The School Hymn was based on the hymn "Our Father, By Whose Servants", written by George Wallace Briggs (1875-1959) in 1920, and published in several different hymnals. The hymn is regarded as being in public domain in USA, although copyright law in the UK and other countries may vary.
The orginal tune was Commemoration, Wolvercote, but at the school sung to "Dank sei Gott." (J. S. Bach). The only variations was the second line: "Our School was founded here", and that version is often found printed on the speech day programmes. This hymn is a popular school dedication hymn, adopted by many schools.
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Our Father, by Whose servant,
Our School was founded here,
Whose hand hath crowned her children
From homes remote and near,
For Thine unfailing mercies
Far-strewn along our way,
With all who passed before us,
We praise Thy name today.
They reap not where they laboured,
We reap what they have sown;
Our harvest may be garnered
By ages yet unknown.
The days of old have dowered us
With gifts beyond all praise,
O Father, make us faithful
To serve the coming days.
Before us and beside us
Still shielded in Thy hand,
A cloud unseen of witness,
Our elder comrades stand;
One family unbroken.
We join, with one acclaim,
One heart, one voice uplifting
To glorify Thy name.
Lyrics: George Wallace Briggs, 1920
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