Perth Road Public School Set For 50th Anniversary Party

May 03, 2023

Perth Road Public School is throwing a party on Saturday, May 13 to mark the 50th anniversary of the school.

“We are inviting everyone who is, or has been, connected to the school to come out and reminisce, look at old yearbooks, and celebrate where we have all come from,” said Christina Aylesworth, one of the organisers of the event. She has a triple connection to the school, because not only did she go to PRPS from grade 3 until she left for High School, she is a teacher at the school now, and her children attended the school as well. She also met her husband at the school, way back in grade 3.

She recalls that in its early years, PRPS was an open concept school, with two classrooms sharing one space.

“I had an amazing experience here; I loved school and loved my teachers,” she said of her time as a student. “I have so many great memories. I remember the staff looking like they were having so much fun. One vivid memory that demonstrated that was when the staff put on a nighttime production of a play called Rindercella, which was a spoof on Cinderella. In my early teaching years at Perth Road, we resurrected the play and actually had some of the same staff here who were in the original! When I got the opportunity to teach here, I discovered that the feeling I had as a child, of it being a warm and caring place, was and is still true.”

When Perth Road PS was built in 1971, it meant the closure and consolidation of a number of school communities, including: The Old Perth Road School which was on Shales Rd, Maple Leaf Public School, Leland Public School (on Leland Rd), Wilmer Public School (on Wilmer Rd), Spaffordton Public School (off Rutledge Rd), Missouri Public School (just off the corner of Rutledge and Perth Rd), Inverary Public School and Latimer Public School (on Latimer Rd). Some of those buildings were torn down and others have become private homes since.

Construction of the new school was done under the auspices of the Frontenac County Board of Education, which has since amalgamated with the Kingston and Lennox and Addington Boards to form the Limestone Board of Education. The architect was E.A. Cromarty and construction was completed by Dodge Construction. In a sign of the times, the list of Frontenac Board of Education members from the school’s dedication in late 1971, includes 15 names, some of which are identifiable as local names, such as Stoness and Orser. But of the 15, only one Mrs. S.E, Jack, appears to have been a woman.

There will be lots to talk about on May 13th. Members of the Perth Road Public School alumni are invited to access the RSVP button on the alumni Facebook group, or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.