Perspective John Rutherford – College’s oldest Old Boy
A t 103, John Rutherford is probably the oldest ‘Old Boy’ in the Christ’s College community. With the 175 Years Celebratory Weekend on the horizon in February 2025, it is remarkable that John and his family have been connected to College since 1861 – only 11 years after the founding of the school. While John first walked into the school in the middle of the Depression in 1936, his great- uncle, Robert, started the family tradition in 1861 as student No. 146. John’s grandfather, Duncan Rutherford (238), entered College in 1865. Two other great-uncles, George (237) and Edmund (270), also joined the College student ranks. All four brothers were members of Cotterill’s, built in 1860. The House was named for the Rev’d George Cotterill, who was appointed Second Master at College in 1857. In 1907, John’s father, Duncan (known as Leslie) – along with one uncle – continued the Rutherford
family tradition of schooling, leaving the family farm, Leslie Hills, near Culverden in North Canterbury to be educated at Christ’s College. Reflecting on his pre-World War II school years in Jacobs House, John Rutherford says that “probably you would think boarding was tough now, but it was what we did at that time”. “It was probably better than during my father’s time and he might have been better off in boarding than his father,” he says. “Today, it may be challenging, but in a different way. I had started boarding at Medbury School aged 10 and moved on to Jacobs House at College, starting in 1936. We wore boaters and stiff collars, and, as a boarder, you only went home during the school holidays and not during Easter or other breaks.” Designed by Cecil Wood, Jacobs House opened in 1931. The first Housemaster, GS Strack, was still in charge during John’s years while the formidable Reginald Richards
COLLEGE 2024
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