1888 - 1897
1888
The school opens in what is now central Johannesburg, with seven pupils. Miss Mary Ross is appointed Lady Principal.
1889
Miss Kathleen Holmes-Orr becomes Lady Principal. She arrives from England armed with two years of tertiary education from Cambridge University and some teaching experience. (Cambridge records her name as Katharine while her Irish birth certificate records her as Catherine.)
She brings stability to the lives of many young boarders and establishes a firm Christian foundation for the school.
1890
The school has 58 pupils. It faces its second near-calamity; the first was a fire. This time it is bankruptcy. But efforts to save it, supported by a committee of gentlemen from Jeppestown, are successful.
1893
Continued financial woes lead to the committee buying the school. Then Miss Homes-Orr buys it. She maintains a strict Anglican routine – fish on Fridays, days of prayer and silence, and plenty of chapel – but the Church is no longer the arbiter of school affairs.
For the pupils, there are lessons in the arts and sciences, and gym, baton drill, art, music and drama.
One girl wins a place at Cambridge University. The school flourishes.
1890s
Despite ongoing animosity towards uitlanders (foreigners), who enjoy no political rights, Miss Holmes-Orr encourages loyalty to the Transvaal Republic. Pupils learn to sing the republic’s volkslied (anthem), and have a holiday on President Paul Kruger’s birthday, 10 October.
Decade 1
In 1890, two years after its establishment, St Mary’s has 58 pupils
The Jameson raid and the Old Fort
Construction begins on the Old Fort.
New ownership for the school in 1893
Continued financial woes lead to the committee buying the school. Then Miss Homes-Orr buys it.
The school advertises for pupils in 1890
It seems to have the desired effect as pupil numbers grow.
Fundraising for survival
Miss Holmes-Orr and interested parties face years of financial struggle.
Johannesburg’s first Anglican Church
The school opens in 1888
The Reverend John Darragh begins construction of the school.
The impact of the discovery of gold
Hordes of men from every corner of the globe descend on the South African Republic.