Archive Photo of The Month – October

Ahead of our 150th Anniversary of girls’ attending Hutchesons’ Grammar School, the Archive Photo of The Month looks at memories of their time at school.

One of the strongest memories former pupils have, is the school uniform. From the image below, girls had to wear hats with a hat band, and skirts were much longer than today, but still with many traditions, like the lighter blue blazer and grey-coloured skirts.

Sharing their memories, former pupils shared;

“I remember having to line up on our knees in the main hall in Kingarth Street so that our skirt length could be measured. If there was too much distance between the hem of your skirt and the floor, you were in trouble and you had to ‘let down’ your skirt from where it was rolled up around the waistband!”

“In summer there were cotton dresses, pale blue, green, fawn, pink and mauve, with short white socks and sandals and Panama hats (with hat band). You could be reported if seen anywhere on the way to and from school without a hat – or beret.”

With our 150th Anniversary celebration of girls’ attending Hutchesons’ taking place in May 2026, we are calling out to our female former pupils to get in touch with their memories. Or if you have a relative who was a former pupil (of any year), or if you are still in touch with a former member of staff, then please do get in touch. We are looking to hear more about their memories of their time at school ahead of the celebration. Please email archives@hutchesons.org.

School Archive:

Committed to the collection, preservation and maintenance of the records of the school, its activities and pupils, the School strives to record the school’s history and memory and hold a range of archive material from class registers and magazines to photographs, trophies and uniforms. Pupils are encouraged at both Primary and Secondary School to engage with archive material, with the aim to provide a dynamic educational resource for the school and wider community.

Would you like to know more about the School’s History? Contact our School Archivist, Ms Devenney at archives@hutchesons.org with any enquiries.