Bromsgrove School acquires important historical letter

30 Nov 2018

Bromsgrove School was delighted and honoured to receive a visit from Old Bromsgrovians Hugh Furber and Victor Matts on 9th October who presented the School with an original letter written by Dr J.D Collis, Headmaster of Bromsgrove from 1843-1867.

The letter, which describes Shakespeare’s birthday celebrations in Stratford-on-Avon in 1873, was recently found online and purchased by the Old Bromsgrovian Lodge. This will now form part of the School’s archive collections for future generations to enjoy.

Commenting on the recent donation, School Archivist, Nikki Thorpe said “This letter is a really interesting addition to the School Archive, especially with the reference to the Shakespeare celebration. We are grateful to Dr Gibbs and Hugh Furber for tracking it down and taking the time to transcribe it, which will make it accessible for future displays at School events and exhibitions”.

This letter is from The Revd. Dr. J. D Collis, a distinguished Headmaster of Bromsgrove School (1843-1867), to a Bro. Parkinson. At the time of writing, Dr. Collis was the Vicar of Stratford-upon- Avon. He was an active Freemason, a member of Westminster and Keystone Lodge No. 10, and was Provincial Grand Chaplain of Middlesex in 1874. During his successful tenure as Headmaster, Dr. Collis, saw pupil numbers rise from 17 in 1843 to 100 in 1865. He embarked upon a building construction and improvement programme, which included the erection of new classrooms and the building of a chapel (The Old Chapel) in 1856. It is fitting that The Old Chapel is the meeting place of the Old Bromsgrovian Lodge of Freemasons No. 5743.

The letter was acquired by members of the Old Bromsgrovian Lodge and presented to the School in 2018. The original letter is held in the School archives.