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The Miller from 1872 to 1900 With
the coming of the 1872 Education Act, it became essential that all children
should be educated and so the School board cast envious eyes on the three empty
classrooms in the Miller Institution. Their
availability would make the extension of the accommodation at other schools
unnecessary. The Miller Institution
Trustees were reluctant to part with their property and ignored the overtures of
the School Board resulting in a Board decision in 1874 to let the matter drop
but not without efforts through correspondence and meetings to obtain use of
classroom space at the Miller Institution.
The
first School Board for Thurso Parish in terms of the 1872 Act was elected in
March 1873 and held its first meeting on 26th March in that year.
The Board elected was as follows:- The
Reverend Walter Ross Taylor, Castlegreen (later
Doctor Taylor)
James Brims, Writer, Thurso
William Reid Tait, Mina Villa, Thurso
George Lagan, Factor Thurso East Cottage
James Hay, Scrabster House
Donald MacKay, Forss Street, Thurso The
Reverend Taylor was appointed the Chairman for the initial three years of the
first Board and remained in that office until 1891.
As noted earlier, he was the
minister who preached, as early as 30th December 1832, the last
sermon at the Old Church of Thurso, St Peter’s and the first in the new St
Peter’s Church. Immediately,
the Board set to work to implement the 1872 Act through firstly the
identification of a meeting place and the appointment of a Clerk to the Board,
Charles MacDonald, Solicitor, Thurso and the appointment of Alexander MacKay an
Accountant in Thurso as Treasurer. The
place of meeting was to be a room in the Town Hall and application was made to
the Commissioners of Police for a room and a price requested.
In the event the fee of £5 per meeting was felt too much and the
Benevolent Institution in Rose Street was offered £2 2s for the facility. It
was clear to this first Board that the provision of education in Thurso was
somewhat ad hoc and that a census of pupils in the 5-13 age range and an audit
of accommodation was required. Alexander
MacKay was asked to take a census of the parish and to assess not just the
number of children but how many were being effectively educated in well
appointed and well aired schools privately.
Other members of the Board were allocated schools to approach and assess
their potential for development in the implementation of the new Education Act.
The Miller Institution was to be reported upon by the two Ministers, Reverends
Taylor and Findlay. It was found
that within the extended town limits the number of children in the required age
range was 632. Within one to two
miles from the town another hundred or so were identified and in the landward
area the substantial total of 413 children aged between 5 and 13 years.
A chart showing where the town pupils were being educated can be seen in
the section on the Early Schools. The
result of the census was to prove to the Thurso Schools Board that they lacked
sufficient and suitable accommodation for all the children in the area and hence
the overtures to the Miller Institution trustees.
With frustration the overtures became strong appeals and then almost
threats. The Miller Title and the
Deed of Mortification of Alexander Miller were examined to see if there was some
way the Miller Institution might be pressured into giving the use of two of the
vacant rooms if it were not to come under the umbrella of the Thurso Schools’
Board. The
Title to the school and the Deed did not offer any great help to the Board.
The Deed gave £60 per year for the employment of a teacher or teachers.
The teachers at the Miller Institution were paid from this money and,
when necessary, it was supplemented by the fees charged.
It is interesting to note that other benefactors, including the Brims
Fund and the Innes Bequest, were also used to support pupils at the Miller
Institution. Funds were paid out
for seven boys under the Brims Fund for the training of boys who were to become
Tradesmen and Artisans. One
of the board’s first curricular decisions in respect of its schools was with
regard to religious instruction and observance.
Mr Tait suggested that there should be four time periods throughout the
day to cover those topics. The
times indicated and which seemed to meet with general approval were 10am to
11am, 12.55pm to 1.00pm, 2.00pm to 2.05pm and 3.50pm to 4.00pm.
There, it was said, should be instruction in Bible and Catechism and the
studies should also include the singing of hymns and the learning of prayers.
While the Miller Institution did not come under the jurisdiction of the
Board at this time, there is nor reason to believe that the time allocations
would have varied greatly at this establishment. In
1874, the school was put under Government Inspection and the report of the
inspection is the first entry in the first school log which is extant.
This favourable report was as follow:- ‘Report
of Examination of the Miller Institution on the 6th of June 1874 by
J. McLeod, Esq., H.M. Inspector of Schools. This
School is carried on at present under one Master and an Assistant. The
discipline is very fair. The
instruction is sound and considering the age of the pupils, well advanced.
The writing of the first Standard is fairly good, - it should be larger.
Arithmetic is good, reading very good. The writing of the second Standard is
good with a few, the rest fairly good, copies correct, arithmetic is fairly
good, reading very good. The
dictation of the third standard is good, arithmetic fairly good, reading
excellent, meanings good on the whole, one boy remarkably good.
The higher standards are good throughout.
The history of the Stuart period very fair, but should be more minute.
Geography is moderate; grammar good; Latin good, and Greek has made a good
beginning. The
following are the results of the Examination of the Scholars according to the
New Code (Art. 28):- Average
Attendance
Number presented
Number passed on Exam. in for
past Year
Reading
Writing Arithmetic
55.8
50
50
49
45’ Shortly
after the receipt of the report of the inspector the Rev. J. Stewart Miller,
Correspondent, made application to the ‘Scotch
Department of Education’ in London for a certificate for Mr James Waters,
Headmaster of this Institution in accordance with Art. 59 of the Scotch Code of
1874.’ This application was
successful and a Parchment Certificate of the Fourth Class was forwarded to the
Rector. It is worth noting that a
good and comprehensive report by H.M.I. Sime on 25th June 1875
resulted in a further and special application to the ‘Scotch Department’
obtained a Third Class Certificate for Mr Waters. In
September of 1874, the Miller Institution re-opened after what was described as
a long vacation with the newly Certificated Rector and a new Certificated
Teacher, James Keith. This new
teacher only stayed for two months, leaving upon appointment to Stewart’s Free
School in Perth. His successor, who
started on 6th November, the day Mr Keith, left was James Grant.
According to the log entry, Mr Grant came from Stranraer but an entry at
the front of the log, in a staff changes section, indicates that Aviemore was
more likely to be his home town. He
was probably a Probationary Teacher in Stranraer. The
log-book notes that the pupils were encouraged by the Rev. Charles Findlay to
apply themselves to their studies. It
also referred to repairs carried out to windows and playground in the holiday
period. Clearly things do not
change as those repairs were not completed.
In the first week back after the vacation, the school closed on the
Tuesday for a half-day to allow joiners and painters to complete their work but
they were again in the school on the Saturday carrying out repairs.
It
is also interesting to find that, even in those days, schemes of work were
changed from time to time. The
Nelson Royal Reader, it is noted, replacing the Senior Reader.
With Nelson English being introduced to Miller Academy at this time it is
an indication that teaching schemes have been introduced and replaced since the
earliest years. In education
nothing stays current for long and the pendulum swings to and fro more than in
almost any other professional endeavour. School
‘trips’ are not just an activity of recent years.
In September of 1874 the pupils, accompanied we are told by Messrs
Waters, Keith and Mowat, went to Wick by train.
This new mode of transport had not been long in the county and so many of
the boys had never been on a train before.
In fact, the railway arrived in Thurso on 10th July 1874 and
the railway station was only a short distance from the Miller Institution.
The Miller pupils would have taken one of the round trips from Thurso to
Wick and back to Thurso. There were three such trips each day with morning,
afternoon and evening services. The
departure of the first regular train from Thurso to Inverness on 31st
July would have been a great occasion for all, including the pupils of the
Miller Institution. Pupils, who
were up at the crack of dawn, would have seen most of the town’s most
influential citizens either viewing the event or boarding the train for the
journey south. Many were going to
the Highland and Agricultural Society’s show in Inverness and amongst them
were Thurso School’s Board members William Reid Tait of Mina Villa and James
Hay of Scrabster. Just
two years after the Miller Institution pupils took their trip on the train, they
would almost certainly have been standing in Ulbster Terrace, Sutherland Street
or Forss Street to cheer the arrival of Their Royal Highnesses, the Prince and
Princess of Wales, on their visit to Thurso on 3rd October 1876.
The Royal visitors travelled down those thoroughfares, later to be named
Princes Street in their honour, close to the original Institution and, of
course, adjacent to the present school buildings.
Once again, as with the arrival of the railway, this was an occasion for
all, but principally the administrators of the town, to engage together in an
important social event. The
School log book notes the occasion thus;- ‘In
consequence of the visit of their Royal Highnesses, the Prince and Princess of
Wales to Thurso on Monday of this week, it and Tuesday were granted as holidays
in honour of the occasion to the children of this and the other schools in town.
The attendance on the other days has been only fair, and progress ordinary.’ Much comment, as above, in the log books refers to either teachers’ absences or to that of pupils even when ‘more immediate’ topics are being reported. There are many instances in the various school sources and School Board minutes when actions to be taken against parents to enforce their children’s attendance is discussed. It was not unusual for the full weight of the law to be brought down upon truants if other matters of persuasion failed. The ‘carrot and the stick’ approach worked well in most instances and attendance tended to be either very good, if not perfect, or, in a few cases, very bad. There were very few ‘middle of the road’ situations. When
attendance at school had been good it had been rewarded in some way or other.
Certificates, medals, special excursions or simply getting out early on a
Friday had all been ‘carrots’ used. The
medals came on a silver chain and were greatly prized by the recipients and even
more so by their families and descendants. The
Watt family were excellent attenders with a medal won by Jeannie Watt in
1912 and her brother, Donald Watt, winning a similar prize for 5 years perfect
attendance, in 1916. Another brother, William George Watt, also had excellent attendance and an application for a bursary for him to continue in school was considered in October 1920. It was stated that as he was not yet 14 years he was not old enough for a bursary. A special case had to be made but this failed and his bursary could not be paid until he reached the age of 14 years. In
February 1876, the log-book reports; ‘Received
on Thursday from Mr Lagan, Factor, £2 being our rateable proportion of a
donation of £80 contributed by Sir Tollemache Sinclair of Ulbster towards
Public Schools in Caithness to be applied in providing Prizes, (or if preferred,
a Holiday Excursion and Treat) to such of our pupils as made the statutory
number of attendances at this school during the last year.
The intimation of this to the boys on Friday afternoon was received with
great applause, and three hearty cheers were given to the Honourable Baronet for
his liberality. It was left to be
decided on some future occasion whether the money should be used for Prizes or
an Excursion. In either case it
will be desirable to get the sum in hand supplemented from some source.’ In
the event, the decision was made to use the donation for an outing.
The fare for both teachers, it is said, and scholars to and from
Scotscalder and Thurso stations was paid from Sir Tollemache’s gift.
While out in the country a ‘ramble
on Dorrery hills was immensely enjoyed by all.’ Despite
the increasing popularity of the Miller Institution in the early years, the
staff complement remained stable at two until 1879 when a third teacher was
added. Mr Hyslop was employed to
work with the first standard and infants and remained at the school until he
left and was replaced in 1883. His
replacement was the Miller’s first lady teacher, Miss Maggie Fletcher, and she
is remembered in the name of one of the present House Teams at the school,
Fletcher. Her arrival also brought
the enrolment of the first girls to attend, eight in number, on 14th
September 1883. Miss Fletcher’s
name appears in the school log on the list of teachers at the Miller for 1884,
1885 and 1886 and in an advertisement of prices for instruction at the Miller
Institution for 1887. However, the
only further reference to Miss Fletcher in the log is the entry for 22nd April
1887 which notes, ‘The Board agreed to
allow Miss Fletcher cease work for six weeks to recruit her health.’ The
Board appointed Miss Durran as substitute at that time at the same salary as
Miss Fletcher but noted that she would be paid by Miss Fletcher.
Miss
Fletcher was clearly in ill health as she again applied to the board, in August
1887, for leave from her post until January 1888 and did so with a certificate
from Dr Smith. This second
application for leave was rejected and her resignation, which she had offered if
leave could not be made available, was accepted.
Miss Durran continued as her replacement pending the appointment of a
Female Assistant. An advertisement
for a replacement indicated a salary of £70 per annum and in addition to the
normal subjects candidates were required to offer proficiency in the teaching of
sewing and singing. Though
the log makes little mention of Miss Fletcher in her time on the school staff,
she was clearly seen by the Schools Board as an able and worthy staff member.
She had been appointed to the school, from thirteen female applicants, to
the post of Female Assistant at the school when it came under the jurisdiction
of the Thurso Parish Schools Board in 1887 at a salary of £60 per year.
In Miss Fletcher’s case this appointment was merely a technicality with
her continuing in the post she had held from 1883.
Miss
Fletcher was joined by the new Rector Farquhar MacDonald, appointed from
thirty-nine applicants and a short list of five, and Charles Taylor the Second
Master who gained his post in competition with fifteen others.
The new Rector replaced James Waters, who died in office in 1886. Mr
Taylor having been appointed then withdrew from the post as it would appear he
was unable to get away from Macduff, where he was employed, until the end of
February 1887. This was almost two
months after his appointed starting date. At
a Board meeting in December 1886, it was agreed, with one dissension that Mr
Taylor be allowed to take up his post at the end of February and that he did at
a salary of £100 per annum. The staff appointments were part of the incorporation of the Miller Institution into the Thurso Parish School Board area of responsibility. While the attempts fourteen years earlier to bring the school under the control of the Board had failed, economic pressures and government regulations finally made the transfer inevitable. It was agreed, in November 1886, that the Miller Institution would be the Higher Grade School and that the various endowments and grants applying to the various schools, including Miller, would be brought together to more efficiently use their finances for the benefit of the schools and their students. The 1900 Building It
was clearly not long before the popularity of the school and the increasing
number of classes and curricular areas to be studied required further expansion.
It is reported that permission could not be obtained for further
extension of the original building and so a new separate building had to be
erected. The architect for this new
building, as for the present main school building, was Mr Sinclair MacDonald and
this company still has a presence in Thurso with offices on Princes Street.
Entry to this building took place in September 1900 with two classrooms
becoming occupied, though the rest of the building was not ready until early in
1901. Rector David Phease
complained that a lack of desks was interfering with the efficient use of the
new building. The
original purpose was for Infants and Science but later Domestic Science, Art and
Science were taught there. The 1906
ordinance survey map names the library building while adjacent to the 1900
building the words ‘Infant School’ are printed. The
ground on which to build the 1900 block was purchased from the Trustees of the
estate of the late William Reid Tait of Mina Villa.
The only available area for the construction of the extra classrooms,
identified by the Management Committee, was in the playground to the south of
the original school and on both east and west sides of the rear dividing wall. The
company of Sinclair MacDonald, architects, was commissioned, in June 1896, to
prepare sketch plans and estimates for a building to accommodate 160 children.
Special meetings were held to consider the plans and a number of
alterations were made at the insistence of the Scotch Education Department.
At the same time as plans were being drawn up, discussions and
correspondence proceeded between the Board and the Tait Trustees and finally a
sale took place in 1898. The Board
and the Trustees agreed that a clear deed must be provided, that there must be
access for Miller Institution pupils, and that the first refusal for the
re-purchase of any surplus ground should go to the occupiers of Mina Villa.
They also agreed that there should be no sub-feuing and the walls need
not be raised on each side of the access from Janet Street to 8’ 6’’ in
height as had first been demanded by the sellers.
The Janet Street access was preferred by the Board though there was some
discussion of entry being from Princes Street.
A Board member, Peter Keith, dissented arguing that there was no need for
the Tait ground or a new building and that there was room for many more pupils
at the West Public. Once
the ground had been obtained the new building went out to contract and there was
considerable interest in the work. The
first offers were thought, however, to be excessive, amounting in total for the
construction to the sum of £1834 12s. The
committee decided to re-advertise the work but this does not seem to have unduly
held up the project and with the 1900 opening of part of the building a new era
was beginning at the school. However,
soon after the opening of the new building Rector Phease resigned from his post
so the Board had to look for a new Rector and subsequently appointed William
McLaren. Mr McLaren did not
remain in Thurso for very long, leaving in 1907, and yet again the search was on
for a replacement. William
Keith Tait was appointed and in the period of his Rectorship a series of
photographs was taken in the corner of the building to the left of the present
main entrance and some others taken at the main door.
Mr Tait is present in some of those photographs and others have classes
taken with teachers. Identification
of some of the staff has taken place but others remain unknown at present.
Dating of the photographs is difficult but, bearing in mind the fact that
Mr Tait died at the age of 42 years in 1919, it is probable that the period
recorded is nearer to the end, rather than the beginning, of his time as Rector.
Those pictures are all to be seen in the Arts Building Hall. There
was little change to the building until 1929 when the quality of the lighting in
the Science block was giving cause for concern.
It would appear that the Cookery and Art Rooms in that building were
particularly badly affected and the Gas Company was to be contacted to remedy
the situation. Further
major change is not recorded until May 1938 when the Clerk to the Thurso Schools
Management Committee submitted a letter to the Committee along with sketch plans
from the architects with regard to the removal of the steps leading down to the
Science Department at the Miller Institution.
The meeting considered these and at its close members visited the area.
They agreed that the steps should be removed but resolved that the wall
between the steps and the new flight to the south should first be lowered to
about half its height. By June the
steps were away and the wall between had been altered.
The new flight to the south had been constructed in such a fashion as to
extend the whole length to the Science Room door.
These, I assume, are the steps now leading down from the end of the
demountable hut and running the full length from the wall between the former
medical centre to the steep steps leading past the end of the 1937 building.
The entrance to the Science Department by this description must have been
what is now the fire escape from the present Art room. The
Music Teacher in this building in the 1930’s was Mr Swann, known as
‘Swanny’ from both his name and the words of the famous song, Swanny River.
He played the piano in the town cinema and set the mood with his
expressive playing. In a
‘cowboy’ film you could almost hear the horse galloping from the sound of
his keyboard. Mr Swann also put his
undoubted musical ability to good use on Sundays as organist at the
Congregational Church. The
‘strap’, also known as the Lochgelly or tawse, was often used in those days
and Mr Swann was famous as the teacher who had his Lochgelly cut into pieces. The
1900 building was always in need of some repair or other.
The most major renovations, in 1996, are described in the section on the
Primary School but the School log in 1966 records an earlier attempt to improve
conditions. The ceilings were
lowered at that time and a limited, but much required, re-decoration took place. Following
the most recent renovation, the building has been put to good use.
Art and Technology classes now have a fine facility in which to operate,
the new Music Room is extensively used and the Hall is a real asset in which
larger groups may meet. Sometimes
those groups are outside bodies hiring the accommodation for meetings. An
Historic Classroom provides a useful study facility and the building is being
further improved at the present time as a reminder of the past.
Some art work from early in the 20th century, by a Miller
Academy pupil who subsequently emigrated to Canada, adorns the entrance hall and
the main hall provides a very suitable hanging area for pictures of the school,
teachers and pupils dating from as early as 1863.
The 1900 building taken from the front of
the present school.
A New Century and New Rectors Over
the years many references are to be found in the records to school closures
caused by bad weather and sickness. Early
closures due to weather were not uncommon in the December to January period in
the first quarter of the 20th century.
Sometimes the lunch break would be dispensed with and a closure take
place at 2pm. The 20th
century opened with very bad weather and, at the end of January and during
February, snowstorms were particularly prevalen. Later
on in 1900, the school was again disrupted but this time by illness.
An outbreak of measles and scarlet fever left Caithness Schools
decimated, with pupils and staff much affected. The outbreak of both diseases
began in mid-September and before the month was over, the situation had reached
epidemic proportions. On the advice
of the Medical Officer, the School was closed for three weeks from 23rd
September. Later at an emergency meeting of the Thurso Schools’ Board,
recorded in the school log on 9th October, it was agreed that the
town schools should close until the Medical Officer gave permission for
re-opening. The school did
eventually open on 12th November but was still much affected by both
measles and scarlet fever and the attendance was still giving concern at the end
of January 1901. In
this period there were school closures for a variety of reasons with the usual
Thanksgiving, Gala and Local Holiday respite for pupils and staff.
Also, the turn of the century saw great patriotic fervour with respect to
the Boer War in South Africa and victories resulted in the closure of schools to
celebrate. Two such days in 1900
were the consequence of the relief of Ladysmith and Mafeking.
The former resulted in a school holiday on March 1st and the
latter on June 2nd for what the school log describes as, ‘rejoicing
in the town in connection with war.’ From
the first enrolment of 20 pupils the roll of Miller Institution rose steadily
always just keeping ahead of the building developments described earlier.
At the opening of the 20th Century the school roll had reached
about 520. This figure, of course,
included both what we now term primary and secondary age pupils.
In the log-book entry for 31st December 1900 Rector David
Phease bemoans the low attendance. He
states, ‘School closed for the New Year
holidays today at mid-day. Attendance
in the Secondary Department has fallen to 50% and today the total no. present
was only 311 out of 524.’ Two
points come to mind from the above. The
holidays started well after Christmas, lasting only one week, and the Junior
Department must have had a much better attendance rate than the Secondary
Department for that week. In
June 1901, a special meeting of the Schools’ Board was called after the
receipt of a letter, date 30th May, from David Phease submitting his
resignation as Rector. The members
expressed, ‘Regret losing the valuable
services of Mr Phease’ and then went on to draw up the requirements for
the post of Rector to be advertised. Again
they stipulated a graduate of a ‘Scotch’ University and the salary was set
at £250 - £300 per annum. From
a short leet of three William McLaren M.A., B.Sc., F.R.G.S. from Falkirk High
School was appointed. It was not
long before the new Rector was concerned at the lack of cleaning, with walls not
being ‘swept down’ in accordance with the rules.
This was not his only complaint, the other being more important.
The boys’ playground, it would appear, was, in wet weather, in a bad
condition and this was drawn to the attention of members of the visiting
Schools’ Board Committee. He also
voiced his opinions on the poor standard of accommodation for classes. It
was not just the teaching areas of Miller Institution that caused concern and it
was not just Rectors and Inspectors who complained about conditions.
The toilets were a constant source of complaint and the Sanitary
Inspectors report of February 1908 makes the position quite clear.
‘The
boys’ latrines have on more than one occasion been found in a disgraceful
condition. A contributing factor in
the case of the Miller Institution Public School is the lack of a boys’
urinal, which should be provided forthwith.
Unless the conditions are improved the matter must be dealt with under
Article 32(b) of the Code as a serious defect in discipline.’
As
far back as 1888 new urinals had been recommended to the Board but apparently a
lot of ‘water’ was to flow under the bridge before the facility was to be
considered again! It
is sometimes assumed that early in the 20th century the Miller
Institution served mainly the town of Thurso.
This was certainly not the case. The
1909 figure of 105 pupils in the Higher Grade is broken down into pupils from
Thurso Parish and other parishes. It
is interesting to note that 39 of the pupils came from outwith Thurso Parish
with 16 of those pupils under 14 years of age and 23 over that age.
The Thurso School Board pupil roll, which included the West Public and
schools in the surrounding country areas at that time, seems to have been in
excess of 1000 pupils. During
the years around 1900, many former pupils left the Miller with a good education
to make their way in the colonies. A
facsimile received in August 1999, followed by a visit from Alexander Miller of
Spruce Grove, Alberta, Canada indicated the success of former pupils and the
affection they, and their families, still held for the old school and the old
country. The visit by
Alexander Miller was very interesting as he brought with him some old pictures
including the 1907-08 Miller Institution Football team of which his father was a
member and the testimonial below.
As
we can see, Alexander Henderson Miller left with an excellent reference from his
Rector, William Keith Tait. The
reference was on the Miller Institution headed note paper of the time with the
school name on the top line and below it the words and letters ‘Thurso N.
B.’ signifying the town to be in North Britain. The
football team photograph shows Alexander Henderson Miller seated second right in
the front row of the picture.
Alexander
Henderson Miller’s facsimile read; ‘Replying
to a Public Notice ‘Memories for the Millennium’ in your local newspaper.
This may be a surprise coming from the other side of the World!
The information I have is about the ‘Miller Institution’ possibly the
same school as the ‘Miller Academy.’ My
name is Alexander Kennedy Miller, the son of Alexander Henderson Miller, who was
born in Caithness and educated at the Miller Institution one hundred years ago.
There were at least two families of Millers at the turn of the century:
John
and Mary Henderson Miller: Children – William, Mary. John, Margaret, Alex and
Elizabeth. Donald
and Christine Waters Miller: Children
– Peter, John, David, Janet, Henry, George, Alex and Donald. Whether
they were descendants of the ‘Miller’ the school was named after I am not
aware. Members of these families
were very well educated for the time! My
father became the Senior Deputy Minister of the province of Alberta.
John Miller became the senior executive of the Dominion Bank of Canada.
William Miller became an architect for golf courses and parks.
Most of his family moved to America.
Margaret remained and married
John Sutherland. The Sutherland
descendants operate farms near Thurso. The
second Miller family also had brilliant careers.
Dr Alexander Auld Miller was an eminent Pathologist, Dr Peter Miller was
at one time head of the Free Church of Scotland and another was a Dean of the
University of Edinburgh. The only
remaining contact I have had with this family was with a grandson, Harry Miller,
a Regional Councillor, who ‘passed’ a few months ago at Tain. I
have in my possession a number of books my father was awarded for his academic
standings and if the Miller Institution is the same school it may be of interest
to receive these approximately 100 years later.
My wife Dorothy, who is also of Scottish descent and I will be making a
trip back to Scotland next month, providing my health is all right. The
remaining Scots in Scotland do not realise there are 50 million people abroad
with Scottish names. In greater
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada there are 3,500 Scottish Millers, 2,500 Sinclairs,
2,400 Sutherlands as well as all the other Caithness names.
We have 16 pipe bands, 74 golf courses, more sheets of curling ice than
all of Scotland and a 600 member adherents ‘Robert Burns’ Club. I
am now retired and in my 78th year having an accounting practice with
8 offices across Canada and clients in a number of world countries.
If I were younger I would return to Scotland and help set up a proper
Scottish Government.’ In
the period from the turn of the century until the start of the first World War
developments in the Miller Institution were generally fairly ‘low key’.
From 1900 until 1905 there was a long running dispute, legally pursued,
over the Dux award for 1900 and this is briefly outlined in the appropriate
section later. The Schools’ Board
was also involved in legal proceedings relating to the death of a pupil, Bella
Horne, at the West Public School and claims by the owner of Springbank House
that developments at the school had caused flooding to his grounds.
The Bella Horne incident was closed with the payment of a relatively
small amount of compensation while the Springbank complaint was dealt with by
the purchase of part of the ground in question by the Thurso Schools’ Board. School
reorganisation within the town and internally within the school had some affect
on the Miller Institution in this period. The
transfer of the Free Church School to the control of the Schools’ Board in
1900 and its change of name to the Duncan Street School was the first step to
its closure soon afterwards. At
the start of 1900 the Miller Institution had, on average, 460 pupils and the
West Public 370 pupils and by the end of the year, with the closure of the
Duncan Street School, the rolls had risen to 530 and 380 respectively. Internally,
the curriculum and its organisation were seen by the new Rector, William McLaren,
as requiring modernisation. It can
be gleaned from the Board minutes that the Members were not at first convinced
by the changes and asked, in May 1904, for a special meeting with Mr McLaren to
discuss the matter. The Rector
appears to have been persuasive as a new three-year scheme of organisation was
introduced for a revamped Higher Grade. Though
there is not a great deal of detail in the minutes, one significant change
affecting the choice of languages for study is recorded.
Latin and German were to be compulsory subjects for study while Greek and
French were to be optional. Greek
had hitherto been seen as of such importance that it had been stipulated by the
Reverend Dr Alexander Miller that, should there be a tie in the marks for the
award of the Dux medal, then the pupil with the highest mark in Classics and
finally in Greek should take the prize. The
new arrangements receive little comment in log books or committee minutes until
the inspections of 1909 and 1910. These
two inspections are extremely critical of the subject choice and the
arrangements for foreign languages. There
is severe criticism of the practice of encouraging students to study three
foreign languages and harsh words used regarding the standard reached by
students. Throughout the inspection
reports in the years following the departure of Mr McLaren there is clear
disapproval of the path the school was following under his leadership. The
unfortunate accident to Bella Horne at the West Public, where she died having
fallen into an open fire, and the subsequent action by her parents, led to the
Schools Board introducing safety requirements at all their schools.
All schools had to have fireguards fitted to all open fires and pupils
were to be put out of buildings with fires over all breaks.
At Miller Institution the guarding of the fires caused little problem but
even at that time there was a substantial number of country pupils in
attendance. Though the Board had no alternative but to introduce changes, one
member expressed his dissent regarding the break time arrangements as there was
nowhere for country pupils to go at those times. The
first World War had a profound affect upon the school.
Former pupils, teachers, parents and other family members left for the
war. Many went to extraordinary
lengths to fight for ‘King and Country’.
Some volunteered immediately and were accepted.
Others tried and tried again before finally finding a regiment that would
overlook some physical or mental barrier to their enlistment.
The loss of life amongst those volunteers was not light with the town of
Thurso and the Miller Institution carrying a ‘fair’ share of the more than a
thousand Caithnessians not returning from the Great War. The
Miller Institution First World War Memorial situated in the original Miller
building and described in detail elsewhere, is testimony to the great losses.
Former pupils and teachers who paid the supreme sacrifice are remembered
on the brass plate. The
school log records the enlistment of staff members and notes the heartfelt loss
for two of its teachers. In January
1915, the log states that Mr John MacKenzie, English Master, was absent owing to
his being called to Edinburgh in connection with his application for a
commission in the Army. The 5th
March entry for that year confirms his success and states that Mr MacKenzie
finished work on Wednesday 3rd to take up a commission in the 13th
Scottish Rifles. The next mention
in the log in October 1916 gives the sad news of his death in action in France
while with the 8th Northumberland Fusiliers.
It appears from a later log entry that a portrait of Mr Mackenzie was
unveiled in the Class III Room. Members
of the School Board were present and addressed staff and pupils.
The present whereabouts of the portrait is not known. The
second teacher from the school to die as the result of the war was Mr J. A.
Masson, Classics Master. His death
is reported in May 1918 as being from wounds received in action in France. The
loss of teaching staff during the war resulted in comment being passed by the
School Inspector on the quality of the education being provided.
It is stated that, ‘Owing mainly
to deficiency in the supply of the subordinate staff, this fine Secondary School
has in several important aspects fallen considerably from its former high
general position.’ This
wartime inspection gives an insight into the subjects taught and the acceptance
by the Inspectorate that conditions were difficult for the school.
It is enlightening enough to be worth printing here in full.
Following the introductory paragraph shown above the report continues;- ‘English.
The Higher Grade English in which the proficiency was usually remarkably
satisfactory shows deterioration which will, however, it is confidently
believed, pass away in normal conditions. The
intermediate classes in the same subject made a very fair appearance over all. Latin
and Greek. It is essential that the
efficiency of the Latin and Greek classes, which have now been further impaired
during the present session, should be restored without delay. French.
The circumstances of the past session have been very adverse.
The present teacher of French shows great earnestness and thoroughness
and before long her influence should tell decisively in favour of knowledge and
progress. Mathematics.
The results of the instruction are surprisingly good when the
circumstances of the session are taken into account.
All the Higher Grade candidates passed with a considerable margin, all
showing a good grasp of each of the three subjects included in the examination.
At the intermediate certificate the work was a good average in both the
written and the oral tests. The
first years class has made a good start. Experimental
Science. Work in the Experimental
Science laboratory shows improvement and pupils show an increasing knowledge of
the principles underlying their experimental and observational work. Care should
be taken while carrying out the Junior Students nature study to emphasise the
practical side of the work and to study the functions of the different parts of
typical plants. Drawing
Instruction. Drawing Instruction
continues to be faithfully carried on and the general average of the work is
sound and satisfactory. A good
range of representational study has been covered. Needlework.
Work of very sound quality and finish was produced by two students.
The remainder of the class showed work at a slightly lower standard.
In future simpler methods might be adopted in connection with second year
garments. Stitching was very good,
also practical mending and darning. Tests
were satisfactorily completed in given time. Singing.
Singing continues to be of good quality though the amount professed is
somewhat restricted. Physical
education. The school has been
without an Instructress and the Physical Training has been allowed to drop
meantime. All the students,
however, exhibited alertness and intelligence and gave evidence of previous
sound instruction in all branches of training.
The work of the outgoing male students was deserving of special
mention.’ The
comparison between subjects and the range of topics taught at the beginning of
the century and at the start of the new millennium cannot be considered here.
It is worth noting, however, the absence of Geography and History from
the report and the high value placed upon stitching, mending and darning in
Needlework. Such
was the shortage of teachers and the inability of the Education Authority to
fund qualified staff that unqualified teachers, often former pupils and
students, were engaged. In 1917,
the appointment of Miss Bella Cormack, a former Dux of the school and later a
long serving teacher, is recorded in the logbook. Apart
from the loss of teaching staff the war had other consequences for the Miller
Institution. In early 1915 Drill,
i.e. P.E., was resumed after a pause due to the use of the gymnasium by the
forces. However, only part of the
facility was available as it would appear Captain Bell R.N. requisitioned an
area for sleeping quarters for men of the fleet.
Despite this problem the School Inspector seemed to see merit in the
school’s work in Physical Education. The
deaths from the Great War were quite horrendous in number with many young men
being little more than ‘cannon fodder’.
But an equally merciless killer following the war, and spread to an
extent by the return of soldiers, also had its affect on Thurso.
The town of Thurso and the Miller Academy were hit, as was the whole of
Europe, by Spanish ‘flu’. The
House Team ‘Ruby’ got its name
from the death of six year old Margaret Ruby of this disease and the log reports
the scale of the epidemic in October 1918.
The
school log says, ‘Today the school was
closed, owing to an epidemic of influenza, to be opened on Monday 28th
October. On Tuesday, Wednesday and
Thursday the pupils absent were respectively 246, 266 and 312.
Three members of the Elementary Staff, Miss Sutherland, Miss Dunnet and
Mr Duthie were all absent owing to illness.’
The
school did not actually open until mid-November and the illness was still to
have a severe affect upon attendance in February of the following year.
Such was the concern that when it was heard pupils in a country school
were affected, the pupils from that area attending Miller Academy were asked not
to visit affected houses. With
the war finished, a new and stable period was expected at Miller Academy.
The availability of staff, particularly well qualified male teachers, was
being eased by the end to hostilities with Germany.
Just as the still relatively young Rector, William Keith Tait, was
beginning to benefit from the post war enthusiasm for education he died
tragically in 1919 and a successor was sought.
The
man appointed, Alfred Ross Murison, a very able educationist and a ‘high
flier’, only remained at the school for four years.
Mr Murison appears to have been successful in his short time at the
Miller Institution and the H.M. Inspectors’ reports of the time praise his
good work. No doubt, with a longer
stay, the school would have reaped the benefit of his undoubted skills but it
was not to be and he moved on to ‘greater things’.
The final report by the Inspectors, during Mr Murison’s time as Rector,
talks highly of the school. ‘The
Rector and his staff are again to be congratulated on a very successful year’s
work; in practically all respects the results of the instruction are much above
the average.’ One
event of great significance, and reported fully in the press and in the section
on the World War Memorials in this book, was the unveiling of the memorial in
the 1862 Miller building. The
impressive brass plate and carved surround, with the names of pupils and staff
who lost their lives in the 1914-18, war can be seen in the Quiet Room of the
Thurso Library. It was unveiled on
Tuesday 25th September 1921, the log entry recalling the event thus; ‘The
School War memorial was unveiled on
Tuesday afternoon in the presence of a representative gathering of relatives and
friends of the fallen, members of authority and local committee, teachers and
pupils. Peter Keith Esq. of Olrig
and Sir Archibald H. M. Sinclair Bart. performed the unveiling ceremony.
Lady Sinclair placed a wreath on the memorial.’ There
was, in Wick High School, another of the very able and ambitious graduates with
high university qualifications who were to head the school in its formative
decades. Mr Thomas Greig Ironside,
much experienced in education and industry, came on the scene at the departure
of Alfred Murison and led the school through thirty years and many changes and
challenges. His first report is no
less complimentary than those for his predecessors beginning, ‘The
new Rector is to be congratulated on the marked success of the school during his
first session.’ Biographical
details on those important early Rectors, and indeed all the Heads of the
school, receive attention in the section on Rectors and Head Teachers and need
not be repeated here
This
staff photograph was probably taken in 1922.
It shows Rector Alfred Murison seated centre front.
Not all staff members have been identified.
As far as can be ascertained the names are as follows:- Back
Row; Miss Thompson (Principal
Teacher, English), unknown, Betty Duthie, Katy Innes, Bella Cormack, Miss Macrae,
Miss Jack. Middle
Row; Miss MacLean, John MacDonald,
Miss MacDonald, Annie Sinclair, George MacKenzie, unknown, Miss Coghill Front
Row; unknown, James Duthie,
unknown, Alfred Murison, Miss Stewart, unknown, Miss Banks. John
Dallas suggests that the male teacher second from the left on the front row may
be Mr Litster. When compared with
the 1898 photograph it is difficult to confirm that this teacher is Mr Litster
though he was working in the school at the time both pictures were taken.
Mr
Ironside with some of his staff
from the Miller Institution and the West Public in about 1928. Back
L-R; Miss Buttberg, J. R. Cutt,
Miss Anne Dunnett, John MacDonald, Miss Anne Sinclair, Stewart Robertson, Miss
Mackay, Mr A Meiklejohn. Front
L-R; Miss Dunnet (Mrs Black), Miss
Munro (Mrs Wilson), Mr Ironside, Miss Duthie, Miss Florrie Dunnett. If
the Schools’ Board thought that the 1900 block would be the long-term answer
to the overcrowding then they were very much mistaken.
Within a generation new accommodation was being sought and by the end of
the 1920’s the school had extended over the grounds of Mina Villa to the house
itself. A pathway led senior pupils
from the original Miller Institution and the new block through the orchard area
to the latest acquisition. Also
at about the same time the Board members were having to cast their eyes over the
Princes Street wall to Munro’s Buildings (now Bain and Gibson’s) for their
next prospective purchase. The
Institution’s old building required major roof repairs in 1929 and the steps
at the front were altered at that time too.
Not all members of the Caithness Education Authority were sympathetic to
the repairs carried out at that time and it was suggested by one member that the
matter should be left over to the new governing body.
He offered the opinion that there was no danger of the roof falling
during the next nine months and that the Authority should do as the Thurso Board
had done and leave it as a legacy for their successors. In
the early 1930s the original Miller Institution building held a large number of
pupils and classes. I am told that
to the left of the front door at that time was the Mathematics room and to the
right, where the Registrar’s is now, the Woodwork Room.
Towards the rear, the rooms were partitioned by a moveable screen with
wood panel on the lower portion and with glass in its upper section.
Of course, since over the years there was from time to time some
re-location of classes there will always be some argument concerning ‘who was
where’ at a particular time. Two well remembered teachers, in this building,
teaching what now approximates to the upper primary age pupils were Annie (Long
Anne) Sinclair and Isabella (Bella) Cormack.
Bella was later to become a councillor, and Thurso’s only Lady Provost.
Also remembered in this building from that time was Mr Bruce, Mathematics
teacher, better known as Brucie. Mrs
Bruce, Brucie’s spouse, and other teachers too, we are told in memories
submitted by former pupils, handed out sweets to pupils on Friday afternoon
‘for being good’. No doubt hard
work throughout the week had earned the reward.
It is said that Mental Arithmetic in P3 involved questioning from a
circle of numbers on the board while the teacher pointed out the task.
Speed was of the essence and answers were expected to be correct!
Many readers will remember the jotters printed on the back with all the
tables which had to be learnt and recited.
Fast workers in the early Primary classes could get some respite as when
work was completed they had to sit quietly with their hands on their heads! The
school concert is sometimes thought of as a recent innovation.
This is not the case and photographs and programmes of concerts from
early in the 19th century exist to prove that varied entertainment
could be provided by the Miller Institution pupils.
Photographs of the 1929 and 1932 concerts hang in the Miller Academy Arts
Building and alongside is a picture of Miller Institution Morris Dancers at the
1912 Thurso Gala. The picture below
is of an item from the 1929 concert.
Left
to right: Hettie Munro, Netta Ryrie,
Harriet Swanson, Christina Mackay, Kitty Sutherland, Margaret Sutherland and
Doodie Hawkins. Throughout
the 1930’s once again, the problem of lack of accommodation and poor
facilities dogged the Miller. David
Fraser says, ‘I remember when we had to
go to the local Drill Hall for our P.T. work when a Miss Mackenzie from
Castletown took us for P.T. there
being no gymnasium in the Miller Academy.’
As can be seen in the
section on the 1937 building, the discussion and planning stage for this new
building with a gymnasium was long and protracted.
No sooner had new rooms been obtained and constructed than the
requirement for more pupil places increased.
Heather
McLean, in school at Miller between 1953 and 1960 recalls the practice of
doubling up classes in the original building by the drawing back of the
partition. She remembers P4 having
to be doubled up when the other teacher was absent so giving Mrs Gunn the
responsibility for around 80 pupils. At
that time accommodation was at a premium with the impact of Dounreay taking hold
fully. She recalls, Primary 1 and 2
classes were at the West Public and they were accompanied there by the Primary 7
classes and Mr Dallas. This
throwing back of the partitions was not done just on the occasion of absence of
a staff member, but also for special events.
Finlay Swanson mentions the practice of opening up the partition for the
Christmas party for which each pupil paid five pence. Though
the Miller Academy has effectively stayed on the same site for 140 years and in
1958 became solely a primary school, probably the most notable change was the
evacuation of the original building in the School’s centenary year, 1962.
With the opening of Thurso High and Pennyland Schools, and the plan to
build another primary school at Mount Pleasant, it was possible to give up some
accommodation. The need of the
council to find new premises for the town Library and the Registrar of Births,
Deaths and Marriages office led to a transfer of the original Miller Institution
building to the local council.
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