Dunstable Grammar School was a

grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary school ...

in the

market town A market town is a settlement most common in Europe that obtained by custom or royal charter, in the Middle Ages, a market right, which allowed it to host a regular market; this distinguished it from a village or city. In Britain, small rural ...

Dunstable Dunstable ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Bedfordshire, England, east of the Chiltern Hills, north of London. There are several steep chalk escarpments, most noticeable when approaching Dunstable from the ...

Bedfordshire Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council wa ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. Opened in 1888, it was closed in 1971. AshtonSchool

The site is now home to residential flats and apartments.

Foundation

Dunstable Grammar School was established by the Trustees of the Almshouse Charity created by the Will of Frances Ashton. Hence the inscription on the building which says:

Construction

New school buildings were constructed in 1887 on the northern side of Dunstable for the Trustees of Frances Ashton's charity, and in 1888 the school opened with 49 pupils. The first headmaster was L. C. R. Thring, of the Thring family of Uppingham which included the educationist

Edward Thring Edward Thring (29 November 1821 – 22 October 1887) was a celebrated British educator. He was headmaster of Uppingham School (1853–1887) and founded the Headmasters' Conference in 1869. Life Thring was born at Alford, Somerset, the son of th ...

(1821-1887), headmaster of

Uppingham School Uppingham School is a public school (English independent day and boarding school for pupils 13-18) in Uppingham, Rutland, England, founded in 1584 by Robert Johnson (rector), Robert Johnson, the Archdeacon of Leicester, who also established Oa ...

. By 1917, the school had grown to 67 boarders and 100 day boys. A school library was built in memory of the former pupils who died in the

Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sou ...

and the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, and a memorial in the library commemorated the names of the sixty-two boys who gave their lives, including Ashton Edward Thring, the only son of the school's first headmaster. and the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

winner, Lieutenant-Colonel Edward Henderson.History
at dunstableschool.co.uk (G. G. Henderson appears on the memorial)

Closure

The school remained in its purpose-built home from 1888 until 1971, when it was closed with the coming of the new comprehensive system of education. The remaining schoolteachers and pupils moved to a new school at the opposite end of the town, the Manshead Upper School (now

Manshead CE Academy Manshead CE Academy is a Mixed-sex education, mixed Church of England Academy, secondary academy and sixth form located on the outskirts of both Caddington and Dunstable in Bedfordshire, England. The academy (surrounded by countryside and hills ...

Use of the buildings

The original Grammar School building was modernised and since 1973 has housed the

Ashton Middle School Ashton (Church of England) Middle School was a Middle Schools in England, middle school in Dunstable, Bedfordshire, England, under the Central Bedfordshire Local Education Authority. Intake came from lower schools in the town and surrounding vi ...

, for children aged nine to thirteen.

Notable former pupils

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, commanded the final

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commercial flight from New York to London, 24 October 2003 *

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, author, ''Dunstable in Detail'' is a standard reference for the town and includes details about the Grammar School *

Gary Cooper Gary Cooper (born Frank James Cooper; May 7, 1901May 13, 1961) was an American actor known for his strong, quiet screen persona and understated acting style. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice and had a further three nominations, a ...

, (known as Frank Cooper while at school), actor and starred in many

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

films, e.g. ''

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'' (1952) * Graeme Paul Knowles,

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from 2007 to 2011 *

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, actor who appeared in many films and on TV (e.g. as Mr Walton in the UK soap-opera ''

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'') *

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, TV presenter, ''

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'' * Geoffrey Moore CBE, Chairman of

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from 1979–81 and President of the

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(SMMT) from 1981–82 *

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(1885–1952), cricketer and medical doctor *

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(1920-2008), professor of medicine and humanitarian who revolutionized maternity care in the UK *

Khawaja Nazimuddin Sir Khawaja Nazimuddin ( bn, খাজা নাজিমুদ্দীন; ur, ; 19 July 1894 – 22 October 1964) was a Pakistani politician and one of the leading founding fathers of Pakistan. He is noted as being the first Bengali to hav ...

, second Prime Minister of

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(1951-1953), visited his old school dormitory in 1952 * William Willis, Liberal MP for

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from 1880-5 * Roger Parrott, actor -

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, as Prime Minister

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. * Anthony Taylor GM (1946-1951)

References

External links

Dunstable School Old Boys' Association website

Dunstable School website
{{Bedfordshire CCC Educational institutions established in 1888 Defunct grammar schools in England Dunstable Defunct schools in Central Bedfordshire District Educational institutions disestablished in 1971 1888 establishments in England 1971 disestablishments in England