From Venettia Miller, College Archivist
Exploring our proud Waverlian history
The recent NSW History week provided the perfect opportunity for Waverley College to explore and promote understanding of our own history. Students and staff were invited to lunchtime history sessions to engage in conversations with Waverley Old Boys, who shared stories about their time at the school. They reminisced with memories that were fond, sad and heartfelt, offering unique insights into the ways the culture and physical spaces of the College have evolved over time. Their anecdotes, particularly those from our oldest Old Boy Phil O’Sullivan, highlighted that perhaps the antics of boys have change little since the 1930s.
Current student Joshua Conacher-Smith spoke on his family legacy of men who have attended the College, from his great grandfather Carl Smith, who was Dux of the school in 1909, through to his uncle, his older brother and now him. He expressed beautifully how this has created a shared family bond that enables a unique sense of connection to relatives he never met.
Memorabilia from the College archives was on display in the gymnasium, including examples of the old boater hat, worn until the early ‘70s, a rifle range target sheet (with bullet holes) and samples of student examination papers and certificates from the early 1900s.
Phil O’Sullivan with Venettia Miller
An historical photo re-creation competition was run through the Wellbeing Groups, with boys given a choice of photos from the archives to replicate. This was a fun and effective way to connect current students to their history. Groups earned House points by participating, with Lacey and Tevlin tied for first. The best four photos (it was too difficult to decide a single winner) were from Conlon 5, Brennan 2 (Junior School), Tevlin 4 and the combined effort of Lacey 2 & 9. Well done and thank you for your efforts!
