Glenwood High School (Durban)

Glenwood High, circa 1914

The school had its origins with the creation of a small institution called the Day Continuation School that was located in a double-story building on Smith St in August 1910 with a student roll of 24 boys. In 1915, due to building size limitations, the Day Continuation School moved to the Technical College building and changed its name to Durban Technical High School which by 1916 had 150 students.[2][3] Student numbers continued to grow during the First World War and by 1918 there were 267 scholars. In the same year the Natal Provincial Council appointed a commission to investigate the feasibility of expanding the school and the subsequent Coleman-Dukes Report stated that ..a large increase in the numbers [of students] for which it is exceedingly difficult to find accommodation... and recommended the allotment of 10 acres of land on the corner of Alan Paton and Bulwer Roads in Glenwood. The construction of the school buildings eventually took place and by 1934 the current premises were ready for occupation.[4] At the same time, the school subject matter was changed and all technical subjects were removed from the curriculum (these subjects were allocated to Mansfield Road Intermediate School)[Note 1] and the name was changed from Durban Technical High School to Glenwood High School, also reflecting the new location.[3]

In 1915 South Africa sent one brigade of Infantry to support the Allied war effort on the Western Front. The 1st South African Infantry Brigade comprised four battalions with the 2nd Battalion being known as the Natal & OFS Battalion, containing many men from Durban and Pietermaritzburg.[6] In 1915, there were only 120 boys at the school,[7] of which (from the Class of 1914 and earlier) twenty five ex-Glenwood pupils lost their lives as part of this Battalion during World War I[8] Of those killed, four were killed during the Battle of Delville Wood.

Glenwood High School crest in Delville Wood Memorial commemorating the death of Glenwood old boys in the 1916 Battle of Delville Wood (2009)

In 1939, at the start of World War II there were 490[7] pupils in the school and during the six years of war, 457 Old Boys served in East Africa, the Western Desert and Italy. Of these, 109 were in the South African or Royal Airforce.[7] Out of the 457 who served, 120 old-boys lost their lives during this war. There is a poignant picture of the school's 1st Rugby Team of 1935 where at least 15 of the 18 boys in the photograph volunteered for service in the war and six of those in the photograph were killed. These included Clement (Neville) McGarr, who was one of the prisoners of war to escape from Stalag Luft III as part of the "Great Escape".[Note 2]

In the early 1960s the Natal Education Department (NED) made a controversial attempt to enforce school zoning in the core suburbs of Durban. A study conducted by the NED showed that considerable amount of money was being paid to transport students to and from school and that children travelled "further than they should" and introduced a policy that compelled students to attend the closest school to their residence. Glenwood old boys (supported by DHS old boys) defended the schools’ favouring of the children of old boys, reflecting an "English society siege-like mentality" to counter the Afrikaner policies after the National Party's election victory that threatened the perceived English school traditions. Eventually a compromise was reached between the schools and the NED whereby a zoning system was implemented that allocated points based on children's place of residence and on whether they had ties to the school through either their siblings’ or father's schooling. It was labelled as ‘preferential admissions’ or ‘restrictive admissions’ and allowed the Glenwood management the freedom to take out-of-area students when they were not full.[10]