The school took its name from the hospital and would remain at the Litten for centuries. In the 16th century Newbury was well known for its cloth and in particular the father and son merchants Jack O’Newbury who devised production line processes. The only head teacher known during the next 300 years is Thomas Parker, head teacher in 1630. In 1634 he left and led 100 Wiltshire men to found the town of Newbury, Massachusetts on the estuary of what became the Parker river on America's east coast, near Boston. He continued teaching there until his death in 1677. Part of this town of Newbury split off and became Newburyport in 1764. The school survived the Civil wars including the two battles of Newbury but declined as its funds were appropriated by the unreformed corporation in the late 18th century and in the early nineteenth century it closed. In 1849 a new body of trustees rebuilt the Litten and revived the school which opened with 60 boys being taught. The headmaster was Henry Newport. In 1876 the headmaster was the Rev. J. Atkins. In 1885 the charity commissioners agreed to the provision of new buildings in Enborne Road at the corner with Buckingham Road for 150 pupils including 20 boarders. In 1902 the Rev. Atkins retired and was replaced by Edward Sharwood-Smith. He had considerable enthusiasm for the school and in 1903 composed the school song and the school moto. After the tragedy of the first world war he named four school houses after ex-pupils who had died in the 1914-8 period, three of them killed in action. These were Curnock, Davis, Evers and Patterson. Sharwood-Smith retired in 1924 and in 1925 he was replaced by the Rev.T.Rutherford-Harley. He led the school through the second world war and in 1948 was replaced by J. Andrew Ballantyne. In that year the combined cadet force (C.C.F.) was established at the school. The 1950s was a period of recovery from the war, in which many of the teachers had fought. There were many older-style features – teachers wore gowns, the head master could still use the cane and games were restricted to cricket and rugby. In 1960 Andrew Ballantyne retired and was replaced by Basil E.D. Cooper. There followed a period of progressive reform. In 1968 the boarding house closed and in 1975 he was to take over running of the comprehensive school