, A.H. Legat,
H.A. Sealy. Seated (left to right):
Revd C.B. Tyrwhitt, Revd A.B.
Simeon, Revd R. Hutchinson.
Above: New Buildings (now Mac’s) and the Lodge, completed 1882.
Chapter 2