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10 "THE GLEANER,
The History of Education in Collingwood
By l.Javid Williams
The education of their children was one of the first thoughts of the pioneers of Collingwood. Scarcely had they built their homes in tht> section of what proved to be the be· ginning of the present town beforE> they gave their attention to estab- lishing a school, or rather, schools, because their efforts were not con- fined to a public, but extended to a high school. Both came in the fiftie~ first and, needless to say, were insti- tuted under quite unfavorable condi- tions. There were no public buildings, no public halls, hence the seats oJ learning were located in private pro-
perty and there continued for a num- ber of years. The public school wa!:"l opened in a kitchen of a frame build- ing that stood on the east side of Ste. Marie Street near the north end. From this it went to a room in the home of the first stationed mission· ary, Rev. Edward Sallows, who be· longed to the Wesleyan Methodist Church. This was on the west side of Pine Street, near First Street. In 1857 Sheriff B. W. Smith gave the community a block of land on east Pine Street between Second and Third Streets, now known as MoMil- lan's livery. On January 1, 1858, in- corporation was given the town and with established municipal authority and a Board of School Trustees the newly organized town council was asked to issue debentures for £1000 and with these funds the frame building which yet stands, was erec- ted on the Smith donation, at a cost, it is said, of £1200. With the brick addition, erected in 1879, the build- ing was used until 1884 when the Victoria School was opened. Some years after an east ward school was built toward the easterly end of On- tario Street, and a west ward at the corner of Fourth and Cedar Streets, this taking the place of a log build- ing at the corner of Oak and Fourth
Streets. Later the present Con- naught School replaced the former and in 1911 the King George School, the latter. The first teaoher was a man named Cochrane who was suc- ceeded by P. Y. Smith and later by A. C. Herrick. William Williams was principal for several years, this work being carried on in conjunction with the principalship of the Collegiate Institute. Mr. Williams resigned in 1881, his resignation not being ac- cepted, and again in 1882 when he was succeeded by Mr. Edward Ward, who occupied the position, greatly to his credit, till 1907 when Mr. C. L. McKenzie was appointed. In 1913 Mr. E. B. Fry was given the principal- ship which he yet retains, with marked success.
While developing their ideas as to the public· schools, the matter of sec- ondary education was also in the mind of the people. With a determin- ation to .supply this need, action was taken looking to the establishing of a Grammar School. In this, one of the chief spirits was Rev. Dr. John Langtry, who, upon the by-law be- ing passed on June 20, 1857, by the County Council of Simcoe, with a few mor<• enthusiasts, immediately set to work to organize the school. There was no school honse, hence the new institution of learning was taken to a room in the lnternatinnal .Hotel, then en the site of the present Bank of Montreal, thence to anothet• l'•)om ir. the True Blue House, on the site of the present Gayety Theatre, later 1o a frame building on Pine Street, and still later to Rockcourt, the home of Dr. Langtry. From here it was moved to the town hall, which stood on the north-west corner of the present railway ground, now the dwelling opposite the Soldiers' Mem- orial, to which site the building, with the school was moved in the early seventies. Dr. Langtry was succeed- ed by Frederic Gore who C•ame irom Barrie where he had taught in the Grammar School for a few years.