Mill of Mains Primary School has been one of Dundee’s most loved educational institutions ever since it first opened 50 years ago.
With two classes per year, the large Dundee school shaped so many childhoods and helped form so many friendships.
Angie Rourke was one of the first pupils to go through P1-7 at the new school.
She recently attended a class reunion for that first class – which was well attended!
Angie said: “I think it was clear to see how loved it was.
“Of our 31-strong class, 27 people turned up [to the reunion]!
“We all have such fond memories of our time there.”
Memory lane
The area of Mill O’ Mains began construction in the 1960s to accommodate the city’s expanding population.
Mill of Mains Primary School opened on October 16 1972.
Its Autumnal opening was due in part to a series of building delays and Angie remembers the rocky start it gave to her education.
She said: “My mum was telling me that there was a strike on at the building site.
“The building wasn’t finished by the time the school was meant to be opening in the August.
“The council got in touch with my mom and dad, and said, ‘look, she has to go to one of the schools’.
“So I had to go to another school for the first two months.
“Then after the October holidays, Mill of Mains was finally opened and we went there.”
“We were the first class to go right the way through the school, which was a really special position to be in.
“There were two separate buildings – one for the primary one to three classes, and one for the primary four to sevens.
“And we were the first group to ever be in both blocks.
“The primary four to seven block was all open plan.
Fond memories
“I think what was most memorable though was our headmistress.
“She used to bring her dog to school!
“That was something we all remembered at the reunion.
“There was the school dinners too – in those days you didn’t need to go to school dinners, but everybody wanted to go!
“I mean, my mom worked back shift, so she was there at home for me, but I remember begging her to let me go for school dinners because everybody else went!
“Back then there was a large coal heap outside the school.
“We used to just refer to it as the ‘Coaley’.
“There were these huge boulders that were just placed together and of course we used to climb on there.
“In Primary Four, we had three different teachers.
“One for English, one for maths, and a third for other lessons.
“The classes were split into smaller ones and would rotate across the lessons.
“When you got to Primary six and seven, you just went back to a single classroom.”
Times are changing
Angie and her classmates were at school during the days when a pint of milk was just 5p, and colour TV was just starting to become popular.
Angie added: “There was a small room at the school where we used to be taken to watch TV programmes!
“A number of us were asked to paint the windows in that room – one for every season.
“I was lucky enough to be chosen to paint the winter scene.
“Those paintings were still there for years after we left, it was a nice way to leave our mark on the place.
“From the windows of the big block, you used to be able to see for miles across the fields.
“We had single-rider carriages that used to be pulled by horses, and we’d do races at recess in the fields.
“In the summer we’d just sit and have our lessons outside; I have loads of fond memories.”
Mill of Mains Primary reunion
It was these fond memories that inspired Angie to attend a class reunion organised by her friend and ex-classmate Tracey.
The reunion, held last Sunday, gave Angie and her classmates plenty of chances to reminisce.
Alongside their fond memories of their school days, many remembered packets of Golden Wonder crisps they could buy for 3p, and their mums buying their new school uniforms for under 50p!
Not everybody from their class was able to attend, but Angie said they were there in spirit.
“We found some people on Facebook, and were able to phone a few of them from there,” Angie said, “but there were still some that we couldn’t find.”
The Mill of Mains wider school community are also keen to remember its history.
Angie said: “We were invited to a concert that the Primary ones of today were putting on.
“They invited several of us from my class to go and watch, and other classes from across the years too.
“I couldn’t attend, but Tracey went, and she said they ran into the original caretaker!
“We think he might still live in the old school house.”
Mill O’ Mains today is unrecognisable compared to the original town as it has undergone a multi-million regeneration since the 1990s.
However, the primary school is still going strong with a whole new set of pupils.
The reunion proved that Mill of Mains Primary School still holds a special place in the hearts and minds of these former pupils who were right there at the start of its journey.
Here’s to making memories, and perhaps we’ll hear about the pupils of today gathering to remember their time at the school, fifty years on.
Conversation