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Here we have an image is of the Balham Grammar School AFC 1st XI in South London. It is a card-mounted photograph of the sort that would almost certainly have been framed and glazed and probably displayed on a wall of the school in question. The play and screenwriter Rodney Ackland attended the school. It clearly no longer exists as I can find no reference to it beyond 1968. Most likely it changed name or merged with another school. The image is undated but I would suggest it is from the late 1920s. An interesting point is that not only do all the boys wear the football shirts open-necked, but they also all wear their collars up. It is unlikely that this would have been allowed for a formal photograph unless this was the accepted norm.
We assume the school is named after the town where it was located. Balham is an area of south London.
We have little information on the Ballham Grammar School. It clearly no longer exists as I can find no reference to it beyond 1968. Most likely it changed name or merged with another school.
England's academically selective secondary-level grammar schools sougth to emulate the ethos of the public schools. While they were not boarding schools, they did try to follow the academic trends and emphasis on sport at the public schools. For the same reason, many grammar schools put considerable emphasis on uniform, but for financial reasons, many of the boys could not afford the rather substntial
outlays involved in the miriad of public school uniform items. Grammar school boys in the 1940s and 50s commonly wore caps and blazers. The younger boys at many grammar schools also wore short trousers. Some schools required it. At other schools it was the parents choice.
The play and screenwriter Rodney Ackland attended the school.
We are not sure at this time what the school uniform was.
Here we have an image is of the Balham Grammar School AFC 1st XI in South London. It is a card-mounted photograph of the sort that would almost certainly have been framed and glazed and probably displayed on a wall of the school in question. The image is undated but I would suggest it is from the late 1920s. An interesting point is that not only do all the boys wear the football shirts open-necked, but they also all wear their collars up. It is unlikely that this would have been allowed for a formal photograph unless this was the accepted norm. All the boys wear the same kit (except for the boy next to the staff member and
the goalkeeper). They all wear their long-sleeved (cotton) shirts with the sleeves rolled up. All the boys are wearing turn-over knee socks. These are largely different. The goalkeeper wears a knitted woolen top. The photograph is a studio shot taken by The Wykeham Studios Ltd, 165 Victoria Street, SW1. It also had other branches and as SW1 is Central London it is more likely that the photo was taken at the branch in Balham at 67 Balham High Road (which is about 5 miles to the South of Victoria). (For our non British readers, Victoria is a major train station in London.)
Modern football like most of our sports began in Europe during the 19th centrury, in large measure a relection of increasing affluence and more leasure time as the industrial revolution created a vast increaser in wealth accross a wide social spectrum. The game of football began modestly. Early games were wild affaits and there were graet variations in how it was played. There were certain common aspects, many of which have continued to this day. The game inspired a particular kind of determined devotion in its followers. The games that are now known as Rugby and
Association Football began in England about halfway through the 19th century. The game has since spawned other offshoots, inclusing Americam and ZAustralian football. While the modern came can be traced to England, there are are records of earlier forms in China, at least 2,000 years ago. Footbal type ganes were played in many other societies, including ancient Greece and Rome as well as the Cental American
Mayans. But it was in England that football began to take the recognizeable
modern shape. Football developed spontaneously in the fields and streets,
among farm boys and apprentices--a folk game. It belonged to the common people. The authorities of the time and the well-bred, considered it to be a vulgar, rowdy pastime. From the 14th century onwards, the respectable and the Godly observed it with distaste, and made constant efforts to suppress it. There were several reasons for this. It kept men from the exercise of their Christian duties, and from the proper occupation with the interests of their employers. It wasted time that might profitably and decently be used in the practice of archery and other military skills. But although the law-abiding mayors, sheriffs, and clerics tried to
stamp it out, it was to little or no effect. What the people said is not known, but they went on playing.
Often the members of sports teams were photographed with a game ball or other equipment they played with. Even without these props, however, it was often possible to deduce the sport involved. Note that the football (soccer) team here has vertical stripes. I think this was the basic convention for English sports teams. Rugby teams commonly wore shirts with horizontal stripes. We are not sure if there was any convention for hockey teams. Cricket teams of course wire white.
Here we will add individual accounts provided by former students.
A HBC reader tells us about his experiencs at Balham Grammar. "I saw your article about the Balham Grammar team. I attended the school in the 1950s. Here is my school portrair in 1951. The colours of the blazer and cap were red, white and blue, woven in a gabardine cloth and worn together with grey flannels or worsted trousers. The badge bore a crest, a red lion above a silk rope holding in its mouth a green leaf (or was it the rotting head of some long-departed pupil?) all on a navy ground. The motto, which you cannot make, out was “Tempus fugit et irrevocable est” ( but should have been “Duris non frangor.”). I seem to be wearing some button or other, although I can’t remember what it is. Something tells me it was a House badge, and if so, would have said “Nelson”. This was the summer uniform, thus I seem to have disregarded that I should have been wearing the school tie: that was a red, white and blue diagonal rayon “silk” tie, the narrow white stripes interposed between the wider stripes of alternating red & blue. The winter uniform, which I deigned never to wear, was a navy flannel blazer; for who would wish to pass anonymously through the winter streets when they could wear the lurid summer garb and get beaten up by every passing crowd of more soberly attired youths. I should be happy to describe my recollections of the place, secure in the knowledge that the laws of libel to not apply to the defunct. In any case, I shall number myself among that illustrious band long before any case could come to trial."
Related Chronolgy Pages in the Boys' Historical Web Site
[The 1880s]
[The 1930s]
[The 1940s]
[The 1950s]
[The 1960s]
[The 1970s]
[The 1980s]
