AU10/80/1

Letter from Edward Fielder at Kilburn [Middlesex] to Andrew Underwood, then at Culham College relating his experiences at school in Ampthill and elsewhere: - entered National Infant School under Miss Cowper in 1871, aged 5 and transferred to the Boys Department aged 7, being apprenticed Pupil Teacher at 14 for four years then from 1884 being Assistant master at various schools including 36 years in London; - early education was in the hands of the National Society for the Propagation of the Gospel and the Foreign & British Bible Society; in 1871 School Boards were introduced by Gladstone's government [Council Schools from 1902 and County Primaries from 1944]; Hastings, Duke of Bedford was a great friend of Gladstone and followed the new Board School idea, erecting two new ones at Maulden and Steppingley; - Ampthill had competing National and British schools, the latter, near the Alameda, [in existence from around 1844] closing in about 1880, later being reopened by Wesleyan Methodists [1891] and in 1956 a County Primary [it had merged with the old National School in 1954]; - the National School was in existence in 1854 [created 1845] and in 1884 staff consisted of a headmaster - [George Andrew] Ferraby - and 2 pupil teachers, pupils numbering about 120; the Girls School mistress was Miss Crick with 2 pupil teachers and about 90 pupils; the Infants school had about 100 pupils; - the National Boys School had produced four ministers of religion, three Anglicans and one Methodist; the writer's brother was a pupil teacher in 1873 and eventually became Rector of the University of Melbourne [Australia] and member of the Microscopical Society of London; - a Culham College student was for some years headmaster at the National School and was choir master at the church but the Rector, Seymour Nicholls [sic] "took a dislike to him, so he resigned"; - Lord Wensleydale was one of the National School managers when the writer was a pupil and the Lowthers of Park House [see AU10/68] took an interest, House of Commons Speaker, Viscount Ullswater frequently visiting the school; - Headmaster of the Boys School whilst the writer was a pupil was [Thomas Henry] le Boeuf from Jersey, later Rector of Crowland; - Miss Cowper lived in a cottage near the Police Station; Mrs.Wildman, wife of a local builder [John] lived next to the Albion in Dunstable Street; - Miss Marshall kept a private school near the church in a cottage at time of writing inhabited by the widow of Sir Anthony Wingfield's gardener; - Miss Chater kept a private school in Church Street in a house opposite "The Old Gates"

28 May 1956

From: 1844 To: 1956

item

Fielder, Edward,
Underwood, Andrew Grimmer,
Cowper, Ellen,
Chater, Mary,
National Society for the Propagation of the Gospel,
Foreign & British Bible Society,
Gladstone, William Ewart,
Bedford, Francis Charles Hastings Russell, 9th Duke of,
Wensleydale, James Parke [1st Baron],
Ferraby, George Andrew,
Crick,
Nichol, John George Scrymsour,
Ullswater, James W.Lowther, Viscount,
le Boeuf, Thomas Henry,
Wildman, John,
Wingfield, Anthony Henry

Culham Training College, teachers, pupil teachers, House of Commons, Ampthill National School, Ampthill British School, clergy names index, Russell School, Melbourne University, clergy names index, church choirs, Ampthill Albion, private schools Ampthill, Culham, Culham House, AMPTHILL, MAULDEN, STEPPINGLEY, Ampthill Dunstable Street, Ampthill Alameda, Australia Melbourne, Ampthill Park House, Crowland, Ampthill Church Street, Ampthill The Old Gates