A MAN who had a big influence on education in Hemel Hempstead in the first
half of the 20th century was Alderman A. H. Jarman.
His name lives on
in Jarman Fields (now Jarman Park, the home to the LeisureWorld Complex and
Tesco's superstore in Hemerl Hempstead.)
As Mayor of Hemel Hempstead in
1935 he played a big part in local events to mark the Silver Jubilee of King
George V in 1935 .
He is pictured kicking off the Jubilee Match at
Apsley FC.
The feature below is compiled using reports
from the Hemel Hempstead Gazette of 1948 and 1950:
July 1948, IT was the
end of an era for education in Hemel Hempstead when Alderman A. H. Jarman
retired from the Hemel Hempstead Education Divisional Executive.
His
direct association with education in the town had begun over 20 years
previously, although his interest went back to the turn of the century, and a
special presentation to mark his retirement was held Hemel Hempstead Secondary
Modern School (Corner Hall) - he had been greatly involved in the building of
the schoolduring the 1930s, when it was a tremendous task for such a small
education authority.
It’s interesting to note that under the Education
Act of 1902, Hemel Hempstead was the only borough in the county that elected to
exercise its powers as the authority for primary education.
All the other
authorities agreed to the county council taking on these powers, and it was not
until the 1944 Education Act that Hemel Hempstead’s schools were passed over to
the county.
Alderman (Pictured below as a young man with his
family) Jarman had been chairman of the Hemel Hempstead education committee
in the late 1930s after his three year period as the town’s mayor came to an
end.
He was
mayor in 1935 during the Silver Jubilee of King George V and in his
memoirsrecollects what a “splendid spirit” there was in the borough for the many
celebrations, some of which are pictured below.
Interestingly he was
also mayor to proclaim Edward VIII king in a ceremony in the Market Square, then
in Hemel Hempstead High Street.
The tributes at his retirement from the
education scene were many - from headmasters, teachers and
others.
Alderman Jarman himself said it was a wrench to leave the
education authority. He stressed that the children of today were definitely
better equipped physically than they had been 50 or 60 years earlier, but he
doubted if they were better equipped mentally or morally. The influence of the
church had disappeared to a great extent and this put a greater responsibility
on the teacher, he said.
January 2000, MANY tributes were paid to
Alderman A.H. Jarman and his wife, who were celebrating their 50th
anniversary.
The Gazette article reveals much interesting information on
Alderman Jarman’s early life.
He was born in St Albans, but came to Hemel
Hempstead at an early age. His father was one of the original members of the
local Salvation Army.
He attended Queen Street and George Street schools
and started work with a tradesman in the town at the age of 12 - his working day
was 6am to 8pm.
Then for 10 years he worked at Apsley Mills where he was
one of the first members of the Dickinson Band, playing a cornet. Mr Jarman
later became Hemel Hempstead’s ‘man from the Pru’ and he worked for the
insurance company for 30 years.
He met his wife, Grace Monk, at Boxmoor
Baptist Church where they were both Sunday School teachers.
He was
elected to the council in 1921 as member for Apsley.
LINK: Click here for pictures of the 1933 jubilee celebrations
