Baptist Boys' High School gate, Abeokuta

Baptist Boys High School, main gate, Oke saje, Abeokuta, Ogun state

Baptist Boys’ High School is a secondary school in

Abeokuta Abeokuta is the capital city of Ogun State in southwest Nigeria. It is situated on the east bank of the Ogun River, near a group of rocky outcrops in a wooded savanna; north of Lagos by railway, or by water. , Abeokuta and the surrounding are ...

Ogun State Ogun State is a state in southwestern Nigeria. Created on 3 February 1976 from the former Western State. Ogun State borders Lagos State to the south, Oyo State and Osun State to the north, Ondo State to the east, and the Republic of Benin to the ...

, south-west

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

. It had a student body of 1,100 students as of the 2011–12 academic year.The Trumpeter (2012) ‘Students in the boarding house’, The Trumpeter, Volume 14, Issue 3, p. 2, Summer/Spring, 2012; BBHA OBA: London, UK. The student population has decreased by almost half from the peak of 2155 in 1998–1999 academic year,Aroyeun, G.O. (2000) School Situation Report, Nulli Secundus, Annual Magazine of the Baptist Boys’ High School Old Boys Association, Edition II, Millennium 2000, pp.15-17. partly in response to a concern about overcrowded facilities. BBHS is on its permanent site, Oke-Saje.

History

Baptist Boys’ High School was founded by the American

Southern Baptist Convention The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination, and the largest Protestant and second-largest Christian denomination in the United States. The wor ...

, whose Foreign Mission Board started work in Abeokuta on August 5, 1850, with the arrival of the first missionary, Reverend Thomas Jefferson BowenAdemola, A. S. (2010) Baptist Work in Nigeria, 1850-2005: A Comprehensive History Ibadan, Nigeria: Book Wright Publishers. As well as preaching the gospel, the American Southern Baptist mission to Nigeria provided schools, hospitals, teacher training and theological colleges.Akande, S.T.O. (1978) Presidential Address, 65th Annual Session of the Nigerian Baptist Convention, Kaduna, April 5, 1978, The Nigerian Baptist, June 1978, p. 13.Griffin, B.T. (1939) ‘New Missionaries Teaching in Nigeria’, Baptist Messenger, The First Baptist Church, 7 December 1939. Available: http://ds.bgco.org/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-8651/December%207,%201939.pdf; accessed: 12.1.13 The Nigerian Baptist Mission, an arm of its American counterpart, established three primary schools at Ago-Owu, Ago-Ijaye and Oke-saje.Ogunleye, J. (2012) ‘Rev S.G. Pinnock – a focus on the pioneer principal of BBHS’, The Trumpeter, Volume 14, Issue 1, Winter, 2012; BBHA OBA: London, UK. After rapid growth of the Owu school to about 150 students,Pinnock, S.G. (1917) The Romance of Missions in Nigeria, (Bibliobazear) Educational Department, FMB, SBC, Richmond, Virginia, USA. Reverend Samuel George Pinnock was directed by the Mission to set up a post primary school to educate children from the three feeder primary schools. In 1916 Pinnock identified and chose the site, Egunya Hill, and negotiated the purchase of the land. The building of the school was delayed because of the effect of World War I on the cost of building materials. However, in early 1922 Pinnock oversaw the construction of the Principal's Quarters, which also doubled as Abeokuta Mission House; a block of five classrooms, a chapel, and a dormitory for boys. In 1922 Pinnock selected a group of advanced students from the three feeder primary schools at Ago-Owu, Ago-Ijaye and Oke-saje, and these formed the first class of the school. He opened Baptist Boys’ High School on January 23, 1923, with 75 students and four teachers (including his wife, Madora Pinnock). The opening ceremony attracted 2000 guests. The guest speaker was Professor Nathaniel Oyerinde, a teacher at the Baptist Academy, Ogbomoso, and Nigeria's first Baptist Professor. Baptist Boys’ High School was set up as, and still remains, a boys-only school, although it became a mixed school very briefly in 1969 and 1970 following the introduction of the Higher School Certificate by the school board of governors. The school grew to 400 by December 1946, and to 1110 as of 2011–2012 academic year. The school remained at Egunya Hill until 1969, at which time it was moved to Oke-Saje. Boarding students are accommodated in hostels, but the number of boarding students has declined progressively over time – from 513 in 1998-1999 to 36 in 2011–2012 academic year.

Organisation

*Schools: BBHS has two divisions, the Junior Secondary School and the Senior Secondary School, each of three-year duration. *Houses: Students are grouped into four houses appropriately for ‘inter-house’ sports competitions. Bowen House is named after Reverend Thomas Jefferson Bowen, pioneer American Southern Baptist missionary to Nigeria.Sprenkle, S. (2000) ‘Nigerian Baptists celebrated 150 years of Baptist witness and ministry’, IN BRIEF, April 15–20, 2000; available at http://www.imb.org/main/news/details.asp?LanguageID=1709&StoryID=518; accessed: 10.1.13. Pinnock House is named after the founding principal of BBHS, the Reverend Samuel Gorge Pinnock. Agboola House is named after the Reverend Emmanuel Oladele Agboola; he was the chairman of the board of governors of BBHS (1958-1971)Akano, O. O. (2010) ‘Agboola, Emmanuel Oladele (1903 to 1988) Nigerian Baptist Convention’, Dictionary of African Christian Biography, available at: http://www.dacb.org/stories/nigeria/agboola_emmanuel.html; accessed: 14.1.2013. and a Baptist preacher. Aloba House was named after a former BBHS teacher.

Alumni Association

BBHS Old Boys Association has branches in the UK/Ireland, USA/Canada, Abeokuta, Ibadan, Ijebu Ode, Lagos and Abuja.

Notable alumni

Obafemi Awolowo Chief Obafemi Jeremiah Oyeniyi Awolowo (; 6 March 1909 – 9 May 1987) was a Yoruba nationalist and Nigerian statesman who played a key role in Nigeria's independence movement (1957-1960). Awolowo founded the Yoruba nationalist group Egbe Om ...

Olusegun Obasanjo Chief Olusegun Matthew Okikiola Ogunboye Aremu Obasanjo, , ( ; yo, Olúṣẹ́gun Ọbásanjọ́ ; born 5 March 1937) is a Nigerian political and military leader who served as Nigeria's head of state from 1976 to 1979 and later as its pres ...

Bola Ajibola Bolasodun Adesumbo "Bola" Ajibola, KBE (born March 22, 1934)Mielle K. Bulterman, Martin KuijeCompliance with judgments of international courts/ref> was Attorney General and the Minister of Justice of Nigeria from 1985 to 1991 and a Judge of the ...

Gbenga Daniel Gbenga Daniel (born 6 April 1956) is a Nigerian politician and Governor of Ogun State of Nigeria from 29 May 2003 to 29 May 2011. He is the owner of Kresta Laurel, an Electro-mechanical Engineering company, he started in 1990. He is also the F ...

Moshood Abiola Moshood Kashimawo Olawale Abiola , also known as M. K. O. Abiola (24 August 1937 – 7 July 1998) was a Nigerian businessman, publisher, and politician. He was the Aare Ona Kankafo XIV of Yorubaland and an aristocrat of the Egba clan. M.K.O ...

Dimeji Bankole Sabur Oladimeji "Dimeji" Bankole (born 14 November 1969) is a Nigerian politician who served as the 9th Speaker of the House of Representatives of Nigeria. Elected at the age of 37, Bankole is the youngest Speaker in the history of the House ...

* Thomas Adeoye Lambo * Adegboyega Dosunmu Amororo II * Oyeleye Oyediran *

Olawale Adeniji Ige Olawale Adeniji Ige MFR (13 October 1938 – 9 May 2022) was a Nigerian electrical engineer and former Minister of the Federal Ministry of Communications (1990–1992). He also served as the Minister of the Federal Ministry of Aviation (1993) ...

* Kayode Soyinka * Onaolapo Soleye * Sunday Afolabi *

Adedotun Aremu Gbadebo III Adedotun Aremu Gbadebo III (born 14 September 1943) is the current Alake of Egba, a clan in Abeokuta, Nigeria. He has ruled since 2 August 2005. Early life Gbadebo was born on 14 September 1943, into the Laarun Ruling House. He is a grandson of ...

Alani Bankole Chieftain, Chief Suarau Olayiwola Alani Bankole (born September 17, 1941) is a Nigerian Egba people, Egba businessman and chieftain from Ogun State. He was the Chairman of West African Aluminum Products Plc. He holds the Yoruba people, Yoruba Niger ...

Photo gallery

File:Baptist_Boys_High_School%2C_Uniform_statue%2C_Oke_saje%2C_Abeokuta%2C_Ogun_state.jpg, Student Outfit File:Baptist Boys High School, (OGD) hall, Oke saje, Abeokuta, Ogun state.jpg, Baptist Boys High School, (OGD) hall, Oke saje, Abeokuta, Ogun state File:Baptist Boys High School, Old hall, Oke saje, Abeokuta, Ogun state.jpg, Baptist Boys High School, Old hall, Oke saje, Abeokuta, Ogun state File:BBHS2.jpg, Baptist Boys High School food vendor hall File:BBHS3.jpg, Baptist Boys High School clinic File:BBHS4.jpg, Baptist Boys High School Physics and Chemistry Laboratory File:BBHS5.jpg, Baptist Boys High School newly renovated library File:BBHS7.jpg, some of the school boarders with an alumni File:BBHS8.jpg, portrait of a student of BBHS File:BBHS9.jpg, portrait of a student of BBHS Baptist Boys High School gate, Abeokuta2.jpg Baptist Boys High School gate, Abeokuta6.jpg Baptist Boys High School gate, Abeokuta7.jpg

References

External links

*https://web.archive.org/web/20130525083421/http://bbhsoba.com/ *https://web.archive.org/web/20130301061932/http://bbhsoba.org/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Baptist Boys' High School Secondary schools in Ogun State Schools in Abeokuta Educational institutions established in 1923 1923 establishments in Nigeria Baptist schools in Nigeria