THE OUTBREAK OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR

By the summer of 1939 it was becoming obvious that Britain might soon be involved in war with Hitler’s Germany. Since it was felt that Portobello might be a possible target for German bombers because of the presence of the power-station, the railway and a military camp at Duddingston, it was decided to evacuate pupils whose parents desired it.

On the day before the outbreak of the Second World War, several hundred pupils complete with suitcases, gas masks and identity cards attached to their coats, accompanied by their teachers, assembled at Portobello Railway Station and set off for Banffshire, where most of them were billeted in houses at Buckie with smaller groups at Deskford and Cullen. These children were enrolled at Buckie High School. Meanwhile, the Portobello teachers returned to organize the education of the children who had not been evacuated.

The school’s first preparations for the conflict came almost 6 months before war was declared. The Log Book entry for 16th March 1939, records…

“During this week gas-masks have been fitted on pupils throughout the school. Mrs Johnston, wife of the First Assistant, was very helpful in the Infant Classes.”

Subsequent log entries return to mostly routine matters, with the occasional reminder of the dangers to come (“Evacuation letters were handed out to the children this afternoon”, March 30th).

The head teacher is recalled from the summer holidays to open the school on Saturday 26th August and explain evacuation procedures to parents and children. The next few days (including Sunday) must have been hectic as nurses attended to give medical examinations to the evacuees and an evacuation rehearsal was held at 9 am. on August 28th.

The actual evacuation took place on 2nd September 1939, the day before war was declared. 414 pupils, teachers and parents met at 7am. They caught a train at 1045am for Buckie in Banffshire, where they arrived about 6pm, 11 hours after they had assembled in the morning.

The children were taken to the Public School where they were served tea, sandwiches and biscuits and given a bag of rations to last them forty-eight hours. Each bag contained two tins of milk, a tin of corned beef, a bag of biscuits and two bars of chocolate.

By ten o’clock at night all the children had been billeted in houses in the area.

The headmaster and staff returned to Edinburgh on September 5th, to arrange the education of those who had not been evacuated.

As the school still had no air-raid shelters, it was felt to be too dangerous to bring the remaining pupils into the building for instruction, and a plan was devised to give classes to small groups of children in the houses of parents who were willing to cooperate.

This did not work very well, however, and in January 1940, the pupils returned to school. Four shelters had now been constructed in the playground and the walls of the cloakrooms had been strengthened for use as further refuge.

Gas masks had to be carried by staff and pupils at all times and there were regular air-raid and respirator drills. A system of fire-watching was introduced and the fire-watchers kept vigil every night from dusk until 7 am. There was one incident when the school was flooded and it was claimed that a water pipe had been fractured by a fragment of a bomb.

In addition to being a place of instruction the school was used as an evacuation centre for people who might lose their houses through bombing and the gymnasium was stacked with blankets, clothing and canned food.

The image shows evacuees arriving at Buckie Station. It is not certain that the children in the picture are from the school, although it is known that the Police Sergeant, John Simpson, took in two brothers from Portobello.

[Image licensed by Scottish Life Archive (Records of the Scottish Cultural Resources Access Network (SCRAN), Edinburgh, Scotland)]

The School during the Second World War

As the School still had no air-raid shelters, it was felt to be too dangerous to bring the remaining pupils into the building for instruction, and a plan was devised to give classes to small groups of children in the houses of parents who were willing to cooperate. This did not work very well, however, and in January, 1940, the pupils returned to school. Four air-raid shelters had now been constructed in the playground and the walls of the cloakrooms had been strengthened for use as further shelters. Gas masks had to be carried by staff and pupils at all times and there was regular air-raid and respirator drill. A system of fire-watching was introduced and the fire-watchers kept vigil every night of the week from dusk until 7 a.m. There was one incident when the school was flooded and it was claimed that a water pipe had been fractured by a fragment of a bomb.

In addition to being a place of instruction the school was used as an evacuation centre for people who might lose their houses through bombing and the gymnasium was stacked with blankets, clothing and canned food.

THE SCHOOL AFTER THE SECOND WORLD WAR

As will be remembered that in 1937 the senior pupils of Forms 4, 5 and 6, had been removed from the school and sent to Broughton for their education. Shortly after the end of the war, however, the school was restored to full Secondary status and began again to build up a 4th, 5th and 6th year. Since the school took all the pupils from the Primary Schools in the area, it became, I believe, Edinburgh’s first Comprehensive School, for the other secondary schools in Edinburgh at this time were divided into senior secondary and junior secondary.

In 1948 the School Magazine, “The Tower”, which had been in abeyance for a decade, reappeared and has been published annually ever since.

CHANGES AFTER THE SECOND WORLD WAR

The year 1945 saw the end of the War and in the same year the School was restored to full secondary status and began once more to build up a 4th, 5th and 6th year. This, plus the raising of the school-leaving age to fifteen which occurred at this time, necessitated further expansion of the School. Huts were erected in the boys’ playground providing six extra classrooms.

Secondary schools in Edinburgh after the War were divided into the two classes of Senior Secondary and Junior Secondary. Children of high academic ability were sent from their primary schools to senior Secondary Schools which provided courses leading to the leaving certificate and other children went to the Junior Secondary Schools, where an attempt was made to provide three year courses suited to their abilities and needs. Portobello Secondary School was an exception, in that it took all the pupils from its area and was therefore, I believe, Edinburgh’s first neighbourhood Comprehensive School.

With credit to Ian Small.