Comleroy Road Public School

In the Hawkesbury 'Comleroy Road' locality, Comleroy Road Public School was established in 1880. The first teacher was Mr Armine Arabin Lees.

A copy of a fascinating official school letter, written in 1882, was kindly supplied to us by Jan Livingstone. The teacher was applying for a change of the school opening and closing hours. A half hour delay in school opening was requested because parents expected the children to complete a certain amount of work before they were allowed to start for school. The time lost was to be made up by shortening the lunch break.

The teacher further noted that nearly all of the children live at a considerable distance from the school and that, 'they have in many instances to spend all their leisure time in plaiting, as their parents are obliged to eke out their means of livelihood by the manufacture of cabbage tree hats.' How times have changed!

This school, now relocated to Cricket Pitch Road (now called McMahons Road) will celebrate its 125th anniversary in 2005 and still retains the original Comleroy Road Public School name.
Comleroy Road Public School
Comleroy Road school bell
Top: The entrance of the historic Comleroy Road Public School at its new McMahons Road site. Above: The original school bell of the old Comleroy Road Public School.
School routines yesterday and today at Comleroy Road Public School can be compared in two stories about the lives of students in Year 3 written by Les Dollin, a former student of 1955, and Tyler, a current student of 2005.
© 2005. comleroyroad.com . All Rights Reserved. A site on the history of Comleroy Road.