The 1981 published history of Australia's oldest independent school titled: The Kings School 1831-1981 : An Account stated three boys averaging eight years of age, named James Staff, James Orr and Ebenezer Orr, were the sole attendees on Monday 13 Feb 1832 when the school first opened in the above house in George Street, Parramatta.
        As evidenced by the below quoted school publications and newspaper extracts, this assertion contradicted the unchallenged acceptance during the preceding 149 years that two of those present that day were eleven-year-olds John Watsford and Henry Gordon. By implication the publication branded these two fine gentlemen, who were the longest living of those who attended the school in the initial year, as untruthful in respect of having claimed during their lifetimes to have been present on the opening day!
        The purpose of this article and linked pages is to correct this unwarranted slur on the character of these two outstanding ‘old boys’ by the identifying and placing on record the reasons why the 1981 version of the first day attendance was most certainly astray.

The King's School Magazine - September 1910 Henry Gordon Died, August 17th, 1910             We have to announce with regret the death of Mr. Henry Gordon, the last survivor, we believe, of those who attended the School during its first term in 1832.  Mr. Gordon was born in Parramatta and entered the Civil Service in 1841 ; he was Police Magistrate at Albury, Wollombi, Parramatta and Gosford. He retired on a pension after 45 years' service and spent the last years of his life at East Maitland. His interest in his old School was always maintained, and he was present at the last commemoration in February last. Mr. Gordon's name will always be remembered in conjunction with that of the Rev. John Watsford, for when the original school was opened in George-street they were the first two to pass through its doors.  The meeting of these two old gentlemen 72 years afterwards at Dulwich Hill is most interesting and is best described in Mr. Watsford's own words:- ‘‘A gentleman spoke to me outside the Church .  .  .  and said, ‘You don't remember me?’   ‘No,’ I  replied, ‘I do not.’  ‘I’ll make you remember me in two minutes,’ he said. ‘Do you remember two boys waiting outside the King's School, Parramatta for the doors to be opened?’  ‘Oh,’ I cried , ‘You are Harry Gordon. ’ ’’

The Maitland Daily Mercury - 16th August 1910 Death of Mr H Gordon         Mr. Henry Gordon, a very old resident of East Maitland, died at his residence, Nerang street, about nine o'clock this morning. The deceased gentleman had a very narrow escape a fortnight ago of being run over by a train while crossing the railway line at William street, and he did not thoroughly recover from the shock he received on that occasion, this, together with an attack of bronchitis, being the cause of death. The late Mr. Gordon, who was of a retiring disposition and was highly esteemed, was a native of Newcastle and had lived in this state all his life. He was the oldest scholar of the King's School, Parramatta, where he was educated, having been one of the pupils when that school was first opened. The late Mr. Gordon had occupied the position of Police Magistrate at Albury, Wollombi, Parramatta and Gosford, and had also been relieving at Maitland, but had retired a number of years ago. Deceased was twice married his second wife who survives him, being a sister of Mrs. W. Cracknell, Mayoress of West Maitland. The funeral will leave his late residence on Thursday afternoon for the East Maitland Cemetery.

The Sydney Morning Herald - 21 February 1903      At the commemorative service at The King's School this week there was present Mr. Harry Gordon, one of the living old boys who had attended The King's School in its first quarter. Mr. Gordon who is now 81 years of age, attended the school as far back as 1832. The other two of his schoolmates who are living are the Rev. John Watsford and Mr. J. S. Futter.

The King's School Magazine - April 1898 RECOLLECTIONS OF KING'S SCHOOL,  PARRAMATTA   BY THE REV. JOHN WATSFORD   ___________      I ENTERED King’s School on the day it was opened, and may even claim to have been the first boy there. The School was first held in a large building in George Street, and, as the number of scholars rapidly increased, additional classrooms had soon to be erected, and the adjoining building had to be taken. ... ( click this link for the full article )

The King's School Magazine - Sept. 1907 THE REV. JOHN WATSFORD  ___________   Died July 24th, 1907, aged 87 years.      We have to chronicle, with great regret, the death of the Rev. John Watsford, the last of the Old Boys who attended the School at its inception in 1832, unless it be possible Mr. Harry Gordon is still alive. Mr. Gordon's name does not appear in the generally accepted list of the first term pupil's, but Mr. Watsford, in a letter of May 30th, stated to the Editor that he was perfectly certain that he ought to have been included in that list, and that only three years ago he met him, and that he referred to the fact he and Mr. Watsford attended the School when it was situated in George-street. Mr Watsford always claimed to be the first boy to have passed through the doors of The King's School, and as his father lived next to the School, there cannot be much doubt that such was the case. This need not in any way conflict with the statement of those who allege that the Rev. G. F. Macarthur was the first to have his name enrolled on the School Register.         Mr Watsford always took the keenest interest in the School, and in this connection we may refer our readers to the Magazine for April 1898, in which they will find an article by him, headed "Recollections of The King's School, Parramatta."  On page 830 he wrote: “I am now in my seventy-eighth year, but I remember The King's School still with gratidude to God, that I had the very great privilege of being a scholar there.”  We may add that he also had the privilege of being a master for two years. On Sunday, July 28th, the Headmaster referred in Chapel to Mr. Watsford's death, pointing out that his strenuous life was an example that might be followed by all.         The School must, indeed, feel proud of the fact that the language used in the following extract from the leading columns of the “Sydney Morning Herald” refers to one of its Old Boys;-         “To many people in Australasia and outside of it, the news that the Rev. John Watsford is dead will come as the announcement of the removal of a man who stood always for peace and righteousness, a pillar of his Church and of all churches, a kindly and benevolent and saintly man. Many will also remember him as the fervent preacher who raised their thoughts from merely secular matters and directed them to higher planes. The world is poorer because of the removal of “Father” Watsford - as he was affectionally termed by men of every creed and of none - but that part of it which was affected by his ministrations is the richer by his life and by all the memories which this strenuous and beautiful life must recall. Whlst many everywhere have reason to mourn over Mr. Watsford's death, we in New South Wales are especially entitled to be represented in spirit at least at his funeral . . . . His zeal and his piety remained characteristic of him to the last. He did great work in Fiji in the early years of his ministry, Christianising and civilising the natives in the days when every missionary held his life in his hand. Nothing daughted him, though during the eight years he and his wife were threatened with death time and again. But it is more in regard to his activities in Australia that “Father” Watsford will be held in grateful remembrance. Just as Wesley used to journey right through the country preaching repentance and rescuing people from sordid and brutal views of life, so Watsford - the Australian Wesley - was inspired with a sense of his high calling, and with an ever-present feeling that the people were in need of an awakening from their evil ways. We do not pretend that his career will commend itself to all reformers, but we do say that “Father” Watsford did a great work nobly, and that Australia should be proud of having produced so sincere an apostle of the higher life. He served his own generation well, and he served, also, that generation's descendants. He has well earned the rest which belongs to men who have done their duty valiantly. _______†_______

        As evidenced by the above two 1910 Henry Gordon obituaries, and a mention in the Rev. John Watsford's school magazine obituary establishing the source of the quote in Henry Gordon's obituary was a 30 May 1907 letter Watsford wrote to the magazine editor, it was clearly accepted without challenge prior to the extraordinary revision 1981 revision that John Watsford and Henry Gordon, as they said during their lifetimes, attended on the opening day.
       In 2004 and again in 2005 the school was given the opporunity to enlighten the compiler as to the reasons for the 1981 first day attendance revision. Nothing was forthcoming in 2004 and twelve months later in 2005 all that was elicited was a response that the source for the 1981 book's assertion had been a conclusion reached by the then school archivist. As the actual basis for the claim remains undisclosed the merits of the source relied upon and its interpretation cannot be addressed here except by way of an assumption as to what it may have been. In the 2005 response all the school saw fit to advise the compiler was that the 1981 publication's assertion was based on "written evidence" dating from earlier than the references provided in this article.
       However an unpublished 1980 compilation of some aspects of the school history authored by the same school archivist indicates this so-called "written evidence" was most likely a document cited in the unpublished manuscript as held by the School Archives under the reference number 4100. It is of course the incorrect interpretation given to the contents of the mystery document, and perhaps also to others that were not cited, that must have resulted in 1981 publication's revision of the opening day attendance from what was previously recorded in the annals of the school. The failure of the school 24 years later to provide for independant assessment any specifics of the document or documents that in 1981 were being held under the reference number 4100 is particularly surprising given the relevance of the attendance matter to the annual 13th of February commemoration of foundation day celebrations, at which presumably from time to time a mention is made by speakers of the first day attendance as stated in the 1981 history as if such was an established fact whereas in reality it was and remains no more than the erroneous conjecture of one induvidual who for a period was a teacher at the school.
       Implicit in the 1981 claim was that it was being said one or both of the longest surviving ‘old boys’ from the first quarter intake had been untruthful or deluded about their first day attendance. As throughout their lives Watsford and Gordon were both highly respected men, seemingly not given to self promotion or the seeking of personal distinctions and, who in their respective spheres spent their entire working lives in public service, for their old school 149 years after the event to imply such about men of their stature and when called upon to provide the supporting evidence not do so is to say the least extraordinary. In 1966 the then headmaster established a school Archive Society with a stated aim to - "sort fact from fiction in relation to the history of The King's School". The headmaster's aim was replace incorrect concepts with "concepts which are able to be argued from school historical sources". If there existed a reasonable arguement based on a school historical source for the 1981 revision then one must wonder why in 2004 when the the opportunity was given to the school archivist such was not conveyed to the compiler and again twelve months later when the then headmaster was given the same opportunity?

Complete Fiction

        It can be confidently stated it is a complete fiction the three named in the 1981 school history were the only attendees on the opening day. It may well be that none of the three were even in attendance that day and, at the time of the 1981 history compilation were merely assumed to have been present based on their names having appeared first on a surviving list of the first seven years school attendees that was mentioned in another context in the 1981 publication as having been compiled in 1839 by a then thirteen year old James Staff at the time of the departure of the first headmaster Robert Forrest. Should it be the case this list has a descriptive heading, regardless of the obviously important consideration of when and by whom the heading was inserted, it would surely be contrary to commonsense to assume Staff's list was ordered within each year in the actual day by day order each boy first attended! Drawn up seven years after the event it could only have been an attempt at a year by year listing of school attendees, probably compiled for a purely practical purpose associated with the headmasters departure, such as to include the names of all students taught by him either on or accompanying an Illustrated Address presented to him at the student's farewell dinner. As there would have been a cost involved it may have been to establish the names so those no longer at the school could also be approached to contribute. The actual order of names within each calender year would surely have had no particular significance and it would be expected that the name of its thirteen-year-old compiler James Staff would be found at or near the top of the list of 1832 attendees followed by those of his best mates or those that when he began the 1832 section first came to mind! It would surely be patently absurd to conclude from such a list that the first three names on it were first day attendees to the exclusion of two who during their lifetimes, without challenge from their peers, said they were present that day and of whom one lived next door to the school and the other only a mile away. In his 1901 autobiography the Rev. James Hassell said he entered in April 1832 and was the ninth to enter the school. If his name was not in ninth position on the 1832 section of Staff list such would only heighten the absurdity of such an interpretation!
      The initial advertising for scholars sought both day boys and boarders and according to the original plan of education it was initially intended only boys aged nine years or older would be taken as students. It commenced on 26 Jan. 1832 and continued until 2 Apr. 1832. At the latter date a surviving record has it that sixteen were enrolled. Clearly at that date there would not have been sixteen attendees as James Hassell said he first attended that same month and was the ninth to enter the school. Thus it seems the sixteen were only those for whom the first half-year fee had actually been received by the headmaster and thus were taken by him as enrolled although some would not have actually first attended until when the second term began at mid-year and additional facilities had become available to accomodate more boarders an adjoining house. No register with the names of the initial enrolments and/or actual attendances has survived. Likely all that existed originally were the headmaster's books of account and they would have only reflected the order of payment of the fees and not attendance as such. Thus to determine names of the initial attendees regard must be given to what was later written on the subject and the reliability of the source. A first person record, especially if intended for publication where it could be noted by contemporaries and others best placed to contest an inaccuracy clearly must carry more weight than one not intended for publication or a second person or other degree of remove record that falls into the category of hearsay. The three named in the 1981 history as the sole opening day attendees were all day-boys. If the undisclosed source of the 1981 claim was a handed down Orr or Staff family legend that at some time had been committed to writing such cannot be regarded as reliable. In passing from one generation to the next legends often become garbled and acquire meanings at variance with fact. Perhaps that happened in the case of the claimed James Staff and Orr brothers first day attendance, with a first year DAY boy attendance converted to a first DAY attendance, and such was just accepted by the source the 1981 history author relied upon in preference to the published first person records?
        Watsford and Gordon were highly respected men - one a prominent clergyman and the other for 31 years a police magistrate. In 1839 Watsford became the first Australian born candidate for the Wesleyan Methodist ministry. He was its first Australian born missionary and was regarded as one of the three greatest evangelists to work in Australia in the nineteenth century. According to his 1899 written autobiography titled: Glorious Gospel Triumphs  he was a scholar at The Kings School for six years followed by two as a teacher under the first Headmaster the Rev. R. Forrest. In his book Rev. Watsford comes across as more interested in giving credit to others than taking it for himself or seeking personal distinctions. However as the school magazine editor in 1907 pointed out he had "always" claimed to have been the first boy to pass through the school doors and as he lived next door there was no reason to doubt he had that distinction. If the editor in 1907 had no doubt why was it not similarly accepted by Lloyd Waddy the author of the 1981 school history or the source he replied upon ?
       One might well ask why would anyone doubt the Rev. John Watsford's word that he had been the first to enter the building on the opening day, and his obvious acceptance Gordon had also been present that day ?  Why in 1898 would John Watsford have written for publication in the school magazine he had been present and then again to the editor nine years later in 1907 re Gordon's joint attendance unless he knew Gordon who outlived him by three years would have been in full agreement with the facts as he stated them? No doubt Gordon would have fully agreed as indicated by his 1910 Maitland Mercury newspaper obituary having stated he had been quote "one of the pupils" when the school first opened. Clearly the main motivation for the 1907 John Watsford letter, written only eight weeks before his death, would have been a concern that Gordon's status as an initial year student and opening day attendee was not recorded in the annals of the school as his name was not on a 1902 and a 1903 published list of the first six students enrolled in the day-boy category and the first six in the boarder category (the 12 apostles). Gordon was present just three weeks before his 90th birthday, and six months before his death, at the 13th Feb. 1910 foundation Commemoration Day church service. Likely it was by special invitation of the School Council or Old Boys Union as at that great age he would hardly otherwise have made the long train trip down from Maitland to Sydney Central and then out to Parramatta just to attend a church service. The obvious factor behind his attendance would have been his recognised status as an opening day attendee and the last survivor of the first quarter intake of students.
       Another aspect of the 1981 history claim, naming James Staff as a first day attendee but omitting Gordon, is that neither name appeared in the above mentioned 1903 published list of the first six day boys and the first six boarders enrolled. This list appeared in the Journal of The Australian Historical Society in an article delivered in Feb. 1903 by Archdeacon W. J. Gunther on the school history titled:  ‘A short history of the King's School, Parramatta’. This list of twelve names, that would have been the list referred to by John Watsford in his 1907 letter to the magazine editor, was also given by a fellow Anglican church minister and likewise to Gunther former King's School scholar the Rev. James S. Hassall in his 1901 autobiography titled: In Old Australia : records and reminiscences from 1794. Hassall's list was the same as Gunther's except for the minor variation of Hassall spelling the surname of one boarder as "Waller" and Gunther as "Walker" that could have been a typographical error. The other difference was that Gunther the historian referred to his list as being of those first "enrolled" and Hassall to his as the first "pupils". Clearly Hassall's description of his list as first "pupils" was just less precise than Gunther's later description as Hassell also said he was ninth to enter the school and his name was not on his list. Both lists have no relevance to the matter of the names of the first day attendees.
       Although neither the Staff or Gordon names were among the first six day boys enrolled it is unlikely either could have been present on the opening day unless they had been enrolled - i.e. at least half the day-boy fee of £10 PA had been paid and accordingly a record of such made in the headmaster's books of account. An mere expression of interest in sending a boy to the school or even an expression of intent would not have resulted in an account book entry. It can be confidently said the Gunther and Hassell lists would have been extracted by the headmaster at some time during the first year from his account books most probably for the purpose of reporting on progress to that date to the School Visitor, Rev. Samuel Marsden of St. John's or the Church & School Lands Corporation. Gordon and Staff may well have been the seventh and eighth day boys enrolled, and whilst listed on the Gunther and Hassall lists source document, their names were not included in their lists because only the first six names in each enrolment category were extracted from a longer list of each category. Thus the writing of the source document may have either predated the school opening or been much later. By the 13 Feb. opening day, of those on the Hassall and Gunther twelve disciples lists, there could well have been only some of the six boarders actually enroled and all six day-boys plus Staff and Gordon making a total of eight plus of whom several did not actually attend until after the end of the first term June holidays. As from a surviving record sixteen are known to have been enrolled at 2nd April 1832 it is quite possible Staff and/or Gordon were enrolled only shortly before the school opened on Monday 13 Feb. As Hassall said he first attended in April he could well have been the fifteenth enrolment. Because the press advertising campaign seeking students commenced so soon after the headmaster elect arrived in Sydney from England and so close to the opening date, it seems quite possible when the school opened only nine or ten were enrolled with almost all being boys residing in the Parramatta locality thus enrolled in the day boy category, and the expansion of the enrolment to sixteen by 2nd April comprised mainly boarders from the country such as Hassall who because of poor communications would have been the slower to respond.
       The first comprehensive history of the school was a 1932 published 415 page centenary of foundation commemorative history titled: The History of The King's School, Parramatta by Archdeacon S.M. Johnstone (1879-1949). S. M. Johstone was the Rector of St. John's Church of England, Parramatta from 1910 to 1935 and a member of the School Council from 1918 to 1949. Whilst noting the above mentioned single surname variation between the Gunther and Hassall lists, the author was silent on the names of those in attendance on the first day except for a comment it had recently been claimed to him that one listed in the boarder category on these lists of initial enrolments named George Rouse had been the second boy to "enter" the school. Presumably the Rouse "second" to enter claim was made in deference to the unchallenged John Watsford claim he had been the first! Rev. Johnstone also mentioned at least four claims had been made on behalf of different boys for the distinction of having been the first boy enrolled - stating the problem there was that none could be validated as a list of the early enrollees had not survived! Johnstone included a roll of students he compiled from various lists. These lists did not include any compiled by James Staff.Thus his list upon which has seemingly been set such great store must have surfaced after 1932.
       In conclusion it is established by the April 1898, Sept. 1907 and Sept. 1910 issues of the school magazine that John Watsford and Henry Gordon attended on the opening day and the over seven decades later unsubstantiated contrary claim in the 1981 school history was in error. Far from a fulfillment of the sentiment expressed by the school magazine editor in Henry Gordon's 1910 obituary that Watsford and Gordon would ALWAYS BE REMEMBERED as the first two boys to pass through the doors on the opening day, if allowed to stand without correction the cavalier 1981 Lloyd Waddy authored history rewrite would likely have resulted in even their presence that day being FOREVER FORGOTTEN.