EVENWOOD NATIONAL SCHOOL.

The original National School, mixed and infants, was built on land given by the late John Bowes Esq., and was opened in January 1865. The school was not finished and was so small that all children under 6 were excluded. The Head was assisted by Mrs. Dodds and a young girl, Margaret Howe who was the apprentice pupil teacher. The vicar was Rev. C.E. Palmer. The school log reads:

“Opened our school this morning and admitted 57 children…The children I find very backward indeed the system of education carried out in the village being very defective after the manner of the old dames’ schools.”

In 1894, it was described as:

“It is a fair building of stone, capable of accommodating 220, having an average attendance of nearly 200. The infant room was added in 1886, at a cost of £200; the total cost of the whole, including fence, was about £700.”

Below, the plan shows its location.

1897 the school was extended and there were 366 pupils. The school has only had 14 headmasters, 11 between the opening and 1888.

Below: Early football success – 1902/03 season Evenwood School won the Gaunless & District Schools League

Below, the photo shows the National School before Shirley Terrace was built.

Below, a later photo.

Below: EVENWOOD NATIONAL SCHOOL FOOTBALL TEAM 1910 – 1911

SOME COMMENTS ON THOSE IN THE PHOTO. MANY SERVED IN THE FIRST WORLD WAR.

Back Row: R. WALLING: Lived at Oaks House in 1911 [born 9 February 1899], Likely to be ROBERT WALLING whose brother was Private John Walling 6/DLI died of wounds 8 March 1917.

J. PRIESTLEY: Evenwood Gate in 1911 [born 20 March 1898], Likely to be JAMES PRIESTLEY [Gordon Lane], 82011 Private J. Priestley, 2nd Reserve Cavalry Regiment.

G. CLENNELL: West View in 1911 [19 February 1897] Likely to be GEORGE EDWARD CLENNELL [7 West View], 447794 Private G.E. Clennell, 205th Employment Company.

Third Row: Mr. T. BRIGGS [Headmaster]: West View in 1911.

A DUNN [Linesman]: South View in 1911, then 15 years old. Likely to be ARTHUR DUNN [1 South View] M12237 RN HMS Birkenhead.

W. PARKIN: Oaks Bank in 1911. Likely to be WILLIAM PARKIN [9 Copley Bent] 83650 Gunner R.G.A.

A.L. DANIEL: Stones End in 1911. Likely to be ARTHUR LLEWELLYAN DANIEL [10 Shirley Terrace] 249598 Sapper Arthur Daniels, RE 34th Division Signals.

R. ARMSTRONG: Nothing found yet.

Rev. G.J. COLLIS: GEORGE JENNINGS COLLIS was the sixth vicar of St. Paul’s, following Rev. H. J. H. Faulkener in 1908. He was to remain vicar for ten years until his sudden death in September 1918 aged 47.

Second row: C. CHAPMAN: Oaks Bank Born 19 August 1897, Likely to be CORNELIUS CHAPMAN

G. STONEBANK: Farncombe Terrace in 1911 born 24 October 1897, Likely to be GEORGE STONEBANK [Farncombe Terrace] 73958 Private George Stonebank, 4/DLI.

Mr. A. BLENKINSOP [Assistant]: West View in 1911. Born 19 February 1888. Likely to be ARNOLD BLENKINSOP, who served in the Canadian Expeditionary Force, 184th Battalion, service no.874455, having emigrated to Winnipeg, Manitoba. His brother was S/12112 Private Joseph Blenkinsop, Royal Highlanders (Black Watch), wounded 14 July 1916 during the Battle of the Somme which necessitated the amputation of his left arm.

J. NEASHAM: Swan Street in 1911 born 31 December 1896. Likely to be JOHN NEASHAM

Mr. J.R. BOUCH [Assistant in charge]: South View in 1911, born 29 January 1878. JOHN RAVELL BOUCH, the schoolmaster at Evenwood National School. He was also the honourable secretary of Evenwood Crusaders football team and choirmaster. He departed the village on being appointed Headmaster at Eaglescliffe National School in the Spring of 1912.

R. McCONNELL: Copeland Lane in 1911 born 19 March 1897. Likely to be ROBERT GRAHAM McCONNELL [Copeland] M21435 RN HMS Conqueror.

J. BANKS: Copeland Lane in 1911. Likely to be JOHN BANKS bc.1898

Front Row: T. MASON: Chapel Street. Likely to be THOMAS MASON bc.1898

B. MAUGHAN: Rose Villa born 21 January 1898. Likely to be BERTRAND MAUGHAN

T.W. GIBSON: Esperley Lane, born 21 November 1897. Likely to be THOMAS W. GIBSON [Esperley Lane] 56781 RN HMS Prince of Wales.

W.L. BOUCH: WILLIAM LAWRENCE BOUCH, bc. 1905, son of J.R. BOUCH (the schoolmaster)

7 June 1919, THOMAS BRIGGS Elementary Schoolmaster died of pneumonia, aged 61. He had served 31 years as Head Teacher. He was succeeded by Mr. R.L. WHITE, who held the position until 1942.

Below: Two photographs of Thomas Briggs’ headstone in Evenwood Cemetery.

Below: EVENWOOD NATIONAL SCHOOL TEACHING STAFF

Teachers: Back row, second left, JAMES HALSTEAD NUTTER 1888 – 1956. He served as, 64337 Serjeant J.H. Nutter, Royal Army Medical Corps and was awarded the Military Medal. He survived the war and continued his profession as a school teacher at Evenwood and then as Head Master at Cockfield. He retired in 1949.

At the front, kneeling: Claude Cree who lived at Gainford.

IT SEEMS THAT ABOUT 1920, THE NAME WAS CHANGED TO EVENWOOD CHURCH OF ENGLAND SCHOOL

Below: 1920 school photo, Evenwood CE Infants

Below: 1922: Evenwood CE Infants

THERE FOLLOWS A SELECTION OF MORE RECENT PHOTOS OF EVENWOOD SCHOOL

In 1942, Mr. WILLIAM “BILL” JOHNSON was appointed Head Master at Evenwood C.E. School. His Majesty’s Inspector (HMI) report of 1937 stated,

“The school is housed in drab and inconvenient building surrounded by an unpaved and unsightly playground.”

1942: War-time in the school yard

Below: Standing Left Bobby Corner, ?,

Back Row Left, Jean Watson, Audrey Welsh, Margaret Yole, Enid Maughan

Middle Row Left, David Penman, Colin Blackett. Kenneth Hamilton, Norman Towers,

Bottom Row left, Brian Woolard, John Richardson, Donald Gallager.

Below: School Football Team

Back Row: David Penman, Reg Lowe, Alan Brown, Denis Lowe, Billy Towers, Max Atkinson

Front: George Maughan, Norman Towers, Ron Tate, Harry Thompson, Jackie Bell.

The 1944 Education Act brought free school milk, school meals were provided, the school leaving age was raised to 15 and schools were taken into County Council control meaning that the Church Authorities were relieved of its duty to maintain the school. Another breakthrough of the Act was that women could continue their profession as a teacher after marriage. Prior to this, when a woman got married, she left the profession. However, any improvements had to wait, Britain was recovering from a war and there were competing priorities for scant resources – a familiar tale.

Barbara Laurie’s booklet, “A Lifetime in Schools 1910-1966” provided details from her father, Bill Johnson’s career in education. He stated that, “The place was a wreck.” It was in a dilapidated condition, very cold, “Nothing heated the place like the children themselves”. Four of the rooms had old fashioned fire places, the other rooms had free standing coke stoves. It had high ceilings. The first job in winter was to gather all the ink wells and stand them around the fires to thaw out the ink. The classrooms were lit by gas which had been put in by the colliery company. There was no staffroom or Headmaster’s office – all clerical work was done on a classroom table. There were no washbasins in the cloakrooms, cold water in brown earthenware sinks. The only hot water was in the cookery room. The school yard was not tarmacked, it was clay and ashes had to be spread over it to provide some form of surface, Toilets were shared between staff and pupils, across the yard. They were flushed automatically once a day from a single cistern, which often broke down. They were the “old netties” – a hole in a board above the “dump”. Mrs Mason was the caretaker – her first job was to clean out 9 fires each day. Despite these unpalatable conditions, Mr. Johnson stated,

“It was a nice school, They were nice children, a nice staff, nice parents, a nice atmosphere.”

The HMI was heard to say,

“What polite children. Everyone spoke to me as I came into the school yard.”

There was no school uniform, since the parents couldn’t afford it. There was no funding for games but despite this the school football team thrived.

1951 HMI report outlined the above conditions and more and encouraged the County Council to undertake improvements. There was praise for staff and pupils. Mr. Johnson, Mr. Mitchel and the Willan sisters were afforded particular praise. Of the pupils, it was stated,

“The children, whose manners are extremely good, are full of interest. They seem quite capable of adding considerably to the liveliness of their work without any sacrifice of the existing tradition of neat and careful presentation.”

School meals provision came in September1951 with the Central Kitchen which sent meals out to Toft Hill and Ramshaw.

1951: Festival of Britain – a school trip to London lasting 8 days – sleeping in the underground shelters!

1952: the football team were League Champions.

March 1954 – electricity arrived at the school!

1955: Mr. Bowron accompanied Jackie Bell, as a reserve at international football matches at Cardiff and Wembley.

February 1963: hot water was put into the pupils’ cloakrooms.

1963 May 7: With the opening of Staindrop Modern School, new staffing arrangements were introduced;

Evenwood School – John Bowron, Elsie Stephenson, Fred Jebson, Heather Shilvock, Elizabeth Dodson, Sarah Dowson and Bill Johnson.

Staindrop Modern School – Lily Waistell, Hilda Stobbs.

Cockton Hill – John Ridley.

Evenwood would say goodbye to its senior pupils.

1965: Centenary of the school.

1966: Bill Johnson retired.

Below: Bill Johnson (Head) bottom right, with his staff, Mrs. Waistell, John Bowron and Ray Angus at the back, Mrs. Brown next to Mr. Johnson.

Below: John Bowron

Below: EVENWOOD STAFF:

Back left to right: Norman Walker; Miss Wilkinson; Heather Shilvock; Gillian Hunt; John Bowron

Front: Eva Hill; Kathleen MacMillan; Bill Johnson (Head); Lily Waistell; Elsie Stephenson

Below: 1946/47 Evenwood Percussion Band

EVENWOOD SCHOOL PERCUSSION BAND 1946/47: SOME NAMES

Back row: ? Metcalfe, Brian Woollard, Donald Gallagher, Mary Anderson, Nellie Hull, Ruby Walling, Kathleen Wren, unknown, unknown

2nd back row: Kenneth Steel, John Vennard, Ronnie Tate, unknown, Jean Watson, Jean Tallentire, Barbara Hull, ? Coates, Kenneth Hamilton, Lance Brown, unknown

2nd front row: John Richardson, unknown, Margaret Yole, unknown, Noreen Stones?, Rosalind Whitaker?, unknown, Colin Blackett

Front row: John Vennard?, unknown, unknown, ?Hall, Sheila Brown, Enid Maughan, Luther Welford?, unknown, George Gallagher, unknown

Below: c.1950