150 years: Church's Flat State School

Learn about the history of Church's Flat State School, one of Victoria's oldest public schools.

Key information

Address:
Fryerstown, 3451
Opened:
28 January 1860
Closed:
31 January 1903
School type:
Primary
School number:
121
Other names:
Church's Flat School, Church's Flat Common School

The history of Church's Flat State School

  • 1860

    Church's Flat school opened in a small stone building in 1860.

    The first head teacher was Benjamin Lomax. 8 students were enrolled but this quickly rose to 41 in the first month.

  • 1862

    The school became a common school in 1862. 

  • 1867

    The average number of children attending the school was over 100. The schoolhouse was too small so it was renovated.

  • 1870s

    Fire completely destroyed the school in 1870. An old brewery was used for classrooms while a new stone schoolhouse was built.

    The school became a state school at some stage between 1873 and 1878.

  • 1884

    Student numbers were now falling and the school was becoming run down.

  • 1895

    Church's Flat had low student numbers so it became a part-time school. It shared its only teacher with Fryerstown State School (No. 5252), and the teacher split their time between both schools.

  • 1903

    Church's Flat closed in 1903.

Find more interesting facts about this school

The Public Record Office Victoria (PROV) is the archive of Victoria's State and local government. They look after some of our oldest school records, and we can use these records to help us understand what school life used to be like.

Now it's your turn to do some detective work. PROV currently only have paper records for this school. Take a look to see what info they have on this school.

Updated