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London Metropolitan Archives

CITY OF LONDON SCHOOL FOR GIRLS


IDENTITY STATEMENT

Reference code(s): CLA/054

Held at: London Metropolitan Archives

Title: CITY OF LONDON SCHOOL FOR GIRLS

Date(s): 1892- 2006

Level of description: Collection

Extent: 4.3 linear metres

Name of creator(s): Corporation of London

CONTEXT

Administrative/Biographical history:

The school was founded by William Ward (1797-1881) of Brixton who was a prosperous manufacturer. Upon his death in 1881, Ward bequeathed £20,000 to the City of London for building and maintaining a high school for girls. An act of parliament, Ward's City of London School for Girls Act, received the Royal Assent in 1885 and a site was chosen in the City of London at Carmelite Street.

In 1892, a scheme was drawn up by in the High Court of Justice 'For the establishment of a High School for Girls...by the 'Mayor and Commonalty and Citizens of the City of London'. The scheme set out that the Mayor Aldermen and Commons of the City of London 'shall exercise a general control over the Institution, and shall make such Rules and Regulations, for the conduct and management thereof'.

The school's first head mistress was Miss Alice Blagrave and the school was officially opened on 13 September 1894 with 53 students enrolled. By 1937, the school became overcrowded as enrolment increased to 360 students. In 1939, the school was extended into a building on Tudor Street. The expansion allowed an increase in accommodation to 400 students.

During the Second World War staff and pupils were evacuated to Ashtead, Surrey in September 1939 and then to Keighley, Yorkshire from October 1940 until 1943. The school re-opened in Carmelite Street in September, 1943.

In 1962, plans were made for the school to be moved to the proposed new Barbican development. A ceremony was held on 29 March 1965 for the laying of first foundation stone and the school was officially opened by HRH Princess Alexandra on 19 November 1969.

The school celebrated its centenary in 1994 with a visit from Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, who opened a new part of the building.

The first school leaver's decided to start an Old Girl's Association and on 29 July 1896, the first general meeting took place. The City of London Old Girl's Association also known as CLOGA, organises events such as school reunions and enables former students to maintain relationships with each other. It also raises scholarship funds for prospective students. The Old Girl's had a large reunion party as part of the schools centenary celebration, 1994 and about 600 former students attended. In the same year, the Old Girl's produced a cabaret about the history of the school entitled 'An Historical Extravaganza - The Talk of the City'.

CONTENT

Scope and content/abstract:

This collection contains City of London School for Girls administrative records (1895-2005), various printed material including school magazines (1890s-2006), visual material and artefacts including a large collection of photographs depicting pupils and staff (1890s-2004), records of societies connected to the school (such as Girl Guides and material of the City of London Old Girls' Association).

Records of particular interest are the Leaver's Service programmes which provide a fairly comprehensive list of pupils who attended the school. Also of interest are the prize giving programmes which are also useful for researching pupils and school magazines which provide detailed information on school activities, events and other developments.

ACCESS AND USE

Language/scripts of material: English

System of arrangement:

This collection has been arranged into five sections: ADMINISTRATION - CLA/054/A; PRINTED MATERIAL - CLA/054/B; VISUAL MATERIAL AND ARTEFACTS - CLA/054/C; SOCIETIES - CLA/054/D; CITY OF LONDON'S OLD GIRLS ASSOCIATION CLA/054/E.

Conditions governing access:

These records are available for public inspection, although records containing personal information are subject to access restrictions under the UK Data Protection Act, 1998.

Conditions governing reproduction:

Copyright: City of London.

Physical characteristics:

Finding aids:

Please see online catalogues at: http://search.lma.gov.uk/opac_lma/index.htm

ARCHIVAL INFORMATION

Appraisal, destruction and scheduling information:

Some matierial consisting largely of duplicate copies, was not considered worthy of long term preservation.

Accruals:

Archival history:

The City of London School for Girls records (CLA/054) were held by the City of London School for Girls library and the City of London Old Girls' Association. Some records were donated to the school by former students.

Immediate source of acquisition:

B05/113; B06/030; B06/128; MSS/101/12; MSS/310/13.

ALLIED MATERIALS

Existence and location of originals:

Existence and location of copies:

Related material:

For Corporation of London records relating to schools and education, see CLA/053: City of London School, CLA/054: City of London School for Girls, CLA/055: City of London Freemen's School, CLA/056: Guildhall School of Music and Drama, CLA/057: Morgan family, CLA/058: Dorothea Crompton, CLA/059: Maurice Cole, CLA/060: Madeline Payne, CLA/062: Gresham College and Royal Exchange, CLA/063: Education, CLA/067: Christ's Hospital, COL/CC/CLE: Court of Common Council City of London Education Committee, COL/CC/CLF: Board of Governors, City of London Freemen's School, COL/CC/CLFO: Court of Common Council City of London Freemen's Orphans School, COL/CC/CLG: Board of Governors, City of London School for Girls, COL/CC/CLS: Board of Governors, City of London School, COL/CC/CLSB: Court of Common Council City of London School Building Committee, COL/CC/CLSG: Court of Common Council City of London School for Girls Building Committee, COL/CC/CLSS: Court of Common Council City of London Schools Committee, COL/CC/EDC: Court of Common Council Education Committee, COL/CC/EEC: Court of Common Council Elementary Education Committee, COL/CC/GSMD: Board of Governors, Guildhall School of Music and Drama, COL/CC/LCE: Local Centres Examinations Board Executive Committee, COL/CC/MDC: Court of Common Council Music and Drama Committee, COL/CC/SCH: Court of Common Council City of London School Committee, COL/CC/SCS: Court of Common Council Schools Special Reference Committee, COL/CCS/SO: Comptroller and City Solicitor: Solicitor, COL/CHD/IC: Chamberlain's Department: Institutions and Courts, COL/CHD/TF: Chamberlain's Department: Trust and other Funds and COL/PL, COL/PLD/PL, COL/SVD/PL and COL/TSD/AD for building plans.

Publication note:

For further details of the history of the City of London School for Girls see Daughters of the City - A History of the City of London School for Girls founded by William Ward (1996) by Joan Carden and Jean Cardy.

DESCRIPTION NOTES

Note:

Rules or conventions: Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.

Date(s) of descriptions: February 2009


INDEX ENTRIES
Subjects
Schools | Educational institutions
Women | Sex | Sex distribution
Education
Educational administration

Personal names

Corporate names
City of London School for Girls | Corporation of London

Places
City of London | London | England | UK | Western Europe | Europe