Description: D H Lawrence taught here from October 1908 until January 1912. He had taught previously as a pupil teacher (later assistant teacher) at the British School, Eastwood and part-time student at Ilkeston Pupil-Teacher Centre. In December 1904 Lawrence sat the examination for the King's Scholarship, which would guarantee him a day place at Nottingham University College, where he could obtain his Teacher's Certificate. He passed - he was in the top 37 of over 2,000 candidates, but was unable to take up the position until September 1906 due to financial hardship. In 1908 Lawrence became a qualified teacher and took up a post at Davidson Road School, Croydon. The offer of a job had came at the last moment, when the autumn term had already started. He had delayed his acceptance of a job anywhere else as he had been holding out for a one that paid a salary of no less than ninety pounds a year. His teaching job with the Davidson Road School paid ninety-five pounds a year. The school had some very poor boys and it was not to be an easy introduction for the young schoolmaster. However, he was dedicated and innovative - he encouraged the boys to act out The Tempest rather than sitting at their desks reading it - and the headmaster was pleased with his work (even if Lawrence himself was not too happy). Whilst at Croydon he lived at 12, Colworth Road during term-time and from September 1911 to January 1912 he lived at no. 16. In his free time Lawrence wrote. In January 1911 his first novel, The White Peacock was published, but the elation he may have felt from this success was obliterated by the overshadowing death of his mother, from cancer, in the previous month. In November of 1911 the poor health that had plagued Lawrence for much of his life culminated in pneumonia. Once again, he fought his way free of the illness but his lungs had been damaged further. The doctor told him outright that to return to teaching would be to court tuberculosis and so, again, if became necessary for Lawrence to consider a change of career. A German uncle suggested a plan whereby Lawrence could possibly become a Lektor in a German university. A professor of modern languages at Nottingham University, Ernest Weekley, was consulted and invited the twenty six year old Lawrence to lunch to discuss the details. Lawrence accepted the invitation and within two months was in Germany (not, however, as a Lektor but as the lover of Frieda Weekley, the thirty two year old mother of Weekley's three children !) (Information partially extracted from Helen Croom's article 'The Young Lawrence' (From 1885 - 1912)
Thanks to contributor John Weslake who states: "The photo is taken from the girls' playground. The projection protruding from the building was not there between 1954 and 1958 (when I attended the school)."