William Still Littlejohn

{{Short description|Australian headmaster (1859–1933)}} {{Use British English|date=December 2017}} {{Use dmy dates|date=December 2017}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = William Littlejohn | image = W-S-Littlejohn.jpg | alt = | caption = | order = 10th Headmaster of Nelson College | office = | term_start = 1899 | term_end = 1903 | predecessor = John William Joynt | successor = Harry Lewis Fowler | order2 = 3rd Headmaster of Scotch College, Melbourne | office2 = | term_start2 = 1904 | term_end2 = 1933 | predecessor2 = Alexander Morrison | successor2 = Colin Macdonald Gilray | birth_name = William Still Littlejohn | birth_date = {{Birth date|df=y|1859|09|19}} | birth_place = Turriff, Aberdeenshire, Scotland | death_date = {{Death date and age|df=y|1933|10|07|1859|09|19}} | death_place = Hawthorn, Victoria, Australia | spouse = {{marriage|Jeannie Berry|1885}} | relations = Charles Littlejohn (son) | children = | signature = | signature_alt =  | nickname = | allegiance = | branch = | rank = | unit = | commands = | battles = | mawards =  | military_blank1 = | military_data1 =  | module = {{Infobox cricketer | embed = yes | batting = | bowling = | role =

| club1 = Nelson | year1 = 1885/86–1886/87

| date = 4 February | year = 2016 | source = https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players/22/22313/22313.html CricketArchive }} }} '''William Still Littlejohn''' (19 September 1859 – 7 October 1933) was a Scottish-born schoolteacher who spent most of his working life in New Zealand and Australia. He was headmaster of Nelson College from 1899 to 1903, and of Scotch College, Melbourne from 1904 to 1933. As a cricketer, he played two-first class games for Nelson in 1886.

==Biography== Littlejohn was born in Turriff, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, the son of Wilson Littlejohn, a watchmaker and jeweller, and his wife Margaret, née Gordon.<ref name=adb>{{Cite book| publisher = National Centre of Biography, Australian National University| last = Bate| first = Weston| title = Australian Dictionary of Biography| chapter = Littlejohn, William Still (1859–1933)| location = Canberra| accessdate = 2021-10-12| date = 1986| url = https://adb.anu.edu.au/| chapter-url = https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/littlejohn-william-still-7209}}</ref> Educated at the board schools at Alford and Peterhead,<ref name=dab>{{Dictionary of Australian Biography | First=William Still |Last=Littlejohn | shortlink=0-dict-biogL.html#littlejohn1 | accessdate=18 September 2010}}</ref> and Aberdeen Grammar School, Littlejohn then entered the University of Aberdeen, graduating with a Master of Arts degree in 1879.<ref name=adb/> He was registered as a teacher in 1879 and taught at Clydesdale College, Hamilton, then tutored privately.<ref name=adb/>

Littlejohn's father and brother had emigrated to New Zealand, and in 1881 they obtained nominated passages for the rest of the family.<ref name=dab/> William Littlejohn was mathematics and science master at Nelson College from 1882 to 1898, and headmaster for five years from 1899 to 1903.<ref>{{cite book | first=L.R. | last=Palmer | chapter=A short history of Nelson College | title=Nelson College Old Boys' Register 1856–1981 | edition=5th | year=1981}}</ref> He married Jeannie Berry in Wellington on 25 December 1885.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=TC18860102.2.6.2 | title=Marriages | date=2 January 1886 | work=The Colonist | accessdate=5 February 2016 | page=3}}</ref> The couple had five children,<ref name="Evening Post obituary">{{cite news | url=http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=EP19331009.2.76 | title=Obituary | date=9 October 1933 | work=Evening Post | accessdate=5 February 2016 | page=7}}</ref> including Charles Littlejohn.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=WCT19110707.2.15.5 | title=A smart New Zealander | date=7 July 1911 | work=West Coast Times | accessdate=5 February 2016 | page=3}}</ref>

During his time in Nelson, Littlejohn played two first-class matches as a batsman for the Nelson cricket team in 1886. In his three innings he scored only eight runs, including two ducks.<ref>{{Cricketarchive|id=22313 |name=William Littlejohn}}</ref> He also served as president of the Nelson Rugby Union.<ref>{{cite book | editor-last=Scholefield | editor-first=G.H. | title=A Dictionary of New Zealand Biography |url=https://nzhistory.govt.nz/sites/default/files/documents/dnzb-1940/scholefield-dnzb-v1.pdf | volume=1 |access-date=5 February 2015 |year=1940 |publisher=Department of Internal Affairs | location=Wellington | page=500}}</ref>

Littlejohn successfully applied for the position of headmaster at Scotch College, Melbourne, a position he held until his death at the school on 7 October 1933.<ref name=adb/>

==References== {{Reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Littlejohn, William Still}} Category:1859 births Category:1933 deaths Category:People from Turriff Category:Scottish emigrants to Australia Category:Scottish emigrants to New Zealand Category:Nelson College faculty Category:New Zealand cricketers Category:Nelson cricketers Category:New Zealand sports executives and administrators Category:Australian headmasters Category:Chairmen of the Headmasters' Conference of the Independent Schools of Australia Category:Heads of schools in New Zealand Category:20th-century Australian educators Category:People educated at Aberdeen Grammar School Category:Alumni of the University of Aberdeen Category:Scotch College, Melbourne Category:Heads of schools in Victoria (state)