TEACHING AND LIVING
In the second school inspection a description of the accommodation arrangements for the teacher is noted:
1875: TEACHER LEASES SOUTH SIDE RESIDENCE, SCHOOL AND FARM
18 & 19 August 1875
NORTH PINE I. (PROVISIONAL).
Inspected 18 and 19 August.
Enrolled, 20; 9 boys and 11 girls. Present, 16; 7 boys and 9 girls.
The school is a weather board structure on the south side of the river, leased by the teacher along with the adjoining residence and premises and the farm on which they stand. The material organization is fairly satisfactory in the circumstances. The school has been open since Aril, 1874, and has been inspected once previously …
There is no further mention of the teacher’s accommodation until the amalgamation of the school on the north bank where a separate teacher’s quarters was erected in 1879.
This used to stand not far from where the staff car park is today on the corner of Tandoor Drive and Dayboro Road. The Head Teachers (and later the Principal) dwelled in this abode, and then in a new one built on the opposite side of the school, from this time until the early 1980s. The second and last dwelling to be the Teachers’ Residence is now a private home and is on the corner of Dayboro Road and Wyllie Street. It is nestled between the south-eastern boundary of the school and the St. John the Baptist church car park.
1879: AMALGAMATION ON THE NORTH BANK
Buildings consisting of one classroom, separate teachers’ residence with a detached kitchen were finished and handed over to the Department with the school opening as State School, Pine River North on the 20 January 1879.
There was another ‘special inspection’ completed at this born-again school on the 28th April 1879, including a written report and a schematic showing how the school was placed on the land and the plan of the buildings.
The site is described as being on the upper portion of the same lot as the North Pine Hotel on land known as ‘Petrie’s Paddock’, it is considered a suitable site but already considered too small.
The teachers’ dwelling was a four-cornered cottage with detached kitchen, hard wood floor, weather boards and shingles, no lining or ceiling with pine partitions.
The Inspector states that the building was erected in the latter part of 1877 and was well finished in all respects.
The School Inspector completed his report on Pine River North State School No 183 on 24 July 1879.
Transcript of 1879 special school inspection report for the new State School on the north side of the Pine River:
Inspected 28 April 1879
[INCLUDING] Plan of Site and Buildings [see Image].
Site
30 A Parish of Redcliffe, County Stanley being a rectangular piece having 2 chains frontage Whiteside Road and 10 chains in-depth giving an area of 2 acres. It is the upper portion of the paddock attached to North Pine Hotel known as Petrie’s Paddock. The site is in every way suitable but it is not large enough.
School
Hard Wood floors and Verandahs [sic], Hard Wood weatherboard, Hard Wood shingles. Roof lined diagonally with Pine, pine gallery and furniture, spouts and, two tanks. Stands very high from ground at back. Verandahs [sic] (back) railed.
Dwelling
Four cornered cottage with detached kitchen. Hard Wood floor, weather boards and shingles, no lining or ceiling, pine partitions.
Closets
Three, Hard Wood with pine seats and urinal to boys’ closet.
The buildings were erected in the latter part of 1877 and are well finished in all respects.
Signed District Inspector 21.7.79
Source: Moreton Bay Regional Council Local History Library, Strathpine
Courtesy Moreton Bay Regional Council Local History Library, Strathpine
CLICK IMAGE TO VIEW FULL SIZE
Seemingly there was no new construction for a while.
Over the next few years there seemed to be steady funding for improvements with tenders advertised in the newspaper for local tradespersons to quote their best price to get the work.
1906: TENDER FOR NEW PLAY SHED AND IMPROVEMENTS TO RESIDENCE
An listing for a tender for “improvements to the teachers’ residence” appeared in the Brisbane Courier:
26 November 1906 (Monday)
Tenders for Public Works.
… new play shed, improvements to residence, and State school buildings, North Pine, December 21 ;
Source: 1906 ‘Tenders for Public Works.’, The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 – 1933), 26 November, p. 3, viewed 28 January, 2014, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article19500550
This tender was awarded to Mr A Anderson for a cost of 131 pounds and 12 shillings:
28 December 1906 (Friday)
PUBLIC WORKS TENDERS.
The following tenders for public works have been accepted … North Pine State School, new playshed, improvements to residence, repairs, and painting, A Andersen, 131 pounds 12 shillings;
Source: 1906 ‘PUBLIC WORKS TENDERS.’, The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 – 1933), 28 December, p. 5, viewed 28 January, 2014, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article19492542
1908: IMPROVEMENTS TO RESIDENCE AND ITS ROOF
More improvements and renovations were required in 1908, particularly “roofing of teacher’s residence”:
13 July 1908 (Monday)
OFFICIAL NOTICES
Tenders Called —… re-roofing teacher’s residence and improvements State school, North Pine, August 14;
1908 ‘OFFICIAL NOTIFICATIONS.’, The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 – 1933), 13 July, p. 2, viewed 28 January, 2014, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article19514884
This tender was won by Mr J R Wiley and evidently involved more painting:
19 August 1908 (Wednesday)
PUBLIC WORKS
TENDERS ACCEPTED
Repairs and painting at North Pine State school, J. R. Wiley, 52 pounds.
Source: 1908 ‘PUBLIC WORKS.’, The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 – 1933), 19 August, p. 3, viewed 28 January, 2014, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article19535958
1913: SCHOOL COMMITTEE INSPECT RECENT RENOVATIONS TO THE VALUE OF 50 POUNDS
The teacher’s residence again received more repairs to the amount of 50 pounds and was inspected and noted at the School Committee meeting:
8 February 1913 (Saturday)
… A meeting of the school committee was held on Tuesday evening, when there were present : Messrs J Connors (chairman), S N Bray (secretary), W J Baldwin, J W Lear, and J Young. The secretary reported that improvements to the school-house, amounting to 50 pounds had been completed, and these were inspected by the committee, who expressed satisfaction at the work done …
Source: 1913 ‘BELOW THE RANGE.’, The Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 – 1933), 8 February, p. 6, viewed 14 December, 2013, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article19862505
1930s-1950s: TEACHER’S LODGING BECOMES UNSUSTAINABLE
The teaching lodgings were continuing to become a ‘money pit’, and most unsuitable for a growing school. By the end of the 1930s it was nearing its demise.
It is said that the teacher’s lodging was kept longer than it should have been on request by the ‘predecessor’ of Mal Langusch despite having being condemned for demolition. It is not clear however if this was Arthur Delhby Hanson or Alexander Howe as Mr Howe was an acting Head Teacher.
Mal Langusch says of his 1951-1953 stay in the Head Teachers lodgings in his Petrie memoir in 1999:
“My worst memory of my term at Petrie was the house we occupied. A relic of the distant past, it was condemned and marked for demolition, but retained on a request by my predecessor.”
Source: Commemorating 125 Years of Service: Petrie Sate School 1874 – 1999; Petrie State School, 1999; p9
1942-1945: ORIGINAL RESIDENCE STILL STANDING – SO FAR …
Former student Ken Mitchell, who attended from 1942-1945 recalls the geography of the school, including the original residence:
“Mr. Hansen lived in the school-house next door up the Dayboro’ Road. …
A little further downhill along the fence that separated the school from Mr. Hansen’s house yard was located a play shed. This was quite a large building with just a roof and upright posts, no walls, but it did have a bench as seating around all four sides. This formed a shady area to have lunch with the open area in the middle being somewhere to play when the weather was inclement. A bit further down the hill were the slit trenches where we would hide if the air-raid siren sounded. The main playground with the cricket pitch were further down the hill where the ground was more level.”
Source: Ken Mitchell, former student North Pine State School (now Petrie State School) 1942-1945, received via email 2014.
Eventually the Teachers’ Residence was demolished allowing more room for expansion on the school grounds.
It’s thought at this time that either the new residence was acquired via purchase or purpose-built. [RESEARCHING]
In 1959 the construction of a separate Domestic Science and Manual Training Block situated between where the old school residence had been and the side road was completed.
Caption: Photographs showing the newly built Domestic Science and Manual Training Block. The dirt road seen here is possibly Tandoor Drive. These buildings on the spot, or close to, where the original Teacher’s Residence was situated. Source: 1950. Petrie State School, Moreton Bay, July 1959, Queensland State Archives (http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/177537652 & http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/177537651)
1983-84: OFFICIAL RESIDENCE MOVES OUT
Peter Boge said on his arrival as new Principal at Petrie in 1983:
“When Aster and I arrived at Petrie from St George in January 1983, little did I realise the challenging but memorable eight years we would have at Petrie. We spent 1983 and 1984 in the official residence, our son Joseph was born in March 1984, and developed close friendships with staff and community during this period … ?”
Source: Commemorating 125 Years of Service: Petrie Sate School 1874 – 1999; Petrie State School, 1999; p46
Mr Boge was the Principal until 1990. At this stage, although there is more research required, it is assumed that the Department of Education relinquished their ownership of the home and Principals moved into purchased or rented civilian dwellings. [RESEARCHING]