Charney Hall School, Grange-over-Sands

There once was a fine, french polished, mahogany cabinet that lived in the Memorial Hall along the right hand wall, on a pier between two windows, just short of the piano. The cabinet had many drawers which spanned the full width of the carcass. Each drawer had 2 turned mahogany button knobs. If any curious boy opened the unlocked framed front it was possible to pull out each drawer in turn to view the contents.  The Butterfly and Moth Collection can be seen against the pier between the top two windows on the Side Elevation This was moved under the clock when the upright piano was installed in its place The cabinet smelt of camphor and it was only when the drawers were opened that the source of the smell became clear. Each drawer was sealed with a glass top and beneath this could be seen rows of butterflies and moths arranged in variety. The camphor crystals, we were informed, were to prevent small invading insects from damaging the immaculately pinned specimens.  Several boys, having

Rev: School Colours Tie added 30 Dec 2023 Rev: Reference to Post titled ‘ Charney Hall Notes’ added 17 Aug 2024 Inter-school matches* were a very important part of the school sports calendar.  * Don’t forget to read some of the Charney Hall Notes now available on line in that particular post.  We didn’t particularly prepare ourselves for them. But yes, for cricket there was practice in the nets for bowlers and batters alike, but in the mid 1950s, apart from occasional goal kicking by the talented few who were good enough to take penalties, football skill was self-taught and improved by playing on the field.  Match tactics were yet to filter down from the professional game although we sensed that team Rossall on the Fylde coast had a distinct advantage as they had Stanley Mathews as their part-time coach. Their game appeared more skilful and from the outset seemed to be skewed to their advantage. We were easily outwitted and I doubt that we ever won playing against them in my time. Repo

Artist: Bruce Sargeant (1898-1938) As well as cricket, football and lots of walks there was the Gymnasium.... ‘Gym’ was supervised by Mr Fawcett whose profile we assumed had been mildly modified by partaking in the noble art of boxing. He was Yorkshire born and bred and controlled us with a hairy fist and what we believed to be pugilist’s fingers, flattened with all that punching. Gymnasium or torture chamber? A quiet corner of Charney Hall gym So in ‘gym’ we must have done all the usual things - running on the spot, star jumps, knees-ups,bending and stretching, touching toes etc, press-ups? I’m not sure. But all around us there was evidence of more sinister goings-on - strange contraptions, some quite innocent, even vintage in their form but which were covered in leather, fixed to the wall or just hanging there. Thick ropes were lowered from on high, perhaps 6 in a row, and in turn we were taught to climb by wrapping one leg around the rope and then gripping it between the insteps of

1950s speed skating in the gym at Charney was not a sport, more a means of working off excess energy in the long winter evenings. There were no helmets, knee/arm protectors or gloves then, just rudimentary steel wheeled skates on which we rolled in never ending anti-clockwise direction over the rutted pine floor boards at ever increasing speed. The noise of wheels on wood and clamour of boys shouting was deafening and could be heard outside in the small courtyard. Skates which cost our parents over £1-10s, were adjustable in length by means of a bolted slider and had metal clips which gripped the sole at the toe of the shoe. The back of the skate was held tightly around the ankle with a leather strap. To buy a pair today might cost over £50 which considering the simplicity of the manufactured item appears to be very expensive. Some floor boards were splittered and the polished steel floor brads projected above the  undulating surface creating an additional hazard. Woe betide any boy wh