A message from Elaine Phillips
“It gives me great pleasure to welcome you to the Bootham Bicentenary website."
Welcome to Bootham’s Bicentenary
We are very excited to be celebrating our bicentenary across the academic year 2022/23. You will be able to find out more about our history and plans for celebrating the bicentenary on this website.
The history timeline documents key points in the school’s history since 1823. We would like to know what you think are the key milestones in the Bootham story so that we can add to the timeline over the course of the year and produce a collaborative history of the school.
We are planning a number of events including:
York Unlocked (a chance of the York community to come into school for guided tours of the buildings) in October
A programme of online and in person talks
An Education Conference programme which will culminate in a physical conference in June 2023
Reunion celebrations across the year for Bootham Old Scholars
A celebration week in June 2023 for the full Bootham community
We have two presentations about Bootham history available here:
Bootham School Bicentenary Part 1 a
Bootham School Bicentenary Part 2 a
Please share your stories about Bootham with us and get in touch if you would like to be involved with the Bicentenary Programme.
Elaine
It all started in 1823
1823 The School opened in Lawrence Street
The school opened in Lawrence Street, York. A project started by William Tuke and completed by his grandson, Samuel, the school was run by William Simpson. John Bright was one of the first students at the new school. This was the last school he attended and he later wrote: ‘During the two years I spent at York I learned more than in any other two years in my school life.’
1829 John Ford was appointed as Head
The school was renamed ‘York Quarterly Meeting Boys’ School’ (informally known as ‘The York School’) under the care of Yorkshire Quarterly Meeting. John Ford was appointed as Head. John Ford helped shape the school we still know. He promoted tolerance and an open education system. John Ford also had a particular interest in ‘new’ ideas and promoted the study of science and mathematics in the school. Many of the school’s notable Old Scholars have gone on to pursue careers based on these subjects.
1834 The Natural History Society was founded
The Bootham Natural History Society was founded in 1834 and believed to be the first such school society in England. Ford had developed a love of nature whilst working in Rochester. His arrival in York almost coincided with the first meeting of the Yorkshire Philosophical Society. The work of the society, of which Ford became a member, helped to give him a wide interpretation of Natural History, and meteorology and astronomy were soon included.
1846 The move to Bootham
The School moved to Bootham. An Appeal raised £2,750 to help buy the first building. The decision to move the School was taken because of a disturbing record of ill-health and a growing awareness of the unhealthy character of the School’s surroundings. The local Foss Islands were excellent for skating but at most times a health hazard.
1853 The Cooke telescope was installed
In September 1852, at the School Committee ‘John Ford reports that a telescope of four and a quarter inch object glass is now making for the School by Thos. Cooke of York, the cost to be £120. Subscriptions to the extent of sixty pounds have been offered in addition to the hundred pounds given by Samuel Gurney.’ Later that month the Committee agreed to erect a building for the telescope at the south east end of the school garden, at an estimated cost of one hundred pounds. Plans for this observatory were drawn up by old scholar Isaac Fletcher, colliery proprietor and Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society.’ The telescope was installed April 1853 along with a transit instrument and clock.
1865 Sport at Bootham
Purchase of two acres of land to widen the field. John Ford had visited Rugby School in 1862 and decided to introduce a form of football with rules drawn up compromising between Rugby and Soccer. The Bootham football was played with a ‘globular’ ball and wasn’t popular with boys when first launched. Cricket was taken seriously, and teams were successful.
1879 Old Scholars Association
A number of keen Old Boys formed an Old Boys’ Association (the O.Y.S.A) and established a leaving scholarship, still known as the Commemoration Scholarship. The Jubilee Subscription raised money for a number of enhancements to the school site, including a gymnasium, new laboratory, workshop, Natural History Society Room, a Fives court and renovation of the cricket field.
1889 Bootham School
The first time the name ‘Bootham School’ was used as a header to the annual list of student names. The Committee’s annual reports to Quarterly Meeting were headed ‘York Quarterly Meeting Boys’ School’ up until 1914.
1891 A more diverse community
The School was opened to a few non-Friends for the first time and women Friends joined the Committee of Management.
1899 The fire
Fire broke out in the early hours of 12 May 1899 and most of the Schoolroom block at the back of the school was burned out. No one was injured and boarding accommodation was undamaged. John Firth Fryer resigned and handed the Headship to Arthur Rowntree. Fundraising was led by the Old Scholars and they quickly raised ca £20,000 which allowed the rebuilding of the School to start 1900-01.
1902 Love Builds
The new school buildings were officially opened in January 1902. A former Head, Fielden Thorp, unlocked the new entrance and John Bright’s daughter, Helen Bright Clark, opened the Library named after her father. Nearly seven hundred guests attended the event and the Old Scholar contribution was recognised in the wall plaque with an ancient Greek inscription translated as ‘Love Builds’. The Old Scholars continued to give to the school and as a result the original ‘Lodge’ building was acquired in 1905, the Cricket Pavilion built in 1906, and the Swimming Pool opened in 1914.
1914-19 First World War
As soon as war broke out a request was received for the use of the School as a hospital. Wards and an Operating Theatre were created but never used. After six weeks they were dismantled and the School opened a little late in the autumn term. The normal pattern of School life was disrupted. Boys were sent out during the summer term to help local farmers and potatoes were planted across the bottom of the School playing field. Time was also allocated for first-aid classes and ambulance drill. The Old Scholars took different views of the Peace Testimony. Not all Old Scholars were Quaker but even when they were the responses differed. At the end of the war, it was recorded that 15 Old Scholars ‘served in prison’, 41 with the ‘War Victims Relief’ Committee, 130 with Friends’ Ambulance Unit and 289 in the Army and Navy. The memorial in the Library records the names of fifty-six who lost their lives (regardless of how they ‘served’). The Old Scholars donated money in memory of those who died during the war. This gift was used to buy land at Clifton for additional playing fields.
1927 Donald Gray
Donald Gray became Head in 1927 following the retirement of Arthur Rowntree. The years of Donald Gray’s Headship saw a period of consolidation and an expansion in leisure pursuits and he particularly encouraged music and drama. Music flourished as a curriculum subject, the orchestra was enlarged and standards raised. Dramatic productions became more sophisticated and full-length rehearsed plays were performed in the spring term in the place of informal ‘charades’. Donald Gray performed in Gilbert and Sullivan operas, including Trial by Jury, The Pirates of Penzance and HMS Pinafore.
1939-40 Evacuation to Ampleforth
The war was expected to start with heavy attacks from the air and York as an important railway centre was considered a likely target. Ampleforth College had offered in the event of war to accommodate Bootham in its Junior House, and the School decided at the outbreak of war that this offer should be accepted. The School invited hospital authorities to use the buildings and this time they were used for patients who did not require surgical treatment. The accommodation at Ampleforth was uncomfortably crowded but the friendship of the College community was greatly appreciated. The School returned to York at the end of July 1940 when the hospital indicated it didn’t need the extra facilities. School life returned almost to normal.
1942 Destruction of The Lodge
During the night of 29 April 1942, a bomb was dropped on the edge of the school campus. The Lodge building was destroyed and had to be demolished. Fortunately, the summer term hadn’t started and no one was injured.
1943 The death of Donald Gray
Donald Gray died from pneumonia in August 1943. He had been an energetic and enthusiastic leader in the evacuation to Ampleforth and concerned for others’ safety, careless of his own. The loyalty and affection he inspired were shown in the depth and sincerity of the tributes paid by the School community.
1966 The new Hall was opened
The John Bright Library had been used as both library and Assembly Hall since 1902. For a School of 80 or 90 this was a possible arrangement, but as numbers increased it became too uncomfortable. Only with difficulty could 240 students be seated by removing tables and bookshelves. The platform was also small and limited dramatic productions. Trevor Dannatt was appointed as architect for the new Hall. He felt that no attempt should be made to blend the new building with the old; it should be free standing and architecturally distinctive and he produced a design which made provision for different uses – daily Assembly, Meeting for Worship, film shows and dramatic and operatic performances. The design provoked much comment. The building was opened by Old Scholar, Sir Joseph Hutchinson FRS, in 1966. Immediate approval was given by the Royal Institute of British Architects, who named the Hall the best building in Yorkshire during the past two years.
1983 The first girls join the School
The first girls joined the School in September 1983. There were between 15 and 20 girls found in every year group other than Upper Senior. The arrival of girls was seen as part of the general aim to make Bootham into a genuinely Day-and-Boarding school. It was noted at the time that girls coming to Bootham would tend to be ‘non-Friends’ and that these girls would be in a unique situation in York because no other independent school offered the prospect of co-education throughout the age range 11-18. The numbers of girls in the School quickly increased and the girls’ boarding house was opened in 1991.
1997 Ebor Preparatory School
The School acquired Ebor Preparatory School at Clifton in May 1997. Ebor students were described a ‘lively, thoughtful and imaginative boys and girls’. We opened our new Junior School building in Rawcliffe in 2002 and the name was officially changed to Bootham Junior School in 2006.
2014 The new Arts Centre was opened
The new Arts Centre was opened in March 2014, when Tony de Nunzio spoke movingly about his son Ed, to whose memory the art school is dedicated. The new building was described as ‘a building whose very fabric pays homage to the relationship between student and teacher. Teaching and learning, for all the theories, is a matter of human relations; teaching is a way of life, of parenting. It’s about nurturing and cherishing real people in all their richness and delight, rather than grading performance. Bootham’s aim is to encourage in our students creativity and imagination to see a better world; our work from day to day is to model such a world.’
2020 National Lockdown
During the pandemic, the School followed Government guidelines and transferred to on-line learning for most students. The School closed early for the Easter holiday on 20th March 2020 and in-person teaching didn’t resume until the beginning of the Autumn Term. During the first period of lockdown we honed our on-line learning skills and found new ways of teaching and communicating. The boarding houses were closed and students joined on-line lessons from around the globe. The Junior School remained open for children of key workers. The second period of lockdown ran from the beginning of the Spring Term 2021 to 8 March 2021 and we reverted to on-line learning. The School remained open to the children of key workers and boarders during second lockdown.
2022 An excellent school
We are delighted to have been been rated 'Excellent' for both categories -Pupils' Achievement and Pupils' Personal Development- in our latest ISI report. More gratifying still are the many lovely comments and observations that appear in the report, not least those that clearly recognise how our Quaker ethos has a clearly evident effect on the students’ daily lives and development. "Pupils of all ages are nurtured in an inclusive community, which focuses on developing individuals. They benefit from taking responsibility for their own learning and thrive in the independence awarded to them across the curriculum." Our community response to the crisis in Ukraine included holding two peace vigils on Bootham on consecutive days and organising a collection of donations to be transported to refugees in countries neighbouring the conflict. The organisation of the collection and distribution to a local collection point was led by a team of College students with support from staff and the wider community.
Our Bicentenary Events Programme
| Time | |
| 9 00 – 9 30 | Reflect 30
Meeting in the Hall for 30 minutes with parents and Old Scholars
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| 9 30 – 10 00 | Coffee and croissants
For parents and Old Scholars
|
| 10 00 – 10 45 | Coffee and biscuits
For Old Scholars with members of current teaching staff
|
| 10 45 – 11 30 | Speeches in the Hall
Chris Jeffery Head Reeves Greeting from Deneal Smith (incoming Head)
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| 11 30 – 12 00 | Short tours of the school with current students
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| 12 00 – 13 00 | Lunch service for Old Scholars
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| 13 00 – 13 45 | Music Recital
Recital Room
|
| 13 30 | Cricket – Bootham U13 v St Peter’s U13B
(100 ball match)
Swimming Gala Bootham Old Scholars v Bootham Warm up from 13 30 for 13 45 start
|
| 14 00 | Exhibition of Heads’ Portraits – Recital Room
Exhibition of Old Scholars’ books – Committee Room
Art exhibition – Art Centre
Tour of school with Elaine – meet at Reception
Observatory open
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| 15 00 – 16 30 | Afternoon tea
|
| 16 30 | Group photograph
|
| 18 30 – 22 30 | Gala Dinner in marquee on site
Reception and welcome drink Three course dinner with coffee Speeches from members of the Old Scholars’ community
Black tie optional
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Bicentenary Campaign
The time has come to renovate the Hall.
