19th April 2025
Info from Maurice re Jack Wilkinson's funeral - 24th April at 1200hrs at Arun Crematorium Chapel. A video broadcast will be available for 28 days on line. The web address is https://watch.obitus.com, username jacu3741, password 983388.
15th April 2025
A cockup by the web registrar over our name means that our site is not guaranteed to appear from a PGSOB entry (or even a complete address entry). Bear with us while we sort it out.
14th April 2025
Maurice Barker has emailed to notify us of the passing of JCB (Jack) Wilkinson, probably the last surviving member of PGS staff. Funeral on 24th April on web - details to follow.
13th April 2025
We are aware that our numbers are dwindling. Recent passings of which we are aware include Tony Olivine (2023), Richard Myers and Trevor Sergeant (2024). Information of others will be gratefully received.
13th April 2025
This page is being resurrected in the hope that there may be some residual interest.
19th March 2020
All current and future programmed activities have been cancelled as a result of Covid 19.
Webmaster
Military Service Records
After leaving school Aleck Hadwen (Goodair 1949-1954) took a keen and active interest in the Association, with particular emphasis on the military history of former pupils and staff. He carried out extensive research in this field and was still very active up to his death in 2014, although recurring bouts of ill-health restricted his capability. It appears that after his death some of his research papers were accidentally destroyed and thus are no longer available. However his work that does exist can be seen by clicking
this link.
Archive
During the course of its 125-year existence, and particularly during the last 20 years, the Association assembled a large collection of memorabilia about the School, including artefacts, photographs and documentation. In 2019 the impending demise of the Association required the Executive Council to arrange for this collection to be handed to organisations better placed to maintain it for the future. The result is that the "two dimensional" items (photographs, publications etc) are now held by Lancashire Archives and the "three dimensional" items (headmaster's chair, lectern and similar) are in secure storage at Moor Park Academy. The lists of items, with photographs of some of the items, can be seen
here.
In addition to the above items the Association also had an extensive collection of digital images, from about 2005 onwards. Most of these are of events local to Preston (annual dinners, bowls competitions and the like) with some images of events further afield (excursions to NMA, WW1 France). There are also some images that were digitised years ago from paper photographs which are no longer available. All these images can be viewed here. There are currently more than 100 folders of images, with some still to be located.
Notes
Preston Grammar School had a long (and occasionally illustrious) history which was eventually terminated in 1969 by the national drive to comprehensive education and the elimination of selection at 11 years of age. The then "old boys" organisation - the Preston Grammar School Association - which had been formed in 1875, continued in existence for another 50 years, until the end of 2019, when the decision to close it was made unavoidable by the lack of volunteers to fill the various formally-required offices. This lack was the inevitable result of increasing age, infirmity and familial demands on members. In spite of this the members of the Executive Council wished to maintain a less formal contact for the membership of the Association, and any other individuals who wished to participate.
The purpose of this site is to be the primary source of information for all former pupils of the School about current and future planned activities and developments, including events, outings and social gatherings. Appropriate information will be posted here as and when it becomes available. In addition, items of interest will also be listed, for the entertainment of viewers.
This page was last updated on 13th April 2025
