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The Hutchins School

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Coordinates: 42°54′21″S 147°19′46″E / 42.90583°S 147.32944°E / -42.90583; 147.32944
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The Hutchins School
Location
Map
Sandy Bay, Hobart
,
Tasmania

Australia
Coordinates42°54′21″S 147°19′46″E / 42.90583°S 147.32944°E / -42.90583; 147.32944
Information
TypeIndependent, day & boarding
MottoLatin: Vivit Post Funera Virtus, What You Do Matters
(Character lives after death)
DenominationAnglican
Established1846; 180 years ago (1846)
FounderThe Church of England, in memory of The Ven. Archdeacon William Hutchins
Sister schoolSt Michael's Collegiate School
ChairmanAndrew Walker
PrincipalDr Robert McEwan
ChaplainDr Lee Weissel
Employees~250[1]
Years offeredPre-Kindergarten - Year 12
GenderBoys, Girls (Early Learning, Formerly)
Enrolment1,100
Campuses
  • Junior School (PK -5)
  • Middle School (6-8)
  • Senior School (9-12)
ColoursBlack, Gold & Magenta    
SloganBuilding Good Men
Athletics conferenceSATIS
MascotRory the Lion
Affiliation
  • International Boys' School Coalition (IBSC)
  • Association of Independent Schools Tasmania (IST)
  • Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia
  • Round Square
  • Sports Association of Tasmanian Independent Schools (SATIS)
Websitewww.hutchins.tas.edu.au

The Hutchins School, colloquially known as Hutchins, is an Anglican, day and boarding school for boys from pre-kindergarten to Year 12 in Hobart, Tasmania. Established in 1846, Hutchins is one of the oldest continuously operating schools in Australia.

THS Alternative Logo

Hutchins is a founding-member of the International Boys' Schools Coalition (IBSC),[2] and a member of Independent Schools Tasmania (IST).[3] The Hutchins School is also a member of Round Square.[4]

History

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The Hutchins School was established in 1846 at Hobart Town in memory of The Venerable William Hutchins, first Archdeacon of Van Diemen's Land. Arriving in the colony in 1837, Archdeacon Hutchins had worked to establish a faithful ministry, erecting churches and schools and laying the foundation for secondary education under the auspices of the Church of England.[5]

The school commenced operations under Headmaster John Richard Buckland at Ingle Hall, a large Georgian house dating back to 1811 which still stands in lower Macquarie Street, Hobart. Three years later it moved several blocks up Macquarie Street to a purpose-built schoolhouse designed by Tasmanian architect, William Archer.[5]

In the early days, Hutchins survived by absorbing pupils, staff, and plant of other institutions, including Christ's College (1846–1912), The High School (1850–65), Horton College (1855–93) and Officer College (1888–1900). When Hutchins joined forces with Christ's College in 1912 it was the signal for Arthur A. Stephens to close Queen's College, founded by him in 1893, and accept the post of vice-master of Hutchins. In 1905 Hutchins amalgamated with Buckland's School, opened in 1893 by William Harvey Buckland, son of founding headmaster J. R. Buckland and brother of second headmaster John Vansittart Buckland. Hutchins would go on to absorb King's Grammar School (1907), Franklin House School (1917) and Apsley House School (1928), and affiliate with Gryce (1934) and Gladwyn (1937) Schools.[5]

By the 1950s the school was growing too large for its inner-city site and in 1957 a new Junior School was built on an elevated site overlooking the River Derwent at Sandy Bay. This followed the opening at the Sandy Bay site of a sub-primary section in 1946 and the War Memorial Oval and DB Memorial Pavilion in 1955. The Senior School was later constructed on the adjacent site of the former Queenborough Cemetery, following a council referendum in which ratepayers voted '1 for educational purposes' in 1960.[6] As part of this arrangement the council committed to pay for 1,900 bodies to be exhumed from the cemetery with the school funding all other exhumations. As of 2024, it is unclear how many bodies were actually exhumed by the council.[7] By 1964 the Senior School campus encompassed a Boarding House (Burbury House), the Foster Science Wing and the Erwin Science Wing, quickly followed by an administration block and classrooms, later followed by the Ray Vincent Humanities Wing, while the Junior School campus across the road soon expanded to include a fledgling Middle School. The Macquarie Street building was sold in 1965, with Hutchins commencing full operations at Sandy Bay the following year.[citation needed] In the following decades, The Hutchins School expanded to include the Palfreyman Gymnasium, the Chapel of St Thomas, the Terence Butler Auditorium,[8]the Middle School Megaquad and the John Bednall Centre for Learning Support (renamed to the John Bednall Centre for Excellence in 2014).

In March 2024, two graves were found during earthworks for a new building at the school, the NJ Edwards Hub.[9] An archaeology team was brought in and 1,973 human remains were exhumed upon completion of the project in late 2024. It is believed to be the largest mass exhumation ever undertaken in Australia. Due to poor management of the former cemetery it was difficult to identify the remains.[7] 1,717 out of 1,973 of the bodies were identified.[10] The remains were reinterred at the Cornelian Bay Cemetery. It is believed that hundreds of bodies remain buried under school property.[7]

Development Projects

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The Hutchins School has undertaken a number of campus expansions and redevelopment projects.

  • Chris Rae Building - Named in honour of former teacher and Head of Senior School Chris Rae, the CRB was constructed as part of the Middle School's campus expansion program to accommodate the Year 6 Cohort, which joined the Middle School in 2022. It provides four new classrooms for Years 7 and 8, a multipurpose classroom, an amphitheatre, offices for staff, breakout spaces for years 7 and 8, and a dance and drama studio. It also serves as a central hub for students and staff within the Middle School.[11]
  • Pre-Kinder Learning Space - In 2024, the Hutchins School unveiled a new indoor Pre-Kindergarten learning space, designed with flexible, open-plan areas. The project received an award at the 2024 Tasmanian Architecture Awards.[12]
  • NJ Edwards Hub - The NJ Edwards Hub is named in honour of former Headmaster NJ Edwards. The facility is home to new classrooms and extensive athletic and recreational facilities.[13] It opened in March 2026.

Co-curricular program

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The school runs an extensive co-curricular program[14] offering music, performing arts, debating, sports, and dance. Students from Years 7-12 choose a sport for Term 1/4 (summer sports) and Term 2/3, to participate in after school. Inter-school debating is available from Year 5 to Year 12, with the Year 5s and 6s in one group and the Year 7s and 8s in another. Debating usually begins around March, and participating students debate every second week, at various schools across Hobart. Music at Hutchins is also another co-curricular choice.[15] with Strings Groups, Bands, Concert Bands, Jazz Bands, Chamber Groups, Ensembles and Choir/Vocal Groups on offer. Private music tutoring is available at an additional cost. Performing Arts are available for all students from Prep, with Dance, being the most popular within Performing Arts. Dance programs include Jazz, Musical Theatre, Lyrical/Contemporary, Hip-Hop, and Tap. The School of Performing Arts welcomes students with interests in Drama, Musical Theatre, and Music Performance. A small number of scholarships may awarded by the Principal to students of exceptional ability.[16]

House System

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As with most Australian schools, Hutchins uses a house system. The current house system consists of four houses (Thorold, Stephens, Buckland, and School).[17] Each house has a sister house from St Michael's Collegiate School. Buckland, Dundas and McPhee (Collegiate) are red houses. School, Rivers and Stevens (Collegiate) are blue houses. Thorold, Monty and Reiby (Collegiate) are green houses. Stephens, Kilburn and Mitchell (Collegiate) are brown houses. Each year, these houses compete against each other in physical and mental contests for the 'House Cup'. These events include inter-house debating, house performance, house choir and athletics. There is also a 'House Spirit Cup' that goes to house with the most School Spirit.[18] The School holds multiple house events across the year including Athletics Carnival, Swimming Carnival, Summer Sports Day and Winter Sports Day.

The Hutchins School Houses
House name Colour Mascot Motto
Buckland Buckland Red Eagle and Waratah Cura personalis – courage, compassion
School School Blue Merino Ram Unitas et praestantia – united and working together as one
Stephens Stephens Yellow Lion Virtutis amore – for the love of virtue
Thorold Thorold Green Stag Cervus non servus – unenslaved by the herd

Headmasters/Principals

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During Toppin’s tenure, the title of the school’s leader was changed from Headmaster to Principal. The title was subsequently restored to Headmaster by his successor Dean. Incumbent Dr Rob McEwan, kept the title of Headmaster until 2023, where McEwan adopted the title Principal.[19]

Headmaster Term begin Term end Notes
John Richard Buckland 3 August 1846 (1846-08-03) 13 October 1874 (1874-10-13) [20][21]
J V Buckland 1874 1892
H H Anderson 1892 1906
E G Muschamp 1907 1908
G A Gurney 1908 1912
L H Lindon 1912 1917
C C Thorold 1918 1929
J R O Harris 1929 1942
V S Murphy 1942 1945
P Radford 1946 1953
W H Mason-Cox 1954 1958
H V Jones 1958 1958
G H Newman 1959 1963
D H Lawrence 1963 1970
D B Clarke 1971 1986
J M B Bednall 1987 1996
W D Toppin 1997 2007 Adopted the title of 'Principal'
Warwick Dean 2007 31 December 2016 (2016-12-31) Readopted the title of 'Headmaster'
Dr Rob McEwan 1 January 2017 (2017-01-01) incumbent Readopted the title of 'Principal'

Notable alumni

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Notable alumni of The Hutchins School include:

Rhodes Scholars & Victoria Cross Recipients

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As of 2024, The Hutchins School has had 26[33] Rhodes Scholars, the latest being the 2024 Tasmania scholar, Billy Blackett.[34] Alumni have been awarded the Rhodes Scholarship for Australian states other than Tasmania, such as the 2016 New South Wales scholar, Harjeevan Narulla.[35][36]

Notable Hutchins alumni to be awarded the Rhodes Scholarship include:[33][self-published source]

Two Hutchins Old Boys have been awarded the Victoria Cross, the highest military decoration for valour in Commonwealth countries. They include:

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Positions of Employment". The Hutchins School. 2007. Archived from the original on 29 September 2007. Retrieved 6 September 2007.
  2. ^ "International Boys' Schools Coalition". International Boys' Schools Coalition. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  3. ^ "Independent Schools Tasmania". Independent Schools Tasmania. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  4. ^ "The Hutchins School". Round Square. Retrieved 14 March 2026.
  5. ^ a b c Mason-Cox, Margaret (2013). Character Unbound: A History of The Hutchins School. Hobart, Tasmania: The Hutchins School. pp. 13–27. ISBN 978-0-646-90355-2.
  6. ^ "The Mercury". 5 April 1960.
  7. ^ a b c Coulter, Ellen (14 December 2024). "Australia's largest mass exhumation reveals almost 2,000 bodies underneath school". ABC News. Retrieved 14 December 2024.
  8. ^ https://history.hutchins.tas.edu.au/stories/middle-school/
  9. ^ Murray, Will (6 March 2024). "Gruesome discovery at Hobart school a consequence of city's practice of building over top of cemeteries". ABC News. Retrieved 27 July 2024.
  10. ^ "Information: Former Queenborough Cemetery Exhumations". The Hutchins School. Retrieved 17 December 2024.
  11. ^ "Chris Rae Building opening | Latest news | The Hutchins School, Hobart Tasmania". www.hutchins.tas.edu.au. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
  12. ^ "New Pre-Kindergarten learning space | Latest news | The Hutchins School, Hobart Tasmania". www.hutchins.tas.edu.au. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
  13. ^ "The Hutchins School | Make Your Mark Campaign". makeyourmark.hutchins.tas.edu.au. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
  14. ^ "Co-Curricular". The Hutchins School. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  15. ^ https://www.hutchins.tas.edu.au/music/
  16. ^ https://www.hutchins.tas.edu.au/co-curricular/
  17. ^ https://www.hutchins.tas.edu.au/house-system/
  18. ^ "The House system | The Hutchins School, Hobart Tasmania". www.hutchins.tas.edu.au. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
  19. ^ https://history.hutchins.tas.edu.au/collections/headmasters-and-principals/
  20. ^ Mennell, Philip (1892). "Buckland, Rev. John Richard" . The Dictionary of Australasian Biography. London: Hutchinson & Co – via Wikisource.
  21. ^ Dollery, E. M. "Buckland, John Richard (1819–1874)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. ISBN 978-0-522-84459-7. ISSN 1833-7538. OCLC 70677943. Retrieved 19 November 2013.
  22. ^ Hogan, Terry (1979). "Percy Phipps Abbott (1869–1940)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Vol. 7. National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. ISBN 978-0-522-84459-7. ISSN 1833-7538. OCLC 70677943. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
  23. ^ https://www.uqp.com.au/authors/stuart-barnes/ Australian poet Stuart Barnes
  24. ^ McLaren, Alex; Spink, J.A. (1993). "Frank Philip Bowden (1903–1968)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Vol. 13. National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. ISBN 978-0-522-84459-7. ISSN 1833-7538. OCLC 70677943. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
  25. ^ a b c d e f "Star students: The Hutchins School". The Mercury. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
  26. ^ a b c "Hutchins 1979" (PDF). The Hutchins School. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 March 2015. Retrieved 28 August 2015.
  27. ^ Boyer, Peter (1981). "Davies, Sir John George (1846–1913)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. Retrieved 17 May 2015.
  28. ^ Cain, Neville (1981). "Lyndhurst Falkiner Giblin (1872–1951)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Vol. 8. National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. ISBN 978-0-522-84459-7. ISSN 1833-7538. OCLC 70677943. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
  29. ^ Jones, Elizabeth (1986). "Thomas Murdoch (1868–1946)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Vol. 10. National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. ISBN 978-0-522-84459-7. ISSN 1833-7538. OCLC 70677943. Retrieved 11 January 2015.
  30. ^ Ward, John M. (1988). "Nicholas, Harold Sprent (1877–1953)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. Retrieved 17 May 2015.
  31. ^ "OBITUARY". The Mercury. Hobart, Tasmania. 14 December 1931. p. 6. Retrieved 11 January 2015 – via National Library of Australia.
  32. ^ "Hutchins 1990" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 March 2022.
  33. ^ a b Mizzen, Michelle (1 December 2020). "Our 25th Rhodes Scholar" (PDF). Magenta & Black Magazine. 112. Hobart: The Hutchins School: 17.[self-published source]
  34. ^ Ewan, Tia (3 November 2023). "Tasmanian on Rhode to success after awarded prestigious scholarship to study at Oxford". The Mercury. Hobart, Tasmania.
  35. ^ Hamilton, S. 2015. UNSW wins fourth Rhodes Scholarship in three years.University of New South Wales. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
  36. ^ Henwood, Belinda (23 November 2020). "UNSW Law claims seventh Rhodes Scholar in seven years". University of New South Wales. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
  37. ^ Howard, Jessica (17 January 2021). "Descendants of Tasmanian Victoria Cross recipients to gather for first time at historic event in Hobart – search on for two missing families". The Mercury. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
  38. ^ "Centenary of ANZAC - Trooper John Hutton Bisdee VC". www.centenaryofanzac.tas.gov.au. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
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