The Schoolboys' Own Library

The Schoolboys' Own Library ran for 411 issues from 1925 to 1940 before becoming another casualty of the wartime paper shortage. The SOL was popular with the public but not so with the Authors who saw their work being hacked down to fit the format of the SOL. You can find more information on the SOL in the publications section of  The Greyfriars Index

This section groups the stories by school and author. To see a full list of the SOL in chronological order click here. (work in progress)

Rookwood in the Schoolboys' Own Library

Of the 411 issues of the Schoolboys' Own Library 53 were Rookwood tales, mostly from the Boys' Friend. For the 1955 CD Annual Gerry Allison wrote an article "Restoring Order at Rookwood" containing a list of all the SOL Rookwood tales and their origin. He even produces a list of recommended reading order. You can read the article here. The number in brackets after the title in the table below indicates Gerry's suggested reading order.

The following list contains all the Rookwood stories published in Schoolboys' Own Library. Click on the link to read or download the individual issues.

SOL	Issue & Year	Title and suggested reading order	School	Source & Year
	Issue 006 1925	The Captain of the Fourth (06)	Rookwood	Boys' Friend 785, 788-791 1916
	Issue 012 1925	Expelled (08)	Rookwood	Boy's Friend 801-805 1916
	Issue 020 1926	The Vanished Schoolboys (18)	Rookwood	Boys' Friend 906-908, 910-911 1918
	Issue 028 1926	Boy who was Soft, The (20)	Rookwood	Boys' Friend 929-933  1919
	Issue 032 1926	Schoolboy's Temptation, A (14)	Rookwood	Boys' Friend 843-847 1917
	Issue 036 1926	Shadow of Shame, The (16)	Rookwood	Boys' Friend 882-886  1918
	Issue 042 1926	Boy from Nowhere, The (24)	Rookwood	Boys' Friend 969, 971-974  1920
	Issue 048 1927	The Colonial Co. (10)	Rookwood	Boys' Friend 812-814, 819-820  1916
	Issue 060 1927	Scapegrace of Rookwood, The (26)	Rookwood	Boy's Friend 996-999, 1001 1920
	Issue 068 1928	Sir Japhet's Heir (25)	Rookwood	Boy's Friend 981-986 1920
	Issue 076 1928	Fighting Form-Master, The (27)	Rookwood	Boy's Friend 1030-1033,1037-1040,  1921
	Issue 084 1928	Chums on Tramp (32)	Rookwood	Boy's Friend 1103-1110  1922
	Issue 094 1929	Rookwood Rebellion, The (29)	Rookwood	Boy's Friend 1074-1077, 1079-1082  1922
	Issue 100 1929	His Own Enemy (43)	Rookwood	Rookwood Substitute Story
	Issue 104 1929	Dropped from the Team (31)	Rookwood	Boys' Friend 1094-1100  1922
	Issue 108 1929	Facing the Music (15)	Rookwood	Boys' Friend 484-489, 853-855 1917
	Issue 112 1929	For the Honour of Rookwood (34)	Rookwood	Rookwood Substitute Story
	Issue 118 1930	Jimmy Joins Up (01)	Rookwood	Boys' Friend 715-718  1915
	Issue 124 1930	Gunner Gets Going (30)	Rookwood	Boys' Friend 1089-1093, 1101-1102 1922
	Issue 128 1930	Backing Up Jimmy (02)	Rookwood	Boys' Friend 723-726 1915
	Issue 132 1930	Under False Colours (33)	Rookwood	Boys' Friend 1112-1118 1922
	Issue 138 1930	Ghost of the Priory, The (35)	Rookwood	Boys' Friend 1125-1132 1921
	Issue 146 1930	Jimmy Silver and Co. Out West (37)	Rookwood	Boys' Friend 1140-1145 1921
	Issue 150 1931	Pals of the Ranges (38)	Rookwood	Boys' Friend 1152-1155  1923
	Issue 154 1931	The War Trail (39)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 1161-1165 1921
	Issue 158 1931	Chums of the Ranch (40)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 1169-1174  1923
	Issue 162 1931	Trailing the Phantom (41)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 1175-1180 1923
	Issue 166 1932	The Fourth Form Rebels (42)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 1183-88, 1191  1923
	Issue 170 1932	Prefects on Strike (21)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 935-941  1919
	Issue 174 1932	Living a Lie (28)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 1043-1051  1921
	Issue 182 1932	The Terror of Rookwood (03)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 743-748  1915
	Issue 198 1933	The Rookwood Secret Society (51)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 1009, 1011  (Sub) 1920
	Issue 202 1933	The Rookwood Gipsies (17)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 891-96, 898-899  1918
	Issue 206 1933	Masters on Strike (19)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 920-924, 928  1919
	Issue 220 1934	Son of a Cracksman (13)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 831, 833-837 1917
	Issue 226 1934	The Fifth Form Rebellion (50)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 1246-1252 1925
	Issue 262 1936	The Fistical Four (04)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 769-772, 774-776 1916
	Issue 268 1936	The Rookwood Barring-In (05)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 778-783 1916
	Issue 272 1936	Taming the Bully (07)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 785-789 1916
	Issue 278 1936	Follow Uncle James (12)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 787, 794-96 1916
	Issue 284 1936	Jimmy Silver’s Christmas Party (09)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 809-11/16/17 1916
	Issue 296 1937	The Fourth Form at Rookwood (11)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 821/2/4/5 1917
	Issue 308 1937	Jimmy Silver Resigns (22)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 944-949 1919
	Issue 317 1937	No Good as Captain (23)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 951,953-6, 958/9 1919
	Issue 335 1938	Under False Colours (44)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 1201-1204 1924
	Issue 341 1938	On Fighting Terms (36)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 1133-1136 1922
	Issue 347 1938	Chums on the Open Road (45)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 1211-1218 1924
	Issue 356 1938	The Boy Who Walked by Night (47)	Rookwood	Gems 1449-1459 (Serial) 1935
	Issue 362 1939	Manders on the Spot (49)	Rookwood	Gems 1460-1469 (Serial) 1936
	Issue 368 1939	Rookwood Calling (46)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 1219-1225 1924
	Issue 380 1939	The Rookwood Raggers (52)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 1255-6 1925
	Issue 389 1939	Rival Guys of Rookwood (48)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 1272-1274 1924
	Issue 392 1939	The Sneak of Rookwood (53)	Rookwood	Boy’s Friends 1275-1283 1925

Cedar Creek in the Schoolboys' Own Library.

The stories of Cedar Creek purported to be of Frank Richard's schooldays in Canada as told by his good friend Martin Clifford. Frank's Father had lost all his money forcing Frank to go and live with his Uncle in Canada.

The 1953 Collectors' Digest Annual featured an article by Leonard Packman that introduced us to the characters of Cedar Creek, you can read the article here.

The Cedar Creek stories must rate as the most reprinted of all Hamilton stories. Of the 205 stories printed in the Boys' Friend 201 were reprinted in the Penny Popular  and 64 in the Gem.  Selections were reprinted in 9 copies of the Boys' Friend Library and in 3 numbers of the Schoolboys' Own Library. Also, reprinted stories appeared in The Holiday Annual for the years 1924, 1926, 1938 and 1941.

	Issue & Year	Title	School	Source & Year
	Issue 142 1931	Chums of the Backwoods	Cedar Creek	Boys' Friend 847 Et Seq 1917
	Issue 178 1932	The Outcast of Cedar Creek	Cedar Creek	Boys' Friend 866 Et Seq 1918
	Issue 184 1932	On the Western Trail	Cedar Creek	Boys' Friend 897 Et Seq 1918

Len Lex in the Schoolboys' Own Library

Len Lex was a schoolboy detective from Oakshott school who appeared briefly in the Modern boy in 1936/37.

	Issue & Year	Title	School	Source & Year
	Issue 353 1938	The Schoolboy ‘Tec	Oakshott	Modern Boy 452-456 1936
	Issue 371 1939	Asking for the Sack	Oakshott	Modern Boy 479-484 1937

Grimslade in the Schoolboys' Own Library

Series 1 (Issue 80) of the Ranger introduced the Fourth Form at Grimslade. The school was situated on the borders of Lancashire and Yorkshire and the two houses (White's and Redmayes') were intended to echo the war of the Roses.

Series 2 (issue 1) of the Ranger saw the return of the boys of Grimslade in "The Cheerio Castaways". This time the action had moved to the Pacific. Reminiscent of an earlier Edwy Searles Brooks story the boys of Grimslade and their Master are stranded on a remote island in the Pacific.

Very little appeared in the Collectors Digest on Grimslade, all I could find was one of Roger Jenkins 'Do You Remember' articles covering the Schoolboys Own Library issue 232. You can read the article here.

SOL	Issue & Year	Title	School	Source & Year
	Issue 232 1934	The Rebel of Grimslade	Grimslade	The Ranger (Series 1, issues 80-130) 1931-1933
	Issue 238 1935	The Fourth Form at Grimslade	Grimslade	The Ranger (Series 1, issues 80-130) 1931-1933
	Issue 242 1935	Sammy the Boy Tamer	Grimslade	The Ranger (Series 1, issues 80-130) 1931-1933
	Issue 248 1935	High Jinks at Grimslade	Grimslade	The Ranger (Series 1, issues 80-130) 1931-1933
	Issue 252 1935	The Cheerio Castaways	Grimslade	The Ranger (Series 2 issues 1-47) 1933-1935
	Issue 254 1935	Chums of Castaway Island	Grimslade	The Ranger (Series 2 issues 1-47) 1933-1935
	Issue 256 1935	The Grimslade Crusoes	Grimslade	The Ranger (Series 2 issues 1-47) 1933-1935

St Kit's in the Schoolboys' Own Library.

In 1922 H. A. Hinton launched a new publication 'School and Sport' and persuaded Hamilton to write for it. Hamilton created St Kit's School and wrote a total of 200,000 words (The equivalent of around 13 Magnets of the period) under the pen name of Clifford Clive. Hamilton received praise from Hinton but no no cash so refused to write any more for this publication half way through a barring out story. A Sub, possibly Hinton himself had to write the closing chapters. As Hamilton had never been paid for the stories he retained copyright so was able to sell them to the Amalgamated Press for publication in the Boys' Friend (September 1924 - May 1925). Note - this is a different St Kit's from that featured in the Pluck of 1907.

SOL	Issue & Date	Title	School	Source & Year
	Issue 064 1927	Parted Chums	St Kit's	School and Sport issues 1-2 1922
	Issue 070 1927	The Boy Who Found His Father	St Kit's	School and Sport issues 3-4 1922
	Issue 136 1930	Who Shall be Captain	St Kit's	School and Sport issues 5-6 1922
	Issue 188 1933	Up, The Rebels	St Kit's	School and Sport issues 7-9 1922

School for Slackers (High Coombe) in the Schoolboys' Own Library.

In 1935 Hamilton created yet another school - High Coombe - the school for Slackers. High Coombe was a slack school, the Head was slack, the Masters were slack and as a consequence the boys were slack. They had no interest in education or games, the most important thing for them was the cut of their bags!

When the Headmaster retired the Governors decide not to promote from within but to to bring in a new Head master, a young man by the name of McCann. It isn't an easy job, Masters and pupils are both against change but he does make progress.

The stories were first published in the Modern Boy in 1935.

	Issue & Year	Title	School	Source & Year
	Issue 290 1937	The School for Slackers	High Coombe	Modern Boy 371-380 1935
	Issue 299 1937	The Live Wire Head	High Coombe	Modern Boy 384-393 1935

Packsaddle in the Schoolboys' Own Library.

The Gem of 1935 had little in the way of original material. Following  a long period of substitute St Jims stories the Gem had turned to reprinting stories from the early blue Gem. It must have came as a surprise to the readers when Gem issue 1403 announced that a new school series by Frank Richards would appear in a fortnights time. Two weeks later in issue 1405 Packsaddle school made it's first appearance. Packsaddle was a school with a difference - it was located in Santana County in Texas.

For the 1958 Collectors Digest Annual Ronald Hodgson wrote an detailed article on Packsaddle. You can read it on page 50-55 here.

SOL	Issue & Date	Title	School	Source & Date
	Issue 305 1937	The Packsaddle Bunch!	Packsaddle	Gem 1405-1434 1935
	Issue 323 1938	The Six-Gun Schoolmaster!	Packsaddle	Gem 1405-1434 1935
	Issue 329 1938	The Rebellion of Packsaddle!	Packsaddle	Gem 1405-1434 1935

St Dorothy's in the Schoolboys' Own Library.

 St Dorothy's first appeared in the Boys Realm in 1909. The serial 'Redfern Minor' appeared in issues 370-391 and a follow up 'Arthur Redfern's Vow' appeared in issues 391-404.  The stories were previously reprinted in the 1920 Boys Friend Library issues 1/479 and 1/494

SOL	Issue & Date	Title	School	Source & Date
	Issue 192 1933	For His Brother's Sake!	St Dorothy's	Boys Realm 370 to 404? 1909-10
	Issue 194 1933	The Captain's Enemy	St Dorothy's	Boys Realm 370 to 404? 1909-10

Greyfriars and St Jim's in the Schoolboys' Own Library.

Very few Greyfriars and St Jim's SOLs have been scanned as all the Greyfriars and many of the St Jim's stories are available in the original format in the Magnet and Gem sections. Many of the SOL versions were badly edited so I would suggest you read them in their original format if possible. The following issues are available-

SOL	Issue & Date	Title	School	Source & Date
	Issue 080 1928	D'Arcy's Cricket Week	St Jim's	Gem 123-124 1910
	Issue 224 1934	Handforth of St Jim's (ESB)	St Jim's	Gem 1059-1060, 1062 1928
	Issue 240 1935	Tom Merry's Enemy (Stanley Austin)	St Jim's	Gem 985-987 1927
	Issue 260 1936	The Stick at Nothing Schoolboys	St Jim's	Gem 828-831 1923

Non Hamilton stories in the Schoolboys' Own Library.

Material by Charles Hamilton and Edwy Searles Brooks filled most of the issues but other writers did occasionally feature. 

Brooks now has a section to himself. You can find it  here

SOL	Issue & Date	Title	School	Source & Date
	Issue 010 1925	Jolly Roger's Way Michael Poole	St Katie's	Boys Friend ?
	Issue 016 1925	Rebellion at St Biddies Michael Poole	St Biddies	Boys Friend ?
	Issue 024 1926	Wake Up, Katies Michael Poole	St Katie's	Gem ?
	Issue 040 1926	The Mystery Schoolboy Ernest Protheroe		Boys Friend? ?
	Issue 044 1926	The Devices of Dicky Dexter Michael Poole		Gem ?
	Issue 052 1926	Under Roger's Rule Michael Poole	St Katie's	Gem ?
	Issue 058 1927	The Butt of the School Michael Poole	St Katie's	Gem ?
	Issue 074 1928	The Blot of Berrisford Michael Poole	Berrisford	Boys' Magazine
	Issue 078 1928	The Tanglewood Twins Ernest Protheroe		Boys Friend ?
	Issue 082 1928	The Schoolboy Scientist Michael Poole	St Katie's	BM ?
	Issue 086 1928	The Conspirators of St Katies Michael Poole	St Katies	Gem ?
	Issue 092 1929	The Freak at St Freda's G. E. Rochester	St Freda's	Pop 2/423-424
	Issue 096 1929	Berrisford's Liveliest Term Michael Poole	Berrisford	Boys' Magazine
	Issue 114 1929	The Kid at St Katie's Michael Poole	St Katie's	Gem Date ?
	Issue 156 1932	The Worst Form at Codrington David Goodwin	Codrington	Gem 1126-1143 (Serial) 1929
	Issue 266 1936	Chums of Toppingham! John Lance	Toppingham	Boys Friend Circa 1927
	Issue 377 1939	The School Squadron! Eric Roche	Selborough	Modern Boy
	Issue 398 1940	Told in the Tuckshop! John Berresford		Modern Boy