We were recently gifted an English literature book found in a local charity shop  'Martin Chuzzlewit' by Charles Dickens. The book has the distinctive embossed foil logo of Hymers College and it took us on a journey of discovery about the student who used it.  

The only reference as to its original owner was 'P Robinson 1910'. As ever, our handwritten admission ledgers, meticulously recording every pupil who has attended the School proved an invaluable starting point. From these records, we identified Percival Bowman Palmer Robinson, born in 1894, who attended Hymers College between the ages of 14 and 16.

Despite extensive searches, very little additional material relating to Percival could be found in our digital archives or within surviving copies of The Hymerian and no named photos where found in our physical archives. This absence naturally raised the question of what became of him after he left the School.

A partial answer emerged in a document dated 1915, listing former pupils who had enlisted for military service during the First World War. Percival Robinson is recorded there as having joined the 20th Hussars. Given the period in which he left Hymers, this discovery led us to carry out further research.

Sadly, Percival’s name was subsequently found on the School’s First World War Memorial, confirming that he was killed in action. With this information, we were able to consult online war records, which allowed us to piece together more of his story and service.

The memorial itself serves as a poignant reminder of the scale of loss endured by the Hymers community during the war, commemorating several former pupils who were in school at a similar time to Percival and who shared a similar fate.

Though only fragments of his life survive in the archives, Percival Bowman Palmer Robinson’s story reflects that of many young men of his generation whose education, ambitions, and futures were cut tragically short, but whose names and service continue to be remembered at Hymers.