1891 Schools Lydbrook and Bilson Green areas (General)

by Jefff , West London, Middlesex, Wednesday, March 14, 2018, 23:40 (2439 days ago) @ Jefff

Mike,
it seems highly likely that attended Bilson School on Station street, if you search this forum you can find several links to some excellent websites describing the history & activities at Bilson School.
Here's a description of life at Bilson School during WW1
http://website.lineone.net/~glb1/cinderford/bilson.htm

Just one part of this excellent FoD and especially Cinderford history website includes this detailed history of Bilson School and what it was like to attend in the early days.
http://way-mark.co.uk/foresthaven/livnhist/0liked00.htm

Also see this prior thread amongst others, http://forest-of-dean.net/fodmembers/index.php?mode=thread&id=15015
And https://www.sungreen.co.uk/Cinderford/Bilson-Schools.htm

Here's an excellent highly-detailed map of Cinderford from 1901, the Gas Works near the railway station, and nearby Bilson School further up Station Street towards the town centre can be clearly seen after zooming-in to the upper centre part.
http://maps.nls.uk/view/101453394

The 1901 map for Lydbrook shows a school right next to the railway station at Upper Lydbrook. Could the railway have been an easy way to get to Bilson school everyday, or vice versa ?...
Seems an unlikely extravagance tho', unless perhaps the gasworks manager lived in Lydbrook, but I'd have thought he'd live next to his works. And anyway, why would he take his infant from one school to near another.
??
http://maps.nls.uk/view/101453358

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Regarding surviving school records, searching the net gives this National Archives hit which shows the Records for Bilson School are held at Gloucestershire Archives, which is currently being rehoused ! so maybe best wait a while. These records appear to be quite complete, with 27 volumes of presumably attendance registers etc, I'm tempted to look mine up !.

Reference: S85
Title: BILSON SCHOOLS, CINDERFORD
Description:
Log books, Admission registers of Bilson Infants, Boys Junior, Girls Junior and Junior (mixed) Schools
Date: 1878-1980

http://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/9a9327e9-66ae-4ffa-95ec-8e1465b2acc6

The GlosArchives Records can be searched here, searching "Bilson School" gave me 54 hits, several for the School itself including S85 above, and also a couple for Bilson Gas company that may also interest you.
http://ww3.gloucestershire.gov.uk/CalmView/Overview.aspx

Using the above searches it appears Glos Archives also have the old Attendance etc Records for Lydbrook Schools. I hope when they have finished their rebuilding programme then they'll also update their own search engines, currently there seems to be more than one system operating ?.
This general one, https://www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/archives/search

And also the "CalmView" link posted above, which seems the best.

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I've just remembered seeing School Records for Lydbrook, or was it Joys Green nearby, on the FindMyPast subscription website. Maybe worth a look too ??
https://search.findmypast.co.uk/search-world-records/national-school-admission-register...

Hope this helps, J