Who Are Old Retfordians?

Since the beginning of the 20th century, at least, past pupils of Retford King Edward VI Grammar School have reconnected with one another under the collective title of the Old Retfordians Association. With the coming of the Internet, and the World Wide Web, the ORA and old timers with card index boxes were replaced with internet sites like Friends Reunited, which itself came and went. In the 21st century, what remains of those fragile connections gather under disperate banners, some Facebook groups, some less formal. Up until 2015 John Palmer tirelessly collected a huge collection of pictures of the old school on his EYEMEAD pages, but retired his keyboard in 2015 after a lightning strike wrecked his computer. In 2020, some of the current generation of old timers are once again reaching out to those older and younger 'splinter' groups under the familiar banner of the Old Retfordians.