Christian Brothers' College, Perth
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| Christian Brothers College | |
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| Established | 1894 (Closed 1961) |
| School Type | Independent |
| Denomination | Catholic |
| Key People | Br. Anthony O’Brien (first headmaster) [1] |
| Location | Perth, WA, Australia |
| Enrolment | ~700 |
| Employees | ~50 |
| Colours | Red and black[2] |
| Homepage | www.aquinas.wa.edu.au |
Christian Brothers College, informally known as CBC Perth or The Terrace was an Independent school for boys situated on St. George's Terrace in the center of Perth, Western Australia. The school opened in January 1894, and was a founding member of the Public Schools Association.[3] In 1937 the bulk of the students and staff, together with the headmaster, academic/athletic records, the school colours (red and black), the college crest and membership in the Public Schools Association moved to a newly established campus in Salter Point named Aquinas College. The new campus included a main building designed to replicate the the College's original main building on St George's Terrace. The remainder of the College moved to Trinity College with its closure in 1961.[4]
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[edit] History
[edit] Foundation
The Christian Brothers opened their first school in Western Australia on 31 January 1894 on the corner of St Georges Terrace and Victoria Avenue in Perth, naming it Christian Brothers College Perth.[5] The Brothers were invited to the colony by Bishop Matthew Gibney who knew of the work of the Brothers in Australia, Ireland and England.[6] The first headmaster of the college, Br. Anthony O’Brien addressed the school upon its opening:
| “ | The greatest desire and ambition [of the Brothers] would be to bring up the young entrusted to their charge as good Christians and good citizens, able to fill any position…assigned to then in after life, and to hold their own against all comers in the fairest and in one sense the youngest of the Australian colonies [1] | ” |
Initially at CBC Perth only day students were enrolled, but due to population growth in Western Australia during the gold rush period, pressure was put on the school to accept residential boarding students, the first of which were enrolled in June 1896.[7] The site had physical limitations and in 1917, headmaster Br. Paul Nunan saw the necessity to acquire much larger property away from the city centre to accommodate the whole school.[5] The brothers entered into negotiations for the purchase of 8 hectares (20 acres) at Point Heathcote on the Swan River, in 1928 they ended up purchasing 95 hectares (234 acres) on the Canning River just east of the Riverton Bridge naming it Clune Park.[8] However, plans to develop this site were shelved due to the Great Depression.[9]
In 1936, at the instigation of Br. Paul Keaney, the superior of nearby Clontarf Orphanage, 62.4 hectare (154 acre) were purchased from the Manning family at Mount Henry Peninsula at Salter Point on the Canning River at a cost of £9,925.[10][11] In 1937 most students and staff moved to the newly built Aquinas College, Salter Point campus, with the remainder staying on at CBC Perth. The Aquinas College foundation stone was laid on 11 July, 1937, and the new campus opened in February 1938 with 173 boarders and 55 day pupils.[5] Br. C.P. Foley was the first headmaster.[12]
When Perth was awarded the rights to host the 1962 Empire Games (now known as the Commonwealth Games), the Perth City Council saw the need to construct a large international hotel, they decided to build it next to CBC Perth.[3] Shortly after, the council expressed interest in purchasing the CBC site to allow for the widening of St Georges Terrace and Victoria avenue.[3] At this time, the college was facing the facts that the site was small and the buildings were becoming run-down, and educationally inadequate.[3]
The Council purchased the site from the College, for £267,000 and provided the Brothers with a new 14 acre site on the riverbank near the Western Australian Cricket Association grounds (WACA).[4][3] Here, a brand new school, costing £270,000 was to be built.[4][3] Building work at the college's new site began in November 1960.[4][3] Trinity College opened on schedule for the start of the 1962 school year, with the official opening on March 25, 1962. [4][3]
[edit] Extra-curricular activities
In the early days of CBC Perth music, dancing and elocution were available as extras, over and above the mainstream subjects and sport. These cultural activities, whilst presented in the college prospectus as worthy additional refinements, had a very marginal position in the schools early years. Lessons were taught seldom by brothers, and more commonly by visiting teachers, instead the brothers created highly polished verse-speaking and singing choirs to engage their students in the Arts.[13]
[edit] Notable Alumni
- Ernest Bromley - Former Australian cricketer
- William Bryan - Captain First AIF World War One.
- Ignatius Boyle - Australian politician
- Thomas G. Molloy - Former MLA and Lord Mayor of Perth
- Thomas Meagher - Lord Mayor of Perth
- David Fenbury - Public servant
- Rhodes Scholars
[edit] References
- ^ a b Massam, Katharine (1998).On High Ground: Images of One Hundred Years at Aquinas College, Western Australia University of Western Australia Press ISBN 1876268050. Page 22. Accessed at Walter Murdoch Library South Perth Branch.
- ^ Massam, Katharine (1998).On High Ground: Images of One Hundred Years at Aquinas College, Western Australia University of Western Australia Press ISBN 1876268050. Page 109. Accessed at Walter Murdoch Library South Perth Branch.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Trinity College Archives (accessed:19-02-2007)
- ^ a b c d e Trinity College History (accessed:19-02-2007)
- ^ a b c Massam, Katharine (1998).On High Ground: Images of One Hundred Years at Aquinas College, Western Australia University of Western Australia Press ISBN 1876268050
- ^ South Perth Municipal Heritage Inventory (accessed:14-02-2007)
- ^ Florey, Cecil (2000), Canning Bridge to Clontarf: An Historical Journey Along Manning Road
- ^ City of South Perth Municipal Heritage Inventory (No.1). 1994
- ^ Florey, Cecil (1995), Peninsular City: A Social history of the City of South Perth
- ^ Massam, Katharine (1998), p. 123
- ^ City of South Perth (1998). Draft Municipal Heritage Inventory - Origins of Street Names. Retrieved on 2007-02-14.
- ^ Curriculum Council of Western Australia (accessed:18-02-2007)
- ^ Massam, Katharine (1998), p. 73
- ^ a b c Massam, p. 43
- ^ Massam, p. 43-44
[edit] Further reading
- Carrig , Roger (1961). Christian Brothers College, Perth : transference of an historic college of the institute in Western Australia.
- Massam, Katharine (1998). On High Ground: Images of One Hundred Years at Aquinas College, Western Australia University of Western Australia Press ISBN 1876268050
- Pollard, Robert James (196-) A history of C.B.C. Perth from its beginning to the present Trinity College.
- Taylor, Greg (1959). The history of the Christian Brothers' College, St. George's Terrace, Perth (1894-1958).
[edit] External links
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