Ellesmere College, Shropshire: Extensions

The foundation stone of Ellesmere College, formerly known as St. Oswald's School, was laid on St. Oswald's Day, August 5th, 1879, and the school was opened on the same date in 1884. The founder was Canon Nathaniel Woodard who began a chain of Woodard Foundation Schools, beginning with Lancing College in Sussex. The land upon which the College is situated was provided by Lord Brownlow, whose wife laid the foundation stone.

The 1926 edition of Who’s Who in Architecture lists “Extensions at Ellesmere College” as one of Isaac Taylor’s commissions, but no details of the work have yet been found. The College was a member of the Woodard Group of schools, and the commission probably came about through Taylor’s work at St Anne’s School in Abbot’s Bromley, which was a member of the same group. [Richard Fletcher].