John George Gordon and the departure from the Grammar School

So, last week we learned a bit about the reverend John George Gordon, the first headteacher of the Loughborough Grammar School, when it moved to its current location. Since then, the school archivist has been in touch and provided a few more details about the final days of the career of the Rev'd Gordon at the school.

In the spring of 1860, Rev'd Gordon had expelled a young student by the name of Algernon Perse (1) who was from Scotland and who was a boarded at the Grammar School. Upon learning of the expulsion, Algernon's father, Dudley, wrote to the school, as a result of which, Rev'd Gordon was interviewed by the school's trustees, its deputy headteacher, and Gordon's housekeeper, about the reason's behind the boy's expulsion.

Here's what the archivist said:

"During the spring of 1860 he [Gordon] had expelled Algernon Perse, a boarder from Scotland, but it the manner of their final confrontation that was to have repercussions. 

Mr Dudley Perse [father of Algernon] wrote to the trustees expressing dissatisfaction with the conclusion which they had reached with regard to his son. He stated that Dr Gordon had exclaimed to him [Algernon] 'None of your lies, Sir' and had then kicked him.

On 1st June 1860 the trustees interviewed Dr Gordon, his deputy (2), and his housekeeper about the quarrel and the struggle."  

Following this interview, the trustees took the unusual step of interviewing three boys  - William Bolton, James Sweetenham, and William Farmer - who had been witness to the 'quarrel and struggle':

"Clearly unhappy at what they heard, they decided to interview on 13th June, three boys who were eye-witnesses to the incident. William Bolton, a 14-year-old boarder from Dublin, had seen Gordon strike Perse once with the 'whacking cane'. Perse seized the cane after which the headmaster kicked him twice. During the struggle, James Sweetenham, aged 13 from Cumberland entered the room. He heard Perse urge Gordon to 'keep himself cool', but Gordon was 'much excited' and kicked him twice."

Clearly the trustees were shocked by Gordon's behaviour, and as, according to the archivist, they "had been looking for some time to get rid of Gordon - in fact since 1853" (3) and were ready to dismiss him from post, but before they managed to do this, Gordon resigned. Apparently:

"The trustees were unimpressed by the [resignation] letter which was self-pitying and self-serving, blaming his aberrant behaviour on the stress of running a new school in conditions which he had never previously experienced."

So unimpressed were the trsutees that they refused to grant Gordon's request for a pension.

And so, the search for a new headteacher began ...

(1) Algernon Perse, surname variously spelled Perse, Persse, Perces, Pierce, Piersse etc..

(2) The deputy headteacher at the time was Rev'd J. Kitchen

(3) Astonishing since Gordon had only been headteacher since the school opened in its new location in 1852

Posted by lynneaboutloughborough 24 October 2021

You are welcome to quote passages from any of my posts, with appropriate credit. The correct citation for this looks as follow:

Dyer, Lynne (2021). John George Gordon and the departure from the Grammar School. Available from: https://lynneaboutloughborough.blogspot.com/2021/10/john-george-gordon-and-departure-from.html  [Accessed 24 October 2021]

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So who was the reverend John George Gordon

Loughborough Grammar School has had a presence in Loughborough since around 1495, being founded as part of a bequest made by the estate of Thomas Burton, a wealthy local wool merchant. The school was originally placed in the porch of the Church of St Peter and St Paul, now known as All Saints with Holy Trinity. As numbers of pupils increased, the teaching moved into the body of the church, before moving into a separate building in the churchyard. In 1825 the teaching moved to a new building on nearby Church Gate, before re-locating to the present site, off Leicester Road, in 1852.

The first headteacher at the new site was Rev'd John George Gordon, who held the position from 1852 until 1860. Gordon was born in Ireland, around 1813, to merchant father, John. 

Gordon attended the School of St John the Baptist at Cork, and graduated from Trinity College, Dublin, before passing an MA at Sydney College, Cambridge. During his educational journey, Gordon had been a high achiever, being a gold medallist at Trinity College Dublin. He moved to Cheltenham and on 6 March 1844, at his initiation into the Foundation Lodge of the Cheltenham United Grand Lodge of Freemasons, was listed as a ‘clerk’. In reality, Gordon was the assistant master at Cheltenham College from 1841-1847. In December of 1844 he was ordained a deacon, and the following year, a priest.

The Dorset County Chronicle of December 1847 announced the appointment of Gordon to the position of second master of the Bristol Free Grammar School, saying: “His testimonials of classical and mathematical attainments were high, … his credentials were also of a very high character.”

Perhaps it was the move to Bristol which prompted his marriage at St Mary’s church, Cheltenham, to Sarah Carr, the daughter of lawyer, George Charles Carr. Gordon, who was listed as a clerk residing at Clifton, and Sarah, who had been born in Chester, married on 26 April 1948.

The 1851 census lists Gordon and Sarah living at 6 Grosvenor Place, Clifton, with house servant, Harriet Jones. An advert appeared in the Bristol Times and Mirror, in July 1851, to attract new pupils. We learn that the school employs nine masters, and “The object of the school … is to furnish an Education at once liberal and useful, without the necessity of removing Boys from the care and control of their Friends.” Instruction was offered in English, Latin. Greek, French and German language, alongside, writing, arithmetic, book-keeping, geography, history, mathematics, and natural philosophy.

Although Slater’s directory of Bristol and its suburbs and vicinity, lists Gordon as living at 6 Grosvenor Place, in mid-1852, the Trustees of the Burton Charity had elected Gordon as headmaster of the new Loughborough Grammar School. The Coventry Herald, in October of 1852, carried an interesting article about the “Reform of the Free Grammar School of Loughborough”, suggesting that after a period of decline, this new school, of a superior architectural character, had been erected under a decree of Chancery. Rev’d Gordon, it said, had a salary of £200 a year, with a share of the money paid by day pupils and the boarders. The second master, who was paid £120, and a share of money paid by day pupils, was Thomas White. Other masters were C.E. Warner, and A. Selss (?).

In 1857, Gordon performed the marriage ceremony of his niece, Louisa Courtenay, to Rev’d Elwin John Everard Evered, at the Abbey Church in Bath. School matters were also high on the agenda, and Gordon attended the 1858 National Conference of Upper and Middle-Class Schoolmasters in the Guildhall in London, a conference presided over by the Lord Mayor of London, and contributed to by several members of parliament and other distinguished men. Gordon also represented the school at other events, like the annual dinner of the Loughborough Agricultural Association.

Something happened that saw Gordon move away from Loughborough (possibly something to do with Great Southern Railway Company, but I really cannot be sure on that), and in October 1860, Loughborough Grammar School was advertising for a new headmaster, offering a salary of £200 and residence.

In his next position, Gordon was the Principal of the Collegiate Institution at 23 Notting-Hill Terrace, in the parish of St Mary Abbott, Kensington, London, as post he held until his tragic death on 26 December 1862. Gordon was killed in an accident on the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway, at the Gipsy Hill station in Norwood, on the London side of Crystal Palace. He had tried to board a train which had just begun to move off from the station, and a porter had signalled to him not to. The porter knew not only was it unsafe to try and board a moving train, it also wasn’t the train Gordon actually wanted. The well-meaning porter tried to help Gordon down from the train, but as he did so, they both fell, the porter landing on the platform, and Gordon onto the tracks. Gordon was conveyed to Guy’s Hospital, but died of his injuries.

The news of this accident was widely reported in the press at the time, including in the local Loughborough Monitor. Probate was granted to Gordon’s widow, Sarah Gordon: effects were under £4,000. Gordon was buried on 1 January 1863 in Old Brompton cemetery.

Posted by lynneaboutloughborough 17 October 2021

You are welcome to quote passages from any of my posts, with appropriate credit. The correct citation for this looks as follow:

Dyer, Lynne (2021). So who was the reverend John George Gordon? Available from: https://lynneaboutloughborough.blogspot.com/2021/10/so-who-was-reverend-john-george-gordon.html  [Accessed 17 October 2021]

Take down policy:

I post no pictures that are not my own, unless I have express permission so to do. All text is my own, and not copied from any other information sources, printed or electronic, unless identified and credited as such. If you find I have posted something in contravention of these statements, or if there are photographs of you which you would prefer not to be here, please contact me at the address listed on the About Me page, and I will remove these.

You can leave comments below, but do check back as my reply will appear here, below your comment.

Thank you for reading this blog. 

Lynne