SCHOOLS.
To the account of the early schools of
Northampton in the previous volume (fn. 1)
should be added a reference of the
year 1232. John de Duston, presented in that year
to the church of St. Bartholomew's, Northampton,
by the prior and convent of St. Andrew's, and being
examined by the archdeacon of Northampton, was
ordered to frequent the schools of Northampton and
study there, and at the end of the year to present
himself to the archdeacon for re-examination. (fn. 2) In
1258 the Grey Friars of Northampton were granted
ten oaks from Silverstone Forest for the building of
their schools. (fn. 3) In the same year the Black Friars
were given six good oaks for their study rooms (studia). (fn. 4)
Possibly these buildings are to be associated with the
transitory university of Northampton, whose history
was given in the previous volume. (fn. 5)
The Grammar School (fn. 6) endowed by Chipsey in
1541 and housed first at 'The Lamb' in Bridge Street
and later on the site of St. Gregory's Church, in the
modern Free School Street, was moved in 1867 to new
buildings in Abington Square, and in 1911 to the
present buildings in the Billing Road, just outside the
municipal boundary. It is now known as the Town
and County School, and has some 530 pupils. (fn. 7)
In the 18th century Northampton became a centre
of Nonconformist higher education, by the presence
here, from 1729 to 1751, of Philip Doddridge's academy,
a training college for the Free Church ministry. This
academy, opened in July 1729 at Market Harborough
under Doddridge's headship, came to Northampton
with him and was originally in No. 34 Marefair, at the
corner of Pike Lane. (fn. 8) In 1740 it was removed to a
large house in Sheep Street opposite the Ram. (fn. 9)
Formerly the Rose and Crown inn, it later became the
town house of the Earl of Halifax, and later still was
divided into tenements. The course of instruction
was based upon that of Doddridge's tutor at Kibworth,
John Jennings, (fn. 10) and included Hebrew, Greek,
psychology, ethics, divinity, natural philosophy,
civil law and some mathematics. All had to learn
Doddridge's special system of shorthand. (fn. 11) The full
course occupied five years, and some two hundred
pupils passed under his care, of whom 120 entered the
ministry, (fn. 12) and several had careers of distinction. (fn. 13)
After his death, the academy removed to Daventry,
and was carried on by Caleb Ashworth, one of his
own former pupils. The elder Ryland also had an
academy; but this was no more than a boarding school
(1769–1786); it moved with him to Enfield when he
resigned the ministry of College Street Chapel to his
son. (fn. 14)
The three charity schools, namely, Dryden's Free
School, or the Orange School, founded in 1710, the
Blue Coat School, founded by the Earl of Northampton
in 1755, and combined with Dryden's, and the Green
Coat School, founded by Gabriel Newton in 1761, were
amalgamated in one, known as the Corporation Charity
School, and survived until the 20th century. In
April 1923 the school having been closed, the endowments of the charity were, under a scheme of the Board
of Education, devoted to educational purposes,
forming a fund known as the Blue Coat Corporation
Charity School Foundation for the provision of
scholarships. (fn. 15)
Becket and Sargeant's (Blue) Girls' School, founded
in 1738 for 30 girls, (fn. 16) is still in existence at 13 Kingswill Street. On the Sunday next efter 29 May,
following the practice of the 18th century, (fn. 17) the
school girls attend a special service at All Saints'
Church, wearing their distinctive dress.
In 1738, owing to the efforts of Doddridge, a free
church charity school was established for instructing
and clothing twenty boys which seems to have come
to an end about 1772. (fn. 18)
In 1812 British and National Schools were set up by
Lancaster and Bell respectively. A number of
Church of England schools were set up in the course
of the 19th century, five being founded between
1839 and 1858, and nine more before the close of the
century. There are now 22 elementary schools, of
which two are Church of England; and in addition
one special school for mentally deficient children and
two Roman Catholic elementary schools.
There are two girls' secondary schools: namely,
the Girls' High School, Derngate (165 pupils), and the
County Borough Secondary Girls' School, in St.
George's Avenue, opened in 1915 (270 pupils). There
are also a number of private schools, including a
convent school, a large and imposing building in
Abington Street, under the Sisters of Notre Dame.
The Northampton School of Arts and Crafts,
Abington Street, now under the control of the county
borough, was established in 1871; the Technical
School in Abington Square was opened in 1894; a
Domestic Economy School, under the Northants
County Council, in Harleston Road, was established
in 1896, and there is a housewifery centre, under the
Northampton Education Committee.