Roger Oldham is best known for his delightful illustrated poem, "A Manchester Alphabet". The piece uses the letters of the alphabet to highlight twenty-six different aspects of the city. MGS is included under the letter O:
O is for Owl
The Grammar School Owl,
That very wise fowl,
Was the crest of the pious Hugh Oldham,
Who made it a rule
When he founded the School
That the boys should do always what's told 'em
Other aspects of Manchester Life are explored including the tram system, the Guardian newspaper, Heaton Park, and the River Irwell. Oldham is now best remembered for this creative poem, which has been much imitated.
Roger Oldham was born in Lincoln in 1871, the fourth of seven children. The family moved to Sale in 1874 and Roger joined Manchester Grammar School in 1884, staying until 1887. The family believed they were able to trace their line back to Hugh Oldham, or, at least, to his other relatives. The young Roger progressed up the Classical side of the School, doing well in exams and generally finishing in the top half of his form.
Portrait of Roger Oldham by W. Grimmond, 1910
Upon leaving MGS he worked for an architect, Charles Henry Heathcote, for four years, and then moved to London. It is believed that he studied art at the Royal Academy before moving back to Manchester in 1896 and setting up as an independent architect. He designed a new tower for St. Paul's Church in Sale, and Fairfield Orphans Home in Harrogate. In 1910 he went into partnership, forming Bird and Oldham architects.
St. Paul's Church, Sale
Oldham's first known artistic work was as illustrator for the book "Picturesque Cheshire" by Alfred Coward, which was first published in 1903. The work was reviewed in Ulula, due to the local nature of the topic and OIdham's status as an Old Mancunian:
"The chief interest of the book for readers of Ulula, however lies in the fact that the illustrations, of which there are close upon a hundred, are from the pen of an old Grammar School boy, Roger Oldham. The selection of subjects could hardly be better, though we should have expected at least one view taken in the Forest itself. The exquisite sketch in Dunham Park is such as to make us wish that one or more of the bits of forest familiar to lovers of Delamere had figured in the book. It is rather a disappointment, also, that the artist has not included one of the beautiful meres in which the county abounds. With these exceptions the selection of subject, the point of view, and the treatment, seem to be just such as those who know the district would welcome. In these days of process blocks, it is a relief to find a book with line illustrations only. Perhaps the work is a little uneven, and especially in the picture of Woodchurch the lines are a trifle hard, but the general impression is most pleasing. An interesting feature in the illustrations is the number of quaint old hostels, familiar enough to the cyclist, and the representation of many of these is peculiarly happy. It would seem to be no less true of the artist than of the author, that to his love of the scenes he has depicted is due the value his work will have for those to whom his sketches will be pleasing reminders of many pleasing excursions."
"Cheadle" from "Picturesque Cheshire"
"Prestbury" from "Picturesque Cheshire"
"Sandbach Crosses" from "Picturesque Cheshire"
"The Manchester Alphabet" would come next in 1906, and Oldham allowed MGS to sell postcards and Christmas cards of the letter "O" and letter "C" to raise funds for the Hugh Oldham Lad's Club. Having had their attention drawn to his talent, the editors of Ulula tasked Oldham with redesigning the cover of the magazine, which he did in February 1907:
Upon his death in 1916, his wife Dorothy collated his speeches and writings on architecture and art and published it as a volume, "The Art of Englishmen and Other Writings". Oldham's views on art and beauty make for an interesting read - "Art for money's sake is commercialism and leads to ruin. Art for art's sake is a pose and leads nowhere. Art for life's sake leads to ruin or the gates of the new Jerusalem. Art that is eternal is Art for humanity's sake and Art for God's sake."
Roger with his wife Dorothy, 1911
The cover of "The Art of Englishmen" with Oldham's distinctive initial design
Ulula published the following obituary:
ROGER OLDHAM (O.M.) spent several years at the Grammar School, and left from the Classical Transitus in 1887. His family traces back its connection to the kinship of our pious Founder. At School he distinguished himself in art, and on leaving he was articled to an architect. He helped to design the tower of St. Paul's, Sale, and illustrated Mr. T. A. Coward's " Picturesque Cheshire." His feeling for art was more than professional; he believed in it not as a separate department of human life, but as an influence which affects all human activity. At Old Mancunian meetings his speeches were always original and salted with humour; they always had thought in them. In many ways he helped the School. His lecture, two years ago, " Beauty in Common Things," opened the eyes of many to the unsuspected significance and beauty of such unpromising objects as, for instance, an ordinary canal bridge. He designed the new cover for Ulula, which bears his monogram. In the " Manchester Alphabet," one of the best things is the letter O, with a picture of P.S., the original of which is in the High Master's room. Roger Oldham died on March 3rd, and was interred at Brooklands on March 6th. The O.M.A. was represented by Mr. Francis Jones. He leaves a widow but no family.
Oldham at home, 1910
The full Manchester alphabet is as follows:
A is for Ancoats. A dreary place is Ancoats/ Tis full of smoke and fogs/The lasses wear shawls on their heads,/Their feet are shod with clogs
B is for Bowden. The men who sleep in Bowdon/In Manchester by day are,/They travel by the C.L.C or M.S.J. & A.R
C is for Chortlon. Chorlton's in the suburbs,/The Houses there have gates,/And people come in winter time,/If frosty, with their skates.
D is for Dalton. John Dalton lived in Manchester/A hundred years ago,/A famous scientific man/As all the world doth know./He's fishing now in our Town Hall/In stagnant H2O.
E is for Exchange. The Royal Exchange has a very big floor/But it's not big enough, so they open the door/And come out in the street, do merchants galore
F is for Fresco. Historical scenes of Manchester town/Were painted in fresco by Ford Maddox Brown./A fresco is something that can't run away/It's stuck on the plaster for ever and aye.
G is for Guardian. "The Guardian" is a candid friend/And guide to sundry persons,/It compliments the very good/And scarifies the worse 'uns.
H is for Heaton Park. H for Heaton Park. Let children come/from dreary slum/And din of dusty highways,/And once a week/Play hide and seek/In nature's leafy by-ways.
I is for Irwell. for IRK/ and for INK,/but none of these Liquids/Is wholesome to drink.
J is for Joule. Just peep inside the Town Hall door/ And there you will espy/An old man in his dressing gown/Who looks with stony eye/At something he holds in his hand,/I do not quite know why.
K is for King Street. There's King Street/And there's King Street South/And also King Street West,/They each of them begin with K,/I know which I like best/The one in which the cake shop is----Let's go inside and rest.
L is for Lord Mayor. The Lord Mayor is a lovely sight/All in his coat of red,/A golden chain about his neck,/A big hat on his head;/ He entertains the city's guests/And sees that they are fed.
M is for Motor Car. The face and pace of Manchester/Have many changes seen,/From the grass of Angel Meadow/And the blades of Ardwick Green;/From the Pack Horse and the Pillion/And the "ancient Seven Stars,"/To the modern mammoth Midland/And the monstrous Motor Cars.
N is for Motor Car Number. Now these monstrous Motor Cars,/The product of the age,/(As has only just been mentioned/On the last preceding page)/Have a letter put behind them/To signify to men/The place which they belong to,/Thus:---Manchester is N
O is for Owl. The Grammar School Owl,/That very wise fowl,/Was the crest of the pious Hugh Oldham,/Who made it a rule/When he founded the School/That the boys should do always what's told 'em.
P is for Picture Gallery. Go up some steps in Mosley Street/And through a sculpture hall,/Climb ups some further flights of steps,/And through a turnstile crawl, At last behold the pictures,/Hung up on every wall.
Q is for De Quincey. De Quincey once lived at a place called Greenhey/Which was a green place in T. Quincey's day.
R is for Robert. This monument so stately/To the late Sir Robert Peel,/Is the guardian of our traffice/And the public commonweal.
S is for Shudehill. Heaps of oranges and apples,/Piles of 'tates' and curly greens,/Bananas, sprouts, and artichokes,/Late peas and early beans,/Inside a great glass market/Is what Shudehill really means.
T is for Trams. The Tram Cars glide about the streets/As if they were alive,/And men and women fight for seats/Each night at half past five
U is for Umpire. They keep men at Old Trafford/In snowy raiment clad,/To tell men when they are run out/And if the light is bad.
V is for Victoria. A model of nobility/To all and every station,/Victoria the well-beloved/The mother of the nation.
W is for Whit Week Walk. The scholars' walk in Manchester/Is quite a pretty sight,/The boys all have their faces washed,/Their boots with blacking bright,/The girls all have their hair in curl,/Their dresses spotless white."
X is for Exodus. Each Saturday at 1 o'clock/The people leave the town en bloc,/But if you wait till 10 to 2/You'll only see a very few.
Y is for Yarn. To business men in Manchester/The Yarn is daily bread,/They talk of hanks and mules and counts,/And throstle-frames and thread,/As did their grandsires long ago/Who now, of course, are dead.
Z is for Zoo. Belle Vue it is true/Is a very good Zoo,/Brass bands and rip-raps/And set pieces too,/Are part of the programme/At Manchester Zoo.
Rachel Kneale
Strange how things like together. I taught at Harrogate Grammar School in the 1980s. Some of the children from the National Children's Home on Pannal Ash Road (the former Fairfield Children's Orphanage) came to the school. Sometimes there were interesting events such as the day that a young boy ran out of school after a dispute. I was sent to follow him to make sure that he was safe. He led me a merry dance always well ahead but enjoying my following him until he finally disappeared into the home.
The home is no more - It was replaced by housing after it was closed.