Frank Atkinson Danks

c.1911

Matriculation

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Born in 1892 in Much Wenlock, Shropshire, Frank Atkinson Danks was the son of Francis Danks, the local schoolmaster, and his wife Clara. He was recorded in the 1911 census as a 19-year-old matriculation student residing at St Anselm Hostel. A few months earlier, in May 1911, whilst a resident in the hall, he had won a contest in Pearson’s weekly for the best description of ‘Guillotine (Parliamentarian Sense)' which he had described as '... a form of closure in Parliamentary debate. The time of closure is decided by the party in power. When that time arrives the “guillotine” falls, the debate is at an end, and the vote is then taken.'

 

Frank does not appear to have taken his eventual degree at Manchester however, but instead graduated from Durham University in 1920 (his original studies having been interrupted by World War I.) On graduating, Frank worked at Tewkesbury Grammar School, rising to the position of second master in 1925. Frank remained at Tewkesbury Grammar School for fifteen years, until his sudden and tragic death in 1935, following an operation. In paying tribute to him, W.H. Struthers, headmaster of Tewkesbury Grammar School, noted ‘[He] left a gap… that was hard to fill. The quality of his work and character cannot be easily spoken of, nor could [the] sense of loss be adequately expressed.’

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