“The first consignment of the pupils’ work for the soldiers has been sent to the Municipal Receiving Office. The list is as follows-: 27 pairs of socks, 8 pairs sleeping socks, 16 body belts, 7 helmets, 7 scarves.

Dundee reacted to the outbreak of the First World War in much the same way as the rest of Scotland. Patriotic fever was running high and hundreds of men ‘flocked to the colours’ to serve their King and Country. By 1918 over 4000 men had lost their lives from Dundee alone. One soldier from Dundee was James Hogg. He left for France with the 1st Battalion of the Black Watch on2 september 1914. He fought there for the first few months before being wounded when a bullet hit his helmet. He was sent home but re-enlisted, as did many other men.
On 27 December 1914 James sat down to record his experiences in France.

image & article from SCRAN

“Copy of H.M. Inspector’s Report on this school:-
“This school has now been open for two years and at the visit of inspection had 1070 pupils on the roll.The excellent premises provided are comfortably filled, and the work of instruction is carried on under most favourable conditions. “every new school takes a year or two to find itself and to develop a character and atmosphere of its own, and this has proved to be the case with Dens Road. It is satisfactory, however, to be able to report that the performance of the pupils has steadily improved, that the school has shaken off the merely temporary attendees that flocked to it at first from outlying parts, and that it has nowdeveloped into a local centre serving a district of its own. For the first year the work of organisation and instructionwas rendered exceedingly difficult owing to the fact that many of the pupils enrolled were found to be in a very backward state, and it says much for the efforts of the headmaster, supported by a loyal and capable staff, that so marked improvement has been effected in so short a time.
“The school is organised in an Infant Division with eight classes, a Junior Division with nine, and a Senior Division with six, there being included in each of the latter two divisions a special class in which particular attention is given to backward pupils”
Infants:
“The Infant Department is under Miss Paton’s charge, and is conducted with exceptional skill and enthusiasm. All that is best in modern infant teaching is laid under contribution, and the progress of the pupils is most satisfactory.”
Juniors
“Throughout the Junior Division thereare evidences of careful classification, and of steady progressive work. The weight of the teaching effort has been wisely thrown on essential branches, and the good foundation laid should stand the pupils in good stead, when they come to deal with more difficult work of the higher classes.”
Seniors
“In the Senior division there are some promising classes, and also a few which have been difficult to organise owing to the relatively backward state of many of the pupils. All the teachers, however, are working zealously, and everything points to greater and more uniform proficiency in the near future.”
“The number of pupils reaching the stage of the Qualifying Examination is steadily rising, and the number(thirty nine) of those who recently passed this examination is to be regarded in the circumstances of the school as distinctly satisfactory”
The subsidiary branches of the curriculum scaresly call for comment at this time, but it may be mentioned that the excellent provision for physical exercises is a great boon to the school, and that Sewing is taught on lines that should add fresh life and interest to this subject.
The work of the following class teachers impressed the examiners as being distinctly good:
Miss Bruce and Miss Lothian in charge of Senior Classes; and Miss Tosh, teacher of J1a”
The letter from the Clerk accompanying the above contained congratulations on the terms of the report.

“Attendance affected by epidemic of measles and several cases of scarlet fever”

Images from SCRAN.

“Miss Elder’s temporary appointment has now been made a permanent one at a salary of £60- per anum, first increment to be in September next”

22nd June 1911

“Coronation Day. Pupils received medals and sweets from the Town Council. Present Convenor W.S.Nicoll, Councillor John Mudie and Mr I.B.Taylor. School closed for the day.”

Image from SCRAN

 15th September 1911

“The Convenor granted a halfholiday to the pupils of this school in recognition of their behaviour during an outbreak of school strikes.”

In September 1911 thousands of children across wide areas of England, Scotland and Wales became embroiled in a series of strike waves. The first strike occurred on the morning of September 5, 1911, when children left their classrooms of Bigyn School, Llanelli, protesting at the physical punishment of one of their classmates. During the next three weeks, school strikes spread in a rapidly accelerating ‘wave’, affecting at least 62 town and cities, stretching as far north as Montrose in Scotland and as far south as Portsmouth, involving thousands of children. Reasons for striking ranged from a desire to abolish the cane, less school work, more holidays and payment for school monitors. William Baker, Reflecting Education, April 2010

Pupils past and present joined Dundee’s Lord Provost John Letford in a special assembly to celebrate Dens Road primary school’s centenary today.
Doris Hoskins and Ronald Watt, who were both at the school from 1937 to 1944, met the current classes and shared their memories of school life.
Today’s assembly kicked off a year of celebration and learning in which all the children from nursery to primary seven will complete projects relating to the school’s history and the past 100 years.
Educaiton convener Liz Fordyce and head of primary education Lena Waghorn also attended the assembly.
THe school’s nursery teacher Elaine Taylor appealed for any former pupils who want to take part in the centenary celebrations to ring her on 01382 436383 or write to the pupil council at Dens Road Primary, 77 Dens Road, DD3 7HY.
The school plans to compile a centenary picutre book throughout the year.

Extract from Dens Road Public School Log Book
“5th January 1911
Formal opening of this school.
This school was formally opened today in presence of Members of the School Board, the Lord Provost, Magistrates and Councillors of the City, the members of the Parish Council, the Harbour Board, The Principal Staff of Univeristy College, representatives of Public Bodies and also the general public. All the New Staff was present.
Bailie Mudie occupied the chair and introduced Mr G. K. Smith the Chairman of the School Board who performed the opening ceremony. Mr G. K. Smith entertained a large company to lunch in the Royal Hotel immediately after the ceremony.”

“10th January 1911
School opened for work. Enrolment 780.
Staff
Robert Loggie – Headmaster
Robert Jack – Second Master – Class S1f
Jane D. Paton – Infant Mistress
Agnes W. W. Thorburn – First Female Assistant – Class S2f
Senior Division
William Gilbert – Class S2a
Alison Lothian – Class S3a
Margaret Fraser – Class S3f
Junior Division
Jane Mooney – Class J1a
Mrs Menzies – Class J1a
Helen Kay – Class J1f
Alice Ewan – Class J2a
Flora Nicholson – Class J3a
Infant Division
Catherine Moyes – Infant
Jemima Black – Infant
Annie O. McFarlane – Infant
Jane Gorrie – Infant
Isabella Kidney – Infant
Christna Dalziel – Infant”

“11th January 1911
Miss Jane A. Tosh entered upon her duties as an assistant teacher in the Junior Division.”

Dens Road School was formally opened on the 5th January 1911. We are about to celebrate our one hundreth year.

To help us celebrate we will use this blog to share some of the extracts of our school log books dating from the opening of the school. These have lots of interesting entries about school life throughout the past 100 years.

Extract taken from Dundee City Council Website – January 1909 Bygone News

New Dundee School
Dens Road School to be erected by Dundee School Board in place of St Salvador’s Episcopal School, which is to be closed, is to cost about £14,500. The works committee on Tuesday agreed to recommend the acceptance of offers from Tradesmen amounting in the aggregate to £12,500 and the cost of furnishing with architects fees etc, will amount to £2000. It should be stated that the first estimate was £19,000, but there has been a good deal of cutting down, with the result indicated.

This provides a link to the architect of Dens Road School.

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