James Sulter, the Archivist from St John's College Johannesburg visited the school Museum on Monday 19 September.  James recently completed his MA in Greek at Rhodes, and is currently working as the archivist there.

There are several strong links between the two schools, one being the Right Reverend James Okey Nash who was Headmaster of St John's from 1905 to 1917 when he became Coadjutor Bishop of Cape Town and a member of Bishops' Council when he came to Cape Town in 1917; and acted as the Principal of the College for six months in 1918 when the then Acting Principal R N Sutton fell ill.

Nash remained on the Council until 1930. He subsequently left for England where he lived until he died in 1943 at the ripe age of 81.

During his visit, James pointed out another personal  connection that he had with the school.  Just outside the Mitre Lounge,  hanging against the wall in the passage way was a photograph of William Owen Jenkins (Bishops’ sixth Principal) who was his great-great grandfather.  His wife, Margaret Jenkins, died in 1915 after some years of ill-health and five years later Jenkins himself died rather curiously  ‘from a shot wound’ which was self-inflicted because of a nervous breakdown induced by the influenza epidemic (Gardener, 251). 

We continue to build on these close links between St John’s and Bishops home and abroad!

Red gown ready for his adventure at St John's College, Cambridge.