While the school had a slow beginning, all was to change as the 1870s approached. Education had come into fashion and it appears that all youth now registered for school. The explosion in registrations is illustrated in the following graph:

Figure 2: Annual Registrations 1870–1890

The year 1874, when 60 children registered, saw a record never again repeated in the life of the school. Registrations were to average about 17 per annum throughout the 1880s and fell slightly to 14 in the 1890s.

While pupils were generally in the 4 to 6 age group at registration, the 1870s were an exception with many pupils 7 to 12 years of age and a small number well into their teens. The highest entry age was 18.

As the registrations increased, the potential number attending school soared. The potential attendance assumes all pupils between the ages of 6 and 13 attended school while the older students at registration remained at school for 7 years. The potential attendance per day grew from 40 in 1870 to 213 in 1874 and went on rising until it peaked at 290 in 1878. It then declined rapidly to settle in the 115−120 range in the 1890s.