Memories of Grey Friars from 100 Years Ago
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In the School Magazine for 1960-61 are some fascinating memories from three mistresses who had been at Grey Friars one hundred years ago. If these stimulate more recent memories, please let me have them for inclusion in the next Newsletter.
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From Miss M Collier
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Straight from College, very young and wearing a pink hat, I came to Colchester in 1914, at the outbreak of the First World War. We had Cookery in the North Hill Kitchen, and there was Needlework to teach in Room 33, a little French and Scripture and, of course, the charge of the School dinners, the latter quite a business with the increasing shortage of meat and fats and the general uncertainty of supplies.
I had fallen in love at first sight with Miss Crosthwaite or “Bindy”, as she was later affectionately known to us all, and to work under her as she built up the School was the most wonderful experience that a young mistress could have had. Her own zeal for the work and forgetfulness of self were infectious and produced the happy atmosphere in which we worked.
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In 1918 I left to do some war work, but was back a year later. The war was over, the school was overflowing, Miss Thornbery was on the Staff and together we worked to get Grey Friars (right) ready to house the Junior part of the School in January 1920. What a thrill it all was! Mr and Mrs Alston were caretaker and cook and Miss Stoodley and I had rooms in their house adjoining Grey Friars. And what beautiful dinners Mrs Alston cooked. You all came up for second helpings and
sometimes the second helpings exceeded the first! Miss Howson was Senior Mistress at North Hill, followed later by Miss Reynolds, and Miss Crosthwaite and other members of the Staff rushed up and down the High Street between the two buildings. Those were good days and we would not have missed them for the world.
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In 1923, with the help of Mrs and Miss Thornbery’s furniture brought out of store, we took over Lyndhurst, 149 Maldon Road, as a Staff house, and in the following year the Home Science Course was started.
And now, best wishes to all the Home Science girls, some 90 of you, who during the next 11 years came, eight at a time, for one year, to spend half the week at Lyndhurst doing practical work and the other half at North Hill. We had some good times, didn’t we, and you did well in your Final Homecraft Examination and got really worthwhile posts afterwards.
All good things come to an end, and with many regrets I finally said good-bye to Colchester in 1936 after 21 most happy years.
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