EDWARD ARMITAGE Edward Armitage died in Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge, on Friday 6th July 2001, aged 91. The funeral service was held at St Mary's Church, Ely, on Tuesday 17th July, at 2pm. The last headmaster of Soham Grammar School has died. Edward Armitage, who died in Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge, on Friday, was head of the school prior to its amalgamation into Soham Village College with the introduction of comprehensive education in 1972. He was appointed headmaster of Soham Grammar in 1945, in succession to Stanley Stubbs, who became head of The Perse School, Cambridge. With his wife, May, Mr Armitage established and ran for more than 20 years, a weekly boarding house at the school for the benefit of pupils, such as those whose circumstances or travel arrangements made daily travel to and from Soham difficult. In 1972, Mr Armitage became principal of the Sixth-Form Centre at City of Ely College. He retired from this post in 1975. Throughout his teaching career, he taught physics and his book Practical Physics was used extensively in secondary schools, both in the UK and overseas, from its first publication in 1939 until the late 1970s.

source: Ely Standard Thursday July 12, 2001

For many years he was a magistrate on the Newmarket bench and in his retirement, he compiled an anthology of writings, describing the day-to-day life as it was before the modern era. Unfortunately, this work was not completed before his final illness, but the book The Way We Lived Then will be published later this year*. Mr Armitage, who lived at Cambridge Road, Ely, is survived by his wife, May, three sons and seven grandchildren.