School history

Liverpool Public School – over 150 years of service to our community

Liverpool Public School is proud of its history. We aim to develop this page into a living history of our school.

Contributions are welcome from anyone who has been a part of our school – students, staff, or community members. We accept photographs, documents and personal narratives.

Please email contributions to liverpool-p.school@det.nsw.edu.au

A brief history of Liverpool Public School

Liverpool Public School opened in October 1863, with Mr Frederick Ransom Seaborn as teacher. The school building was a simple weatherboard structure with shingled roof. Whist there is no record of initial enrolment, by the end of 1863 there were 50 students registered as enrolled.

Read a detailed history of Liverpool Public School (PDF 1473KB) for the period 1863-1940 compiled by the Department of Education’s Division of Research and Planning for Liverpool Public School’s centenary celebration in 1963.

By 1951, Liverpool Central School as it was called, had an enrolment of nearly 2200 students with a teaching staff of 60. During this period, the school grounds were almost entirely covered with portable rooms and the playground was designated as a ‘walk only’ area.

With the opening of Liverpool Girls’ High School in 1954 and Liverpool Boys’ High School in 1955, the secondary sections of the school moved leaving the infants and primary departments to become known as Liverpool Primary School. Read a letter from the Parents and Citizens Association (JPG 312KB) announcing the new name at the beginning of the school year in 1955.

Images from the past

Below are a series of selected images of Liverpool Public School over the years.

Click on each heading to expand the section and view the images.

Where possible, every effort has been taken to ensure the accuracy of the dates provided.

19th Century

20th Century

Image: Celebrating Empire Day – early 1900s. The current library is to the left of the picture and classrooms to the right. Photograph from the Liverpool City Library Heritage Collection.

Compilation of images taken of students and staff in 1917. — Image: Compilation of images taken of students and staff – 1917.

Image: Students outside a school building - 1924. The building is now part of the library. Photograph from the heritage collections of Liverpool City Library.

Image: Looking west from the corner of Bigge and Railway Streets – 1928. The buildings pictured are now known as B Block (left) and library (right). Photograph from the Mitchel Library, State Library of New South Wales.

Eric Wilson Painting

About the Painting

The painting is by Eric Wilson, a local artist who grew up in Liverpool. He was born in 1911 and died in 1946.

Eric Wilson won a scholarship in 1937 to study art at the Royal Academy School in London. On his retrun to Australia, he played an important role in the early sharing of cubist ideas and methods during the 1940s.

His artworks are held in collections by the Art Gallery of New South Wales and National Gallery of Victoria. They also feature in private art collections.

The above painting was donated by Eric Wilson to Liverpool Public School circa 1934/35. The painting is of his mother who is standing outside her home, thought to be at the back of the terraces along Macquarie Street in Liverpool.

'OSLO' School Canteen 1950s and 1960s

New Buildings and Refurbishment 1988 to 1995

1994 Promotional Video

1995 Time Capsule

To coincide with the official opening of Stages 1, 2 and 3 of Liverpool Public School’s refurbishment in 1995, a time capsule was compiled and stored in the school library. It was planned for the time capsule to be reopened at the school’s 150^th anniversary celebration in 2013.

A number of contributions were collected by students and staff for inclusion in the time capsule (PDF 1.1MB).

Click on the individual links below to view some of the items from the time capsule.

Original brick from the Moore Street buildings (JPG 4MB)

Invitation from the school opening (PDF 190KB)

Official program from the school opening (PDF 6.17MB)

Liverpool Public School Prospectus (PDF 7.24MB)

NSW Department of School Education Priorities for 1995 (PDF 529KB)

Canteen price list (PDF 303KB)

School uniform (JPG 997KB)

Beginning Teachers Manual (PDF 41.5MB)

1995 School Management Plan (PDF 21.7MB)

Black and white photographs and negatives – some of these can be viewed in the New Buildings and Refurbishment 1988 to 1995 section above

Memories of 1994 Year Book (PDF 224MB)

Student contributions from each grade and class

School Captain’s speech (PDF 727KB)

Liverpool after school activities (PDF 578KB)

Hearing Support Unit “Trip to Cooma” article

150th Anniversary

Celebrating 150 years of learning in 2013

Liverpool Public School celebrated its 150th anniversay in 2013.

A heritage day was held on Tuesday 30 July 2013 as part of our year of celebration. The school was transformed back in time as students and staff spent a day discovering what school life was like in 1863.

An open day was held on Saturday 19 October 2013 and well attended by many current and former students, staff and community members. Our local member of parliament presented our school with a certificate of appreciation for 150 years of learning.