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Mass to celebrate the Feast of Saint Ignatius of Loyola in the 130 th Anniversary Year of Saint Ignatius’ College, Riverview, on Sunday 1 August 2010, at St Mary’s Cathedral, Sydney, celebrated by His Eminence George Cardinal Pell, AC, Archbishop of Sydney
SA I N T IGNAT I US ’ COL L EGE , R I V E RV I E W
130 years of Ignatian tradition and spirituality
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and in the magnificent grounds that are a hallmark of this great place. So near to Sydney, and yet providing a peaceful haven in which the pursuit of education and the maturing of boys into fine young men has been a continuous theme for all of its 130 years.
his year , Saint Ignatius’ College, Riverview is 130 years old. The College was opened on Monday, 9 February 1880. However, owing to heavy rains at the time, the first boys only arrived on Thursday, 12 February. They were Ar thur and Thomas Moore.
Riverview was an isolated spot at that time. A ferry service ran daily from the city, but there was only a rough track out of the school to the, equally rough, Northern Road (now the Pacific Highway). Until the purchase of the first parcel of land, the old Josephson hunting estate, by Fr Dalton SJ in 1878, the Riverview peninsular was a relatively unsavoury place. Tambourine Bay, on the eastern flank, was named after a dubious character known as ‘Tambourine Nell’ while Burns Bay was then called ‘Murderers’ Bay’, with good reason.
Main Building, 1917
Fr Dalton SJ and students, 1880
To this place did some of the most memorable and far-seeing Jesuit educationalists come to establish what was to become possibly the finest school in Sydney today. There is often a tendency to view historical records as a series of reflections on the physical development of a place, such as Riverview, and there is much to be proud of here. The growth of the College is reflected in its buildings, the taming of its once wild ‘bush’
The original cottage, erected to open the school, soon became very cramped as more boys arrived and, in order to provide better accommodation, St Michael’s House, the first brick building on the site, was completed. The building was designed by W W Wardell and opened by Archbishop Vaughan on the feast of Saint Michael, 29 September 1880. It was on this occasion that the College was officially declared ‘open’. At that time there were 18 pupils attending the College. At various times classrooms, boarding accommodation, a billiard room, barbershop and offices, this, the oldest remaining building, now houses the Special Education Immersion Program which provides specialist education for a group of boys with intellectual and behavioural challenges. It has served, and continues to serve, the College as a reminder of all that an Ignatian education should provide. Fur ther building took place at the College in 1882, with the construction of a wooden boatshed and, in 1883, the Infirmary was built.
130 T H A N N I V E R S A RY: 1880 – 2010
The main building of the College was constructed in three stages between 1885–1930 and the foundation stone was laid by Cardinal Moran, Archbishop of Sydney, on 15 December 1885. As originally designed by Gilbert, Dennihey and Tappin, of Ballarat, the building was to be a huge square, representing four identical fronts, but only the South front was completed according to plan. Dare all you Can for God and Man History is never solely about the buildings and there are many other things that are equally a part of the rich history of the College. Essentially, these underscore the essence of what
the entire person) and the incredibly committed and connected College community, that underlies the will to ensure that Riverview is still operating, true to its values, in another 130 years.
makes Riverview, well . . . Riverview. They include the basics of an education born in Jesuit traditions and Ignatian spirituality, pride in the badge and the motto of the College (the latter, in par ticular, reflecting the essential ethos of an Ignatian education being that of ‘Cura personalis’ – care for
Opening of the Dalton Memorial Chapel, 1909
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In its early years, the College offered ‘Classical and Modern Languages, History, Mathematics, the Natural Sciences and all other branches required for the Civil Service, the Junior, Senior and Matriculation Examinations.’ It was advertised that the curriculum included a modern side – mercantile subjects. By December 1882, with an enrolment of only 70 students, the College extended the curriculum to include English Composition, Writing, Music, Singing, Drawing, Painting, Irish History and Oral Latin. Lessons were taught six days a week.
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A view of Riverview, before work began on the Main Building, in 1889. St Michael’s House can be seen in the distance, alongside Riverview Cottage.
130 T H A N N I V E R S A RY O F R I V E RV I E W: 1880 – 2010
SA I N T IGNAT I US ’ COL L EGE , R I V E RV I E W
The Main Building of Saint Ignatius’ College, Riverview, in 1929
Riverview Rowing Club, circa 1890
The day began at 6.15am, with prayers, Mass and study before breakfast at 8.30am and concluded with night prayers at 8.30pm. On Sundays and holidays, the boys were allowed to sleep in until 6.30am. Although the first Dayboys were not officially admitted until 1923, there was a small group of pupils who were permitted to attend the College as Dayboys. In fact, up until the 1960s, Dayboys remained relatively small in number and Riverview was mainly for Boarders. Until 1906, the College had neither an official Riverview badge nor a College motto. Fr Gartlan SJ, the then Headmaster, established them both, with little fanfare, in that year. The motto, ‘Quantum potes tantum aude’ has gone through a number of (sometimes quite liberal) translations. Fr Gartlan did not give a preferred translation but it does seem that ‘All that you can do, so much dare to do’ best reflects his sentiments, expressed to the Old Boys in 1906.
‘May I suggest to you my dear ‘Old Boys’ that one and all of you could do no better than make these words the guiding headlines of your lives. Whatever you can do to help one another, whatever you can do for your old school, whatever you can do for the progress and prosperity of your grand country, and above all and before all whatever you can do to safeguard and advance the sacred interests of your faith, do, and do with all your might.’ (Our Alma Mater 1906) One of the hallmarks of the College, and its generations of boys, parents and friends, is its constant commitment to communication; with students, parents and its wider community.
Third Division, a Beano, circa 1900
Aerial View of the College
For most of its history, this has mainly been through the annual journal of record, Our Alma Mater, first published in 1886 and now thought to be the oldest, continuous, periodical in Australia.
Saint Ignatius’ College, Riverview
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130 T H A N N I V E R S A RY: 1880 – 2010
College Band Stand, decorated for the Riverview Regatta, 1930s
among the Old Boys and seems to deepen with the passing of the years. One fruit of this friendship has been mutual support in times of suffering and bereavement. Old Boys have been greatly strengthened by the concern shown for them by friends of their school-days – priests, brothers, laymasters and companions.’
Taken in 1922, by Milton Kent
In 1980, the introduction to the Riverview Centennial stated ‘There is and always has been great friendliness between boys of Riverview and their masters. This spirit lives on
In more recent years, the Ignatian, published three times a year, has been a more regular reminder of what the College represents and of its essential uniqueness. NB: To attempt to recount the history of the College in this publication is not to do it the justice it deserves. Interested readers are encouraged to
read Riverview, the fine history by former archivist, Errol Lea-Scarlett and Riverview: An Educational History, by Fr David Strong SJ, for a more complete account. Celebration Mass Attended by 3000 students, parents and staff, our 130 th Anniversary Mass, held at Saint Mary’s Cathedral, Sydney on 1 August 2010, was celebrated by His Eminence, George Cardinal Pell, AC, Archbishop of Sydney. Concelebrants included Rev Fr Andrew Bullen SJ, Rector and Alumni priests from Saint Ignatius’ College, Riverview. In his homily, the Cardinal acknowledged the works of the Jesuits, par ticularly their significant contribution to education in Sydney, and challenged our students to keep our Catholic faith alive.
1st XI, 1884
College Orchestra, 1912
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Peter Herington
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with the original stone cottage in the foreground.
SA I N T IGNAT I US ’ COL L EGE , R I V E RV I E W
Fond memories of boarding at St Michael’s House
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at ‘Windermere’, on the opposite side of the Lane Cove River, would take delivery of telegrams addressed to the College. A member of the family, one of my aunts, would blow a horn and a boat would be sent across from the College. Philip Spry-Bailey was my great grandfather and Rector of All Saints Anglican Parish, Hunters Hill. He had a strong friendship with the Riverview Jesuit Community. Another great grandson, my cousin Philip Spry-Bailey, followed me to Riverview.
have very fond memories of St
Michael’s House, which was the hub of First Division, in my time (1941-1943). When I moved from Second Division, in April 1941, the environment appeared to me to be ‘almost’ luxurious, after the spar tan and regimented existence in Second Division.
One entered the main entrance from the quadrangle. A wide passage St Michael’s House was designed by William Wilkinson Wardell, ran from the entrance, architect of St Mary’s Cathedral, Sydney and St Patrick’s Cathedral, through what is now Melbourne. An unusual feature of the building was the double sash windows, the Events and Alumni a reminder that the upper rooms were originally used as dormitories. Manager’s office, onto a verandah which overlooked as it would never have been missed! 3rd Field. On each side of the passage A long table covered with green baize Opposite the Llibrary was the Billiards was a door. That on the western side ran the length of the room, with / Recreation Room, containing a was the entrance to the Library, while straight-backed chairs on either side, full-size billiards table, which was well the door opposite opened into the and a couple of uncomfortable wooden used. There was a stand, which held a Billiards / Recreation Room. settees against the walls. A fireplace, in camouflage net in progress. Weaving which no fire ever burned, was a feature camouflage nets was a widespread ‘Almost’ Luxurious of the wall opposite the bookcases. patriotic activity, during World War II The far wall of the library was lined Remember, I said ‘almost luxurious’. – more about the nets later. A wireless with bookcases, containing books that (radio) was tuned to popular music must have gone back to the foundation The Library held copies of College stations, during recreation periods, and of the College and which no-one journals from around Australia, and always to 2CH at 2.00pm on Saturdays read. I remember a set of Chambers the rest of the world, which I found for the Hit Parade, featuring the top Encyclopedias, published in the 1870s, interesting. Best of all, however, was ten recordings of the week. The walls and Forty One Years in India, the a copy of Our Alma Mater, for 1930, were lined with framed photographs of autobiography of Lord Roberts, VC of which contained a story with which I senior sporting teams, some showing Kandahar. Now that I am a student of had been familiar, long before I came identities who had become members of military history, I am sorry that I didn’t to Riverview. It told how the family the Riverview Jesuit Community. of the Rev Philip Spry-Bailey, living slip the latter volume out the door,
Edward Vavasour, Tom Swift and Arthur Sullivan in the Ist Division Library, c1915
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Study Hall, 1917
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Contact with boys in other Divisions was forbidden and movement in recreation periods, other than sport, was restricted to about half of 3rd Field and a section of the drive. One could not go beyond the Infirmary, without permission. I had left two friends in Second Division, who like myself were coping with an uncomfortable first year at Riverview. We would meet behind the Chapel, in the gloom after tea, and complain to each other about everything that was wrong with the College. A False Alarm 1942 was ver y tense year, due to a perceived threat of invasion by the Japanese. As was revealed later, although the Japanese Naval and Army
dormitory, where the occupant was lying comfortably tolling the bell. He was diagonally opposite my bed. He received summary punishment, but the story does not end there. Fr Jim McInerny SJ told me at my 40 Year Class Reunion Dinner that Fr Hehir had wanted to expel the boy, Fr Gorman SJ, with Riverview Cadets, in 1947 but the scholastics had pleaded his Staffs discussed the possibility, they case. They did well, because the boy did not develop a plan, because the was not a rabble-rouser. He joined the Japanese Army was stretched to the priesthood and went on to serve the limit and did not have the resources largest parish in NSW, based on Hillston. to carry such a plan out. There were Between February 1942 and February other threats, of course, including 1943, the Japanese made a series of the possibility of air raids. Stringent reconnaissance flights over Port Jackson. precautions were taken at Riverview The last flight was on the night of 19 – the warning being the ringing of the February 1943, and, this time, the bell school bell. One night in 1942, when rang in earnest. Owen Moore-McMahon everyone was sound asleep, the bell occupied the bed next to me in the tolled. Almost everyone, who had been eastern dormitory, and as he went sleeping, dragged themselves out of through the door, thinking he was last bed, to head for the air raid shelter in out on his way to the air raid shelter, he the Third Division basement, when looked back and there I was slumbering, we were told it was a false alarm. oblivious to all of the racket. He came Fr Hehir SJ, the Rector, who never back and woke me. Ever afterwards, seemed to sleep, examined the bell and I thanked Owen for saving my life! found a cord, of the type used to make After that uncomfortable first year at camouflage nets, tied to the clapper. He Riverview, the next two years in St followed the cord across the quadrangle Michael’s House were a sheer delight to St Michael’s House, and found that it and were among the happiest of my life. led to a first floor window and a bed, Laurie Hindmarsh (OR43) just inside the door of the western
Rear of St Michael’s House and 3rd Field, circa 1915
Students playing on the luggage railway, 1912
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A flight of stairs led from the central passage of the first floor. The First Division Prefects Room was at the head of the stairs and, in my time, was occupied by Mr Frank Wallace SJ, followed by Fr Louis Lachal SJ. The room was both a bedroom and office. Doors to the right and left at the head of the stairs opened into dormitories, each containing about fifteen beds. Each dormitory opened onto a balcony, where there were more beds, occupied by the very senior boys. Mattresses on the beds were Dunlopillo, which was a luxury, after the horsehair mattresses of Second Division.
S A I N T IG NAT I U S ’ C OL L E G E , R I V E RV I E W T I M E L I N E 1878
On 28 June 1878, Father Joseph Dalton SJ concluded arrangements for the purchase of the Riverview Estate.
1880-88
Fr Joseph Dalton – Foundation Rector Headmaster.
Saint Ignatius’ College, Riverview opened on 12 February 1880, with 2 students.
St Michael’s House, the oldest surviving building at Riverview, was dedicated on 29 September, the Feast of St Michael and All Angels, by Archbishop Vaughan.
1882
SIC Rowing Club was founded.
1885
The SIC Rowing Club held its first Regatta.
1888–1890 Fr Patrick Keating SJ – Rector Headmaster. 1889
The western end of the Main Building was opened by Cardinal Moran.
1890–97
Fr John Ryan SJ – Rector Headmaster.
1893
The Riverview Gold Cup was given as a trophy for the Challenge Eights race at the Riverview Regatta. At the time, it was said to be the only gold cup for Rowing in the world.
1964
The Year of the Trophies: The College won the Louat Shield for Debating, the Yaralla Cup for 1st IV Rowing Crew, Trophy for the GPS Football Competition, the Major Rennie Trophy for Head of the River, GPS Triple Championship Trophy, GPS Senior Athletics, GPS Junior Athletics and the Lawrence Campbell Trophy for Oratory & Public Speaking.
The Junior school was opened on the site of the Riverview Golf Course.
1968–73
Fr Gregory Jordan SJ – Headmaster Rector.
1972
Extensive building projects were undertaken, including: a new Science Block, Library and Theatrette completed and named the Vaughan Wing. A Senior Classroom Wing, known as the Therry Wing, extensive new Boarding accommodation (St John’s House). as well as a new Administration Centre and Staff Room.
1974–79
Fr Peter Green SJ – Rector.
1974–81
Fr Peter Quin SJ – Headmaster.
1980
Fr Noel Bradford SJ – Rector.
1980
The College celebrated its Centenary.
1897–1900 Fr Luke Murphy – Rector Headmaster.
1982–93
Fr Gregory O’Kelly SJ – Headmaster.
1901–11
Fr Thomas Gartlan SJ – Rector Headmaster.
1982
The House System was introduced.
1905
Riverview mourned the death of Foundation Rector Headmaster, Fr Joseph Dalton SJ.
1984
100 th Gold Cup Regatta.
1906
School badge and motto (Quantum potes, tantum aude) introduced by the Headmaster, Fr Thomas Gartlan SJ.
1986–91
Fr Andrew Bullen SJ – Rector.
1991
The Gartlan Sports Centre was opened.
1992–95
Fr Brendan Kelly SJ – Rector.
1909
Cardinal Moran blessed and opened the Dalton Memorial Chapel on 23 May. The chapel is the official memorial of the Old Ignatians to Fr Joseph Dalton SJ (1817-1905), founder of Saint Ignatius’ College, Riverview.
1912–13
Fr Patrick Keating SJ returned as Rector Headmaster.
1913–19
Fr Thomas Gartlan SJ returned as Rector Headmaster.
1919–23
Fr Thomas O’Dwyer SJ – Rector Headmaster.
1923
Although a handful of day boys had been attending the College since its foundation, the first official Day Boys were admitted, in 1923.
1924–31
Fr William Lockington SJ – Rector Headmaster.
1929
The Main Building was completed and the 200 th boy attended the College.
1930 50 Anniversary of Saint Ignatius’ College, Riverview. th
1931–35
Fr Louis Loughnan SJ – Rector Headmaster.
1932
Sydney Harbour Bridge was opened, allowing numerous visitors to the 46th Riverview Regatta to arrive by train and bus, rather than boat.
1935–39
Fr John Meagher SJ – Rector Headmaster. He introduced the College uniform in 1937. Previously, boys wore a best suit and play clothes.
1939
Fr John Fahy SJ – Rector Headmaster (August-November).
1940–45 Fr Noel Hehir SJ – Rector Headmaster.
1993–2000 Fr Christopher Gleeson SJ – Headmaster. 1994
The Woods Music Centre was opened.
1995
The O’Kelly Theatre was opened
1996–97
Fr Noel Bradford SJ returned as Rector.
1997–99
Fr John Ramsay SJ – Rector.
1999–2000 Fr Robert Bruce SJ – Rector. 1999
Riverview Rowing Club mourned the death of Fr John Ramsay SJ. His long association with the Rowing Club began in the 1940s, when he was a pupil at Riverview.
2001–02
Fr Christopher Gleeson SJ – Rector.
2001
Mr Shane Hogan was appointed first lay Head of School.
2002
The Ignatian Ethos of the College was enhanced by the formation of an Ignatian Centre.
2003
Mr Shane Hogan’s title was changed to Headmaster.
Fr Andy Bullen SJ was re-appointed as Rector.
The O’Neil Science Wing, the Therry Middle Campus, the Vaughan Wing, and the refurbishment of Regis Junior School Campus was officially opened and blessed by the Provincial, Fr Mark Raper SJ, on 16 February.
Riverview became the first GPS school to win the Rugby, Debating & Soccer GPS 1st Premierships in the same year.
The last Boarders moved out of the Main Building to Kevin Fagan House (The first Boarders moved into the Main Building in 1889). The Blue College Blazer was introduced for all Junior students from Year 5, as well as Senior students. It was the first change in the uniform since its introduction.
1942
Fr Thomas Gartlan SJ, the Father of Riverview Rowing died at the age of 90.
1946–47
Fr Thomas Johnston SJ – Rector Headmaster.
1948
Fr John Meagher SJ – Rector Headmaster
1949–54
Fr John Casey SJ – Rector Headmaster.
1953
Father Gartlan Memorial Boatshed officially opened.
2005
Riverview celebrated its 125th Anniversary.
1955-62
Fr Francis Wallace SJ – Headmaster.
1959
Completion of Wallace Wing.
1962–67
Fr Francis Gorman SJ – Rector Headmaster.
2010
The Regis Multipurpose Hall was officially opened in March. A Mass to celebrate the 130th Anniversary Year of the College was held at Saint Mary’s Cathedral, Sydney, celebrated by His Eminence George Cardinal Pell.
A detailed, pictorial timeline of key events in the 130 years of Saint Ignatius’ College can be found at: w w w.riverviw.nsw.edu.au