No . 132 The Trusty Servant
Our Missioner , Revd W Donne , began work in September 1876 . He visited Win Coll several times a year to talk to the boys about his work and the community within which he lived . Donations of money were made at each of these visits and enough had been raised by 1878 to open a small mission room . Then followed a new church , All Hallows , on East India Road in 1879 . Donne ’ s work was much praised and when he departed in 1882 he left a ‘ well-organised parish , fully equipped with all that machinery , without which experience shows that permanent results cannot be obtained . Mission Room , Mothers ’ Meetings , Sunday Schools , Church Library and many other institutions have sprung into being ’. The distance between the East End and Winchester meant that the school could give little more than money and encouragement and when Donne moved on , so did Win Coll .
In looking for mission work closer to home , it was suggested that we support a community in Landport , Portsmouth , where Win Coll was a landowner . The Landport mission therefore began in 1895 and was led by Robert Dolling , a man described as a ‘ great , rollicking , serious , irrepressible Christian gentleman ’, for ten years . With support from Winchester , he raised enough money to build a school , an orphanage , a Mission hall and a church , St Agatha ’ s . He also kept open house for anyone who needed a meal and a place to stay . There was more than just financial support this time round : Wykehamists were encouraged to visit Landport , and groups from Landport spent time at Win Coll . Both communities benefitted from the association . Dolling left in 1905 following a liturgical dispute with the Bishop of Winchester .
Dolling and his Assistants
this time to Rudmore , another area of need in Portsmouth . The first Missioner was an OW , Bertie Lucas ( G , 1891-97 ). He arrived in October 1908 , and at first lived and worked from an old shop , with services conducted in a hall belonging to a nearby parish . In 1910 Douglas Eyre addressed the committee in support of the Mission . The new initiative was not greatly welcomed by the local residents and it was only very slowly that Lucas ’ s personality and commitment triumphed and a church , St John ’ s , opened in 1916 . Another OW , Guy Hanbury ( H , 1900-06 ) succeeded Lucas in 1924 , and he was followed by Norman ‘ Holy ’ Coley in 1935 . All three men brought many boys face-to-face with the realities of working-class life for the first time .
The Rudmore mission ended in 1958 and was described as ‘ an adventure in friendship , in friendship in God in the first place , and , as a result of that , a friendship with others , whether they live in Rudmore or Winchester . It is our greatest human help and encouragement that so many Wykehamists know this .’
The next mission , running from 1960 to 1985 , was at Leigh Park , a new housing estate on the edge of Portsmouth , with support offered to a team ministry appointed by the diocese . Boys were involved with visits and sporting competitions with local schools , but most contact was at an official level .
Finally , perhaps best known of Win Coll ’ s mission work is the Crown and Manor Club . This was a boys ’ club created in the 1930s from two existing boys ’ clubs , The Crown Club and Hoxton Manor Club . An OW , Harold Llewellyn Smith ( D , 1920-25 ), had established The Crown Club , and Winchester , having funds to spare from their work with Rudmore , offered support . Douglas Eyre left a bequest to the club in his will . Winchester ’ s link to the Crown and Manor Club has been maintained ever since .
By 1907 , with Landport successfully provided with a church and men to run it , the focus again shifted ,
Landport Mission Visit to Win Coll , 1893
30