150 years: Matlock State School

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

Key information

Address:
Matlock, 3723
Opened:
1 January 1865
Closed:
31 December 1911
School type:
Primary
School number:
1100
Other names:
Rural School No. 58, Matlock Common School, Matlock State School

The history of Matlock State School

  • 1865

    Matlock opened as a rural school in 1865.

    A weatherboard schoolhouse with a shingle roof was bought and moved to the new school site.

    There were three rooms attached to the schoolhouse for the head teacher to live in.

  • 1870s

    The head teacher, Frederick Drake, was replaced by his wife Emily Drake in June 1871.

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

    The school moved and opened at another site in 1879. There was a new schoolhouse with 2 attached rooms for the head teacher.

  • 1892

    The school lost its funding from the government because the number of students enrolled was too low.

  • 1893

    Because student numbers were low, the school became part time. Matlock shared the teacher with Red Jacket State School (No. 1216). The teacher split their time between both schools.

  • 1895

    The number of students had fallen to 6 and the Matlock closed.

  • 1898

    The school reopened with 25 students enrolled. The local mine had struck gold and mining families were moving into the area. Carl Semmel was the head teacher when the school reopened.

  • 1911

    Matlock State School closed in 1911.

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