Figure 1.--Here we have a school cadet group, but we have no idea what school it is. The photograph was probably taken near Birkenhead during the 1910s. One possibility is that this is a cadet group from a regular school rather than a naval training school group. Image courtesy of the PH collection. |
Here we have a school cadet group, but we have no idea what school it is. A HBC contributor weites, "Unfortunately, I can't give you much information on the card because there is nothing on the back. All I can tell you on this one is that it appears to be a group of Naval Cadets who have either just passed an exam or may even be musical (the boy on the far right with a stack of papers gives me these ideas). The photographer was William Cull Pictoral Press Agency of 17
Hamilton Square, Birkenhead. Birkenhead is a piece of land in The Wirral in the northwest of England, which is surrounded on three sides by water and is right next to Liverpool, so it is safe to assume this was taken there." We at first thought the photograph was taken earlier, but have been convinced by reader comments that the photograph was probably taken after World War I, perhaps the 1930s, but here we are not sure. One possibility is that this is a cadet group from a regular school rather than a naval training school group. The boys are obviously on a ship of some kind. I am guessing that the Royal Navy may have maintained vessels for the use of school cadet groups. Hopefully our British readers will know more about this. I am unsure about the uniform. We do not know to what extent the uniform was mandated by naval or school authorities.
I am very surprised by your assertion you think this from the 1910s. My dad
was on a training ship in the 1950s and this is a very similar type of shot
and the quality of the postcard and the haircuts make me personally almost
certain this dates from the 1950s or late 1940s at the very earliest - quite
a time difference!
A reader writes. "An interesting photo and certainly not easy to identify. The boys seem to be on a sailing ship - perhaps a naval training vessel - however
the socks remind me of the early Scout socks (navy blue with two green bands) but there are no signs of garter tabs. I don't know when Sea Scouts started in the UK and the elastic? snake clasp belt could indicate a later after World War I. It's a pity there are no obvious badges to help. I like the spare pair of feet, I would guess some poor kid is being carried aloft for some celebratory reason or other. Sorry I can't help further." Yes we thought od Sea Scouting, but the jackets do not look to us like any Sea Scout uniform we have seen, but our information is admitetly limited/
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