The school form lists are a vital part of the archive and are one of our “go to” sources when researching individuals. Perhaps they struck fear into the heart of boys at the time, but they are an invaluable source of information for the archivist and the historian.
The form lists give the names of boys in their form in order of achievement in termly examinations, and often they are broken down by subject. The archive holds bound volumes of lists from 1860 – 1941.

Above, we have a scan of a form list from the 1870s. The form is on the Classical side. The lists provide an insight into the curriculum at the time, as well as the academic progress of boys. The lists at various points recorded holiday homework assignments, text books, prize winners and lists of governors and teaching staff.
It is a delight that in 2017, an individual can discover whether their great grandfather was good at French, dreadful at Classics, who his teacher was or that he was absent from examinations.
Here is a snapshot of our form lists in situ in the archive:

Rachel Kneale
Post your own comment