Emily Fordham
Emily Fordham


Before Emily Fordham retired to Bratton in 1940, aged 58, she had been Headmistress of the Merchant Taylors’ School for Girls for 17years. Dressed in severely tailored Worsted suits, with shirt and tie, worn as a mark of free and emancipated women of the era, and possessing a forceful personality that brooked no opposition, she had towered over everybody at the school, imposing a strict and disciplined Victorian regime.

Within weeks she had removed every reminder of her predecessor and replaced staff with a trusted team from her previous school, and introduced an annual school celebration of her birthday. Unusually, she focused less on the academic and more on promoting lady-like behaviour in all matters. Everything had to be severe and functional. No short sleeves were allowed and hair had to be straight and drawn back, while music, ballet and local accents were considered unacceptable. Out of school activities were frowned on and she toured the district in a taxi checking for girls not at home. Numbers increased rapidly until it was considered a ‘Big School’, so she was regarded as a marvellous headmistress who made the school great. By the time the whole school cheered her from office to front door and off into retirement, she had shaped hundreds of girls who still admired, respected or feared her.

In Bratton she was soon elected to senior positions in the Women’s Institute, the Diocesan Association for Moral Welfare, the Rural Music School, and the Wiltshire Music Festival. Emily was a regular prize winner of the WI monthly competition for best arranged flowers, home made calendar, knitted scarf, poem, and photo of Bratton. One year she won a prize for winning most prizes. Despite retiring for health reasons, Emily lived a further 29 years. She was finally laid to rest with Olive Rose, who she had met at training college and had followed her through each school and finally to retirement at ‘Hillside’, Castle Road.




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Bratton History Association.

The Bratton History Association aims to provide all those curious about local history with an opportunity to meet, exchange ideas, and discover more about the history of Bratton and Wiltshire. Activities include monthly meetings, talks by professional historians, visits to places of interest to historians, and our own local history project.

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