Around the School, the St Peter’s College Archive is exhibiting aspects of the School’s collection and history, with displays in the beloved Big School Room, Old School House, and the Miller Library. The displays include a dance card from as far back as 1944, a prop from a drama performance of Julius Caesar in 1951, a detention form from 1969, and even a quill set from the 1890s. One of the core themes of these displays is the foundation of St Peter’s College, specifically Founders’ Day itself.
We often hear of the beginnings of the School – its first days in a school room at the back of the Trinity Church on North Terrace, to the growth associated with moving to our current location in 1850. But Founders’ Day itself took several years to form. In fact, it was towards the end of the 19th century that a Founders’ Day event was celebrated, initially by old scholars in the form of a service celebrated on the closest Sunday to 15 July. Over time, evensongs were added, boarders began to attend, and day boys were given the option to attend or not.
It was during the 20th century that Founders’ Day started to take shape into something we are more familiar with today. During the 1930s Headmaster Pentreath introduced Founders’ Day as a whole school event. Over the next few decades, things were added and changed, eventuating in the fixing of Founders’ Day as an important part of the school calendar for boys and the community. Though each year things have changed according to the needs and circumstances of the time, the core principle remains – a remembrance of our forefathers and the School’s beginnings.
There are so many objects and records that tell stories such stories, that are safeguarded within the archive, being preserved for future generations. Bit by bit they are pulled from their slumber to share their story and history of the School, to inform and educate the present. Below you will find images of two items from the archive, copies of which are currently on display.
If you have any questions, something to donate, or any other enquiry, please contact me at archivist@stpeters.sa.edu.au.
Elisabeth Bramford
School Archivist