Shebbear College

The Bible Christian Church was one of the denominations that merged in the United Methodist Church, its early preachers appealed solely to the Bible in confirmation of their doctrines. The denomination arose in the agricultural districts and fishing villages of north Cornwall and Devon; a district only slightly influenced by John Wesley and the original Methodist movement. The founder of the movement was William O'Bryan, a Methodist lay preacher of Luxulyan, Cornwall. O’Bryan commenced his labours in north Devon, and in 1815 a small society was formed at Lake Farm, Shebbear.

On O'Bryan’s departure, the first fully recognised minister James Thorne, at whose father’s farm the connexion had started, became its leader. Thorne laid the foundations broadly in evangelism, finance, temperance and education.

Shebbear College began its life in 1829. James Thorne’s two sons, John and Samuel, began a Christian school for 20 boys called Prospect College after the name of the house built to accommodate the school. It was originally formed for the sons of Bible Christians to train for the ministry. The emblem ‘PC’ still remains engraved on the main gates to this day.

Original college gate with Prospect College emblem

The school saw many changes until it was re-founded by the Bible Christian Church in 1841 as Shebbear College. The first headmaster was an Irish clergyman, Rev. H. C. O'Donoghue, formerly Chaplain to William IV, who had seceded from the Established Church on conscientious grounds.[2]

The Earl of Portsmouth opened a block of new buildings at Shebbear College in 1878, and offered a £5 prize for the best essay on “The Effect of the Revolution of 1688 on Constitutional Progress and National Life.”[3]

In October 1882, Sir Thomas Dyke Acland urged upon the College authorities the immediate building of a science laboratory. He himself subscribed liberally to the funds necessary for such a purpose and his example was followed by W. J. Harris, Esq. (M.P. for Poole), a great friend of the College. This formed part of a new scheme of extension, including a new wing to the main complex, which was opened by Sir Thomas Acland in 1884.[4]

Edgehill College, founded for Methodist girls in nearby Bideford in 1884, was considered the college's 'sister-college'.

In 1891 Sir Samuel Way visited England and purchased the freehold of Lake Farm in Shebbear, and then conveyed it to Shebbear College as an endowment.[3]

Numerous missionaries from Shebbear College were sent to China in the Bible Christian Mission. This mission included Samuel Pollard, creator of Pollard script (Chinese: 柏格理苗文 Bó Gélǐ Miao-wen). The main building of the Hopkins–Nanjing Center is named in Pollard's honour.[3]

The present school still includes many original buildings and features, as well as buildings erected for the boarders. Shebbear College now offers education for boys and girls aged 3–18, having become co-educational in 1993.

The college is small in size and has attendance of 340 pupils as of March 2017, from ages 3 to 18.[1]

The college is divided into three day houses that compete both academically and in sport; namely:

•      Ruddle - named after the College's most influential headmaster, Thomas Ruddle.
•      Thorne - named after one of the founders of the College, Samuel Thorne.
•      Way - named after Sir Samuel Way.

The school is also divided into houses within boarding;

• Ruddle - The girls' boarding house - named after the College's most influential headmaster, Thomas Ruddle.
• Pollard - The senior boys' boarding house (ages 15 – 18) - named after Samuel Pollard.