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These recollections of elementary schooling for a working class family in the early 1900s in north London (then Middlesex) are through the eyes of a child. They were written in the 1980s by my mother, Florence Edith Clarke (born Cole), and are here as a service to other researchers and a tribute to her memory. |
Silver Street School, Edmonton |
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My brothers and I went to an elementary school in Silver Street, Edmonton. It was under the Middlesex Education Board, so was known as a Board School. It was well situated, being at the end of the housing district. There were two storeys to the school building. Infants were on the ground floor, girls on the first, and the boys on the top floor. There were two playgrounds. One for the infants and girls and a separate one for the boys who had to be kept separate. There was a small field or playing ground at the end which was turned into an allotment during the 1914-18 war, and worked by the boys. There was also a cycle shed for the staff as they mostly arrived by bike. I like to picture them. No cocking a leg or dashing along for them. The women would cycle along at a dignified pace with their cycle baskets in front of them, and the headmaster would get on to his bike with precision. There was a little bit of metal on the middle of the back wheel that he would step on to, to go get himself onto the saddle. He was a well built, grey headed, imposing man who looked as though he was in command of any situation. We started school at 9.00. Dinner-time (or lunch-time as it would be called now) was from twelve until two, and home-time was at four. Most children brought something with them to school to eat in the playground at morning break, usually a slice of bread and butter. No food or drink was provided. One of the things that stands out in my mind was being given a tray of sand to write out my letters with my fingers. It had the advantage that there was no serious rubbing out to do. To start afresh, all we needed to do was to shake the tray. Afterwards came slate and a slate pencil, which was very dirty because we would spit on the slate to rub bits out. There were no ballpoint pens. Later came pens with nibs which had to be repeatedly dipped in ink, and the nibs got twisted and had to be replaced quite frequently. Each child’s desk had an inkpot made of white china which was set into a specially made hole. Ink pots were filled each week by children who the teacher designated as class monitors. The ink never seemed to stay where it was supposed to. Somehow it always travelled up our second fingers and we had to be very careful indeed not to get blots onto our clothes or our exercise books, which was very frowned upon. We also had chalks which seemed to me to be even more trouble. This was because I, like most girls, wore a pinafore over my dress. Pinafores were white and sleeveless with frills round the armholes. Some were embroidered, some had a ribbon threaded through them and were very pretty. One day I got my pinafore in an awful mess at school with the chalks, and I was afraid to go home. The girl who lived next door and was much older than me found me crying. She took me home and explained what has happened to my mother. The average number of children in each class was sixty. The floor of the class was tiered like a lecture theatre. There were benches for the children to sit on and a high chair for the teacher. Also there was a coal fire, which it was the caretaker’s job to look after. (Either then or a few years later, the caretaker's name was Mr Shadwell*), He had a house just inside the playground, and every winter evening he would have to fill each coal scuttle with coal and firewood. Old exercise books were used for paper. One of my teachers would hide away some of the coal in a cupboard on mild days for use later when it was cold. When the headmistress found out, the teacher was reprimanded. All these fireplaces had to be cleaned, which was the job of the school caretaker. He was a very quiet man and never encouraged anyone to talk to him. He also had to clean the lavatories. They consisted of about eight cubicles, housed in one building with the sewage pipe going the whole length. They couldn’t be flushed every time they were used and had to be flushed out all together from time to time, probably overnight. Another of the caretaker's jobs was to ring the school bell. There was a first and second bail. The first bell called us to school and the second was to remind us that if we didn't we would would be late. Checks were made on absentees from school by an inspector called the “school board man”. He would make enquiries if a child was absent for any length of time, then send in his report. The inspector who came to our house was respected. He always more sombre clothes and went around on a bike. He lived in a very nice house. One of my pleasant memories from school was Empire Day. Alas that is no more. On Empire Day the girls wore red, white and blue ribbons in their hair. The Union Jack would be in much evidence on public buildings and the church. The highlight as far as we children were concerned was the parade in the playground. Each child would have a paper flag of a different colour and there would be a march passed to the dignitaries who assembled along with the headmistress on the step in the playground. They included someone from the Board of Education and maybe the parson. Then we would sing stirring patriotic songs like Rule Britannia, Land of Hope and Glory, and of course the National Anthem. Finally there were three cheers. I loved it. I still love a bit of pomp and pageantry. If I see the Household Cavalry, I’m all British and proud of it. The climax to empire day was a half day holiday. Another pleasant memory of school was May Day. The may pole would be erected in the hall or the playground. It was lovely to see the boys and girls intertwine the gay ribbons. I never took part. My brother Jim did, and my mother made him a smock as worn by the old country yokels. There would sometimes be horses with nosegays in their harness. Sometimes in the summertime horses would wear little straw ear covers. I suppose this was because of the flies. I can just recall the coronation of Queen Mary and George. It was 1911. I recall each child finding a coronation mug and a bag of sweets on her desk. We also had a half day holiday then. I have two unpleasant memories of schooldays: One unpleasant memory was when my mother refused to have my hair tied back as required by the school. My father went up to the school about it and even wrote to the Board of Education. The reply was that it wasn’t a byelaw but a request as a precaution to control head vermin. For some reason my father refused to comply, and I was singled out the school. The teachers used to have a cup of tea at morning break on the landing, and the next day as we filed past them, my teacher pointed a finger at me and with all the venom she could muster, she said “That’s Florence Cole”. More repercussions were not long in coming. My mother had to go out for some reason and as my father was in bed, I had to stay away from school to be on hand for him. In the afternoon when I returned to school and was in the assembly line in the playground, the teacher said so everyone could hear, “And where we you this morning Florence Cole?”. Childlike, I told the truth and said I had to look after my father. She in turn mimicked in a most derisory tone “She had to look after her father”, which of course brought peals of laughter from everyone. My father on the other hand received a letter from the Board of Education cautioning him that he would be summoned if his child did not attend school. My second unpleasant memory was when I was in trouble again with the same mistress. It was a needlework lesson and we were making pillow cases. At the end of the lesson we had to fold up the cases and were delighting in getting as much air into them as possible and causing a bang when we folded them. The mistress got annoyed that afternoon and said the next girl to do it would have to come out to the front. It so happened that I, along with my friends had some balloons. They must have been very cheap as they would not blow up easily. During this lesson my friend told me to blow mine up, and I had a go. Before it was any size, it burst. Immediately the mistress demanded, "Who did that?", thinking it was a pillow case. Some little tell-tale said it was Florence Cole who burst a balloon. I was sent to stand in the hall so that the headmistress would see me, which she did. After hearing my story, she gave me a letter to take home to my father asking for his opinion about what they should do. Should they cane me? My father’s answer was yes. When she read the letter she told me that she was loath to do that as it would be a disgrace and my name would have to go down in the black book. So after another little pep talk, I was dismissed. You can see that I was often in trouble at school. Yet I had two prizes for good behaviour. One was a print of a well-known picture called “Between Two Fires”, the fires being two women who were either side of a dining room table with a solitary male sitting there. The second was a small Royal Dalton vase. ---- *Additional recollections contributed via Brenda Nobel, from her mother Wyn and her aunt Phyllis. They remember little Miss Payne who taught at Silver Street School and they think that eventually she became Headmistress. She evidently wore grey bloomers, that showed when she was on the rostrum also when she sat on the high chair at the front of the class. In fact she kept her handkerchief in a pocket in them. Despite her small stature Miss Payne used to terrify my Aunt when she read with great expression :- "Up the airey mountain and down the rushing glen, we daren't go a hunting for fear of little men". It obviously had a profound effect on my Aunt as she still remembers it at the age of 91. My Mother is 85. Nurse Faye was the nit nurse! Also they spoke of the School Board Man. To the left of the school was School Farm. |