Lives in Cricket No 51 - Rev ES Carter

Schools and social organisations Throughout his time at York Carter was involved with a variety of schools, sporting and youth organisations. For example from at least 1891 he was a Committee member of the York Gordon Boys Brigade (named after General Gordon of Khartoum fame). The Gordon Boys usually came from very poor circumstances and the Brigade sought to place them in positions where they might gain honest livelihoods. At the annual meeting of subscribers in 1894 he spoke of the value of the Brigade in providing for the boys in between their leaving school and starting any regular employment. He was also a subscriber to the York Girls Friendly Society another organisation supporting poorer people living in York. Carter was vice-chairman of the York Bluecoat and Greycoat Charity Schools for many years. These schools had a history going back to 1705 and an annual gathering took place at the Mansion House each year followed by a Good Friday service at St Michael-le-Belfrey. As well as being vice-chairman, Carter was an examiner at the schools on Bible knowledge and liturgy. He endeavoured to visit the Bluecoat School on Sunday afternoons over a period of 12 years to give religious instruction. In 1886 there were 65 boys at the Bluecoat School and 48 girls at Greycoat and these numbers were more or less maintained for several decades thereafter. Both schools survived until after the Second World War and closed in 1947. York also had a mix of other Board Schools provided at public cost. The Board had first been formed in 1889 with elections at three-year intervals. In 1895 Carter stood as a church candidate for the Guildhall Ward of the York School Board promising that he would endeavour to check ‘lavish expenditure and much desired to keep down rates in this much burdened city’. His other election pledge was to do all that he could to ensure that proper religious instruction was given in the Board Schools. He was elected, with 10,979 votes, second of the 11 successful candidates from the 13 who stood), and then remaining on the board for six years, winning a second election along the way, whilst continuing to urge support for Voluntary Schools who York 52