The school was founded in 1548 and granted its Charter by King Charles II in 1662.[1] The Reverend William Hulton Keeling became the headmaster in 1871. He had transformed the grammar school in Northampton, and here he did the same, joining forces with the merchant Jacob Behrens, Bradford Observer editor William Byles and Vincent William Ryan Vicar of Bradford.[2] The school was considered as good as the best public schools in 1895 and Keeling died in 1916 having been given the Freedom of the City. His daughter was Dorothy Keeling ran The Bradford Guild of Help and transformed voluntary work in the UK.[2]
Second World War
The new school building in Frizinghall was actually completed in 1939, however the start of the Second World War prevented the building from being opened as a school. During the war, the main school building was used as a Primary Training Centre,[3] and there is still evidence of this around the building. During this time, many BGS pupils were evacuated to Settle,[4] and returned when the building was released from army occupation and completed. Inside the school there is a large memorial to the former pupils who died in the war.
Frizinghall railway station
Frizinghall railway station closed in 1965 and remained closed for 22 years. During this time, staff and pupils at the school campaigned to get the station reopened. In the end, it was due to the efforts of an English teacher, Robin Sisson,[5] that the station was reopened as a halt.
This article's list of alumni may not follow Wikipedia's verifiability policy. Please improve this article by removing names that do not have independent reliable sources showing they merit inclusion in this article AND are alumni, or by incorporating the relevant publications into the body of the article through appropriate citations. (August 2019)