St. John's College, Jaffna

St. John's College ( ''Ceṉ. Yōvāṉ Kallūri'', SJC) is a private school in Jaffna, Sri Lanka. Founded in 1823 by British Anglican missionaries, it is one of Sri Lanka's oldest schools.

History

In 1817 the Anglican Church Mission Society (CMS) approved the establishment of missions in Ceylon. On 20 December 1817 four clergymen – Joseph Knight, Samuel Lambrick, Robert Major and Benjamin Ward – and their wives left England and sailed to Ceylon on board the ''Vittoria''. They arrived in late June 1818. Knight went to Jaffna, Lambrick went to Colombo, Major and his wife went to Galle and Ward and his wife to Trincomalee. Knight started his missionary work in 1818 in Nallur.

The Nallur English Seminary was established in March 1823 by Knight. The school had only 7 students and was located in Knight's bungalow. In 1845 the school was relocated to Chundikuli and renamed the Chundikuli Seminary.

In the same year the Church Mission Society took over the old Portuguese St. John the Baptist church. In 1846 the school moved into a hall next to the church. The church was demolished in 1859 and replaced by the current church.

The school was renamed St. John's College in 1891. The free education system was introduced by the government in 1945 but SJC chose to remain outside the system. In 1951 SJC joined the free education system. Most private schools in Ceylon were taken over by the government in 1960 but SJC chose to remain as a private and non-fee levying school.

SJC's principal C. E. Anandarajah was shot dead on 26 June 1985 in Jaffna. It is alleged that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam assassinated Anandarajan for organising a cricket match with the Sri Lankan military.

Big Match

SJC plays Jaffna Central College in the annual cricket match known as the "''Battle of the North''". The first match took place in 1904. This is the longest running cricket encounter in the Jaffna peninsula and the 3rd oldest cricket encounter in Sri lanka

Principals

* 1823-1825 Rev. Joseph Knight
* 1825-1839 Rev. W. Adley
* 1839-1841 Rev. F. W. Taylor
* 1841-1846 Rev. I. T. Johnstone
* 1846-1866 Rev. R. Pargiter
* 1866-1874 Rev. T. Good
* 1874-1878 Rev. D. Wood
* 1878-1879 Rev. E. Blackmore
* 1879-1889 Rev. G. T. Fleming
* 1889-1892 Rev. C. C. Handy (Acting)
* 1892-1895 Rev. J. W. Fall
* 1895-1899 Rev. I. Carter
* 1899-1900 Rev. R. W. Ryde
* 1900-1919 Rev. Jacob Thompson
* 1919 Rev. K. C. Mc Pherson (Acting)
* 1920-1940 Rev. Henry Peto
* 1940-1957 Rev. J. T. Arulanantham
* 1957-1959 P. T. Mathai
* 1959-1966 A. W. Rajasekeram
* 1967-1976 K. Pooranampillai
* 1976-1985 C. E. Anandarajan
* 1985-1987 T. Gunaseelan
* 1987 K. Pooranampillai
* 1988-1993 Dr. E. S. Thevasagayam
* 1990-1993 S. Thanapalan (Acting)
* 1993-2006 S. Thanapalan
* 2006-2019 Rev. N. J. Gnanaponrajah
* 2019 Ven. Samuel J. Ponniah (Acting)
* 2020- V. S. B. Thuseetharan

Notable alumni

See also

* List of schools in Northern Province, Sri Lanka

Notes

References

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External links

St. John's College

Old Boys Association

Old Boys Association, Sydney, Australia

Old Boys Association, Victoria, Australia

Old Boys Association, South Sri Lanka

Chundikuli St. John's Past Pupils Association, UKA

Church of Ceylon - The Anglican Church in Sri Lanka

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint John's College, Jaffna

1823 establishments in Ceylon
Boys' schools in Sri Lanka
Church of Ceylon schools in the Diocese of Colombo
Educational institutions established in 1823
Private schools in Sri Lanka
Schools in Jaffna