My Boarding School Memories

A Memory of Almondsbury.

MEMORIES OF ST.CATHERINE’S
I was a boarder from Jan.1947 to July 1951. My memories too are happy ones. The principal, Ralph Cooper taught us Geography, Science and Latin and he stank of stale tobacco and his fingers and moustache were stained. His wife, Joyce, taught us cooking on the huge Aga stove. They had a young son, Melville. Other teachers include Miss Sara – piano, Miss Turner - Margaret Morris Movement, Herbert Kaden – Art, Michael Hearth – Music Appreciation. Does anyone remember being taken on a tour of the basement below the kitchen and shown the tunnels which ran between the Severn and the church in the village for whatever purpose.
Our diet was strictly vegetarian and we were all extremely healthy on it although I seemed always to be hungry on it. Miniscule portions of butter and jam but an abundance of ‘crunchy’ oven baked bread. Nightly raids on the chocolate and milk powder stores kept in a room under the stairs. Eating curly kale stalks and digging up potatoes from a neighbour’s field to bake in the furnace in the ‘wellies’ - room.
A common room separated the girls and boys dorms where we could relax on rainy weekends. My stamp collection, reading and embroidery were my chief pleasures. There are too many memories to record here but Terts pond, the playing fields, climbing trees, cricket, hockey, football, the cement swimming pool, tennis and the thrill of Guy Faulks are just some. The Brabazon test flights over the school.
Boarders’ names I can recall; my best friend Diane Thomas, Marianne an Elizabeth Mills, Charlotte and Sarah Sims, Natalie and Claire Davenport, Lilian and Veronica James, Glenda Illsley, John King (my first boy friend) was a day scholar lived in Patchway, Keith Payne and Brian Moger.
I emigrated to SA in 1952 married and have 4 daughters and am still there.
Mary Stassen nee Morpeth (nickname Mopsy) my e-mail address: tomarie@webmail.co.za