History of Lady Beck Public School The roots of Lady Beck Public School trace back to 1870 when it began as a one-room schoolhouse known as SS #23 in London Township. Located on Gore Road just south of Hale Street, it served the communities of East London and Pottersburg. As the area’s population grew, a new school was constructed on Hale Street with expansions added in 1892 to accommodate increasing enrollment. Further growth in 1908 prompted additional construction, and in that same year, Lady Beck herself donated a steel flagpole to the school.
secured for the School Board by Sir Adam Beck himself, it was thought fitting that it be re-named “Lady Beck Public School”. By 1975, nearly five decades after opening, the school faced closure due to declining enrollment in East London. At that time, the school had 300 students. The Lady Beck Home and School Association formed a petition opposing the closure, collecting nearly 700 signatures. The petition was successful in persuading the Board; however, by 1979, the Board voted to close the school, shifting students to three other schools in the east end. That June, a farewell festival and reunion were held at the school to honour the school’s legacy. The mood around the school’s closure was nostalgic rather than sad, with music, cheerleaders and a marching band bringing entertainment to the crowd. As the festivities drew to a close, hundreds of balloons were released into the air, marking the end of an era. Years later, the building was purchased by the French School Board and now operates as Académie De La Tamise. Student dancers, Lady Beck 1954. Photo courtesy Western Archives.
Lady Beck Public School, 1950. Photo courtesy London Room, London Public Library.
Eventually, the existing school on Hale Street became too small to serve its expanding student population, and plans were drawn for a new, modern facility at the corner of Highbury Avenue and Dundas Street. Built of brick and Queenston limestone, construction began on February 13, 1930 and was completed by October of that same year. Classes officially began on November 3, 1930. The school was impressive at the time, the building contained eleven standard classrooms, one kindergarten room, admini- strative offices, a nurse’s room, a dental clinic and a large auditorium. The design included provisions for future expansion, which included 12 additional rooms. The cost of the building at the time, excluding equipment, totalled $152,000. This cost sparked controversy among City Council members, some of whom deemed the auditorium overly extravagant and criticized the ornamental cut stone fence at the front of the school. The location of the school allowed for an extensive outdoor space, providing the largest playing field of any of the public schools in the city. As the new school was located on the same grounds as the Sir Adam Beck Collegiate Institute, a property that was
Lilian (Ottaway) Beck (1878-1921), became Lady Beck in 1914, when her husband, Adam Beck, was knighted for his efforts in establishing Ontario Hydro as a publicly-owned electrical system. The Becks had supported various charities, including the Queen Alexandra Sanatorium (later renamed the Beck Memorial Sanatorium). Lady Beck Public School in London is named in her honour.
Your Perfect Match awaits you at The London Animal Care Centre and The Catty Shack!
Bringing people and pets together www.accpets.ca
C atty S hack THE
To advertise here, please contact Marty@villagerpublications.com London Animal Care Centre – Licensing, Bylaw Enforcement, Adoption and Lost/Found Services: 121 Pine Valley Blvd., (519) 685-1330 The Catty Shack: 756 Windermere Rd., (519) 432-4572
La dy Beck baseball team, 1954. Photo courtesy Western Archives.
Page 6 Old East Villager September 2025
Made with FlippingBook - Online catalogs