Wesley College, a school to educate the sons of the laity, opened in 1838 in new buildings designed by William Flockton

William Flockton

Flockton's were a series of architectural firms in the 19th and early 20th centuries, based in Sheffield, England. The firms were responsible for a number of significant buildings, particularly in the Sheffield area.-William Flockton:...

 on Glossop Road, Sheffield

Sheffield

Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. It was founded by Rev. Samuel Dousland Waddy (1804–1876) to “supply a generally superior and classical education, combined with religious training in the principles of Methodism

Methodism

Methodism is a movement of Protestant Christianity represented by a number of denominations and organizations, claiming a total of approximately seventy million adherents worldwide. The movement traces its roots to John Wesley's evangelistic revival movement within Anglicanism. His younger brother...

” and was initially called the “Wesleyan Proprietary Grammar School”. The change in name to Wesley College seems to have taken place in 1844, when a “Royal Warrant, constituting the Sheffield Wesley College a college of the University of London was forwarded to Mr Waddy (subsequently Governor, from 1844 to 1862) by Sir James Graham, which empowered the college to issue certificates to candidates for examination for the several degrees of Bachelor and Master of Arts, and Bachelor and Doctor of Laws”. A year later it spurred Rev. James Gillman, William Ferguson, William Stewart and Thomas Waugh in Dublin, Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

 to consider creating a similar school

Wesley College, Dublin

This article is about Wesley College in Dublin, Ireland. See Wesley College for articles on other institutions named "Wesley College"....

 in Dublin. The school accepted its first 90 boarders on 8 August 1838. By 1841 the number of pupils had increased to 172.
In 1905 Wesley College was purchased by Sheffield Council and merged with Sheffield Royal Grammar School

Sheffield Grammar School

Sheffield Grammar School began in 1604 as 'The Free Grammar School of James King of England within the Town of Sheffield in the County of York' in buildings in the Townhead area of Sheffield, resulting from the benefaction of John Smith of Crowland...

 to form King Edward VII School

King Edward VII School (Sheffield)

King Edward VII School is a secondary school and language college located in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. KES, named after the reigning monarch, was formed in 1905 when Wesley College was merged with Sheffield Royal Grammar School on the site of the former on Glossop Road...

 (Upper School Site), named after the reigning monarch. The building is currently being refurbished, with the addition of a sports hall and science block, as part of the BSF programme

Headmasters of Wesley College

1837–1853	John Manners, M.A.
1853–1888	Henry McE Shera, M.A. LLD.
1888–1891	Joseph J. Findlay, M.A. Ph.D
1891–1905	Valentine W. Pearson, B.A.

Governors of Wesley College

1837–1842	Rev John McLean
1842–1844	Rev Isaac Keeling
1844–1862	Samuel Dousland Waddy
1862–?	Rev John James
	Rev John Harvard
	Rev William Jessop
1879–1888	Rev William Dallinger FRS William Dallinger Rev. Dr. William Henry Dallinger F.R.S. was a British minister in the Wesleyan Methodist Church. He was also an accomplished scientist, being the first to study the complete lifecycle of unicellular organisms under the microscope and studying the adaptation of such organisms to temperature.He made...

[Wesley College was run from 1837 to 1888 by a 'Dyarchy', comprising the Governor and the Headmaster, the Governor being the senior of the pair (in theory).]

Notable alumni of Wesley College

• Samuel Danks Waddy
  Samuel Danks Waddy
  Samuel Danks Waddy was an English politician.He was born in Gateshead, the son of Samuel Dousland Waddy, a Methodist minister. The family soon moved to Sheffield and his father was instrumental in the founding of Wesley College in 1838...
  
   (1830–1902) – English politician, Judge (son of Samuel Dousland Waddy, above)
• Frank Wilson (1859–1918) – Premier of Western Australia
  Premier of Western Australia
  The Premier of Western Australia is the head of the executive government in the Australian State of Western Australia. The Premier has similar functions in Western Australia to those performed by the Prime Minister of Australia at the national level, subject to the different Constitutions...
  
  
• Leonard Cockayne
  Leonard Cockayne
  Leonard Cockayne FRS is regarded as New Zealand's greatest botanist and a founder of modern science in New Zealand.-Biography:He was born in Sheffield, England where he attended Wesley College...
  
   (1855–1934) – horticulturist, botanist
• Cecil Henry Wilson
  Cecil Henry Wilson
  Cecil Henry Wilson was a British pacifist Labour Party Member of Parliament .Born in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, the son of Liberal Party Member of Parliament for Holmfirth, Henry Wilson, Wilson attended Wesley College, Sheffield and the Victoria University of Manchester.In 1903 Wilson was elected...
  
   (1862–1945) – Labour MP for Attercliffe
• Frederick Cawley, 1st Baron Cawley
  Frederick Cawley, 1st Baron Cawley
  Frederick Cawley, 1st Baron Cawley PC, JP , known as Sir Frederick Cawley, Bt, between 1906 and 1918, was a British businessman and Liberal Party politician. A wealthy cotton merchant, he represented Prestwich in parliament between 1895 and 1918 and served as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster...
  
  , cotton merchant and Liberal politician

External links

• Inspires founding of Wesley College, Dublin