History

history of the school

The School opened its doors on the 29th of January, 1957, with Mr Greig and Mrs Wood in charge of 49 pupils. By the end of February this had increased to 59. The first children to be enrolled were Richard and Kathleen Coggins who stayed only a short time leaving October, 1957. Here is a drawing of the original school building.

The School was officially opened on the 8th of November, 1958. The Minister of Education, Mr R. Heffron, conducted the official proceedings assisted by Mr Greig, the Headmaster and Mr Charles Fryer, President of the P&C Association. The photo (left) was taken by Clive Hogbin. The photo is currently on display in the school foyer. A plaque marking the event is located on the original school building wall.

history of the area

From the Dreamtime to the nightmare!
An excerpt from "Memories of Mt Kuring-gai"

The Dharug tribe inhabited much of the North Shore area of Sydney. The Guringai, a branch of the Euroa tribe, lived in the area now bears a derivative of its tribal name - Mt Kuring-gai.

Another explanation is that "kuringai" is a combination of two words - "kuri" meaning 'black duck' and "ngai" meaning 'myself' - possibly to describe the black tribal members of the area. Another version states that the name means "good hunting".

The European name for the area was Pumpkin Creek before the aboriginal name was adopted. Originally known as just Kuring-gai, the town's name was changed to Mt Kuring-gai at the instigation of an early resident, Mr Dennis. There are many variations of the spelling of the name which can be seen everywhere in the district. However, the correct spelling has only one hyphen and small 'g' following the hyphen. The tribal name was also used for Ku-ring-gai Chase but, for some reason unknown to the authors, an extra hyphen was inserted in the name many years ago. This spelling variation remains today.

The Aborigines suffered terribly following the arrival of the First Fleet. Apart from being dispossessed of their lands and being imprisoned or killed by gunfire, the Aborigines had no immunity against European diseases especially small pox which severely decimated the population. Estimates vary markedly but it is generally agreed that two-thirds of the aboriginal population were wiped out within a few years of the establishment of the colony at Sydney Cove.

Nearly all the Guring-gai people had died within fifty years of the First Fleet's arrival. By the early 1900s, there were only about 50 Aboriginal descendants living in the Hawkesbury region. In the Mt Kuring-gai area it is still possible to see rock carvings. Tool sharpening grooves, hand stencils, ochre paintings and middens are located along the shorelines of Cowan and Berowra Creeks.