Preserving Nigeria’s educational heritage

A review of Akindeji Olorunyolemi’s  The Trailblazers (1859-1959)

In an era when many of Nigeria’s historic secondary schools are battling infrastructural decay and loss of archival records, Akindeji Olorunyolemi’s new book, The Trailblazers: The Earliest Secondary Schools in Nigeria (1859-1959), arrives as both a timely intervention and a heritage document.

This is not another list copied from the internet. It is a painstakingly researched 475-page, full-colour, hardcase encyclopedia that documents the establishment, founders, foundation staff, foundation students and distinguished alumni of the first 116 public secondary schools in Nigeria, from the founding of CMS Grammar School, Lagos in 1859 to the schools established on the eve of independence in 1959.

The book, which carries a Foreword by Emeritus Professor F. A. Fajemirokun, former Vice-Chancellor of University of Lagos, does what few have attempted: it attempts to verify founding dates, many of which have been muddled by oral tradition and schools that evolved from primary to secondary status. While the author honestly admits that the ranking by year of establishment should be read as his best assessment based on available evidence, the sheer effort to visit schools, contact principals, and collate alumni photographs gives the work credibility.

The structure is simple yet powerful. Each of the 116 schools — from household names like CMS Grammar School, Lagos, King’s College, Lagos, Barewa College, Zaria, Hope Waddell College, Calabar, Government College, Umuahia, Government College, Ibadan, Edo College, Benin (1937), and Igbobi College, Lagos, to less celebrated but equally historic institutions — is given its own profile.

Two features stand out. First, the listing of foundation staff and foundation students — a goldmine for historians and Old Students’ Associations searching for their roots. Second, the special section devoted to photographs and profiles of distinguished personalities produced by these schools — a visual reminder that these institutions collectively produced the architects of modern Nigeria.

Physically, the book, published by Lord Keynes Publishing Company, Akure, Ondo State,  matches its ambition. Printed in all colours on glossy art paper and bound in a hardcase, it is clearly not designed for the average student’s backpack. It is a collector’s edition and reference material — meant for university libraries, secondary school libraries, National Archives, Old Students’ Association secretariats, corporate boardrooms, and the homes of those who value heritage.

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The Trailblazers is not without limitations, which the author himself acknowledges in the Preface. Some photographs are still being awaited from alumni bodies, and founding date controversies will continue. Indeed, that is the book’s strength — it is presented as a “work in progress”, an invitation to Old Students’ Associations to come forward with records to enrich future editions.

For alumni who often ask, “Where is the documented history of my school?”, this book provides an answer. For policymakers and educators, it is a reminder that Nigeria once insisted on quality and standard across schools — a lesson worth revisiting.

It is a valuable contribution to Nigeria’s educational historiography and deserves a place on every serious shelf.