50-year-old message in bottle from English school washes up in Norway

By Leah Collins and Filipa Gaspar

A message in a bottle sent by staff or pupils at a now-shut school nearly 50 years ago has just washed up on a beach in Norway.

Hedda Traa Haukom was on the beach in Ny-Hellesund in the south of Norway with her cousins when they discovered the message in a bottle.

The message appeared to have been sent from Bolton County Grammar School, which changed its name 42 years ago.

It seems that it was dropped from a ferry as the young people were making their way to France on a school trip.

The message reads: “To the finder.

“Please return this bottle to Bolton County Grammar School, Bolton, Lancashire, England.

“And they will receive one pound or the equivalent in Francs.

“Written on the Channel Boat. Thank you!”

Although it is unclear when exactly the note was written, Bolton County Grammar School changed its name in 1982, making the note at least 42 years and three months old.

Hedda, 14, said: “We stumbled upon a bottle with a piece of paper inside. It was located ten meters from shore, under a rock. The bottle looked pretty old, so we decided to open it and read the note.

“There was no name, year or address on the note or bottle itself and we became curious, so we decided to contact the newspaper.

“It would be really fun to find whoever wrote the message and let them know we got it and how far it travelled over so many years.”

Bolton County Grammar School opened in 1881 as Bolton Higher Grade School in Albert Place, School Hill, with 50 scholarship pupils.

The school moved to a single site in Great Moor Street in 1897.

In 1947, the building, which is located on Great Moor Street, became Bolton County Grammar School, and in 1966, the school was moved to Breightmet, maintaining its status as a grammar school.

For the first time in history, parents were afforded the opportunity to improve things for their children.

It became a comprehensive school in 1982 and changed its name once again, becoming Withins School.

Withins closed in 2009 and a new school, Bolton St Catherine’s Academy, opened on the same site in its place.