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Mundingburra State School was first opened on 22nd September 1884 with 38 children. John Skirving Cunningham, born in Scotland in 1855, was the first Head Teacher.
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Original School Building in 1884
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The same building is still in
use in 2001
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| The original school building was fifty feet by twenty feet, with front and back verandahs, eight feet wide and was designed to accommodate 100 children. This building remains in use as Teaching Block D. |
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John Skirving Cunningham
Head Teacher 1884-1895
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The second building was constructed in 1889 as the school then had an enrolment of 150 children. A new room, thirty feet by twenty feet with an eight foot wide verandah was added to the end of the original school building. This room was later divided into two rooms, one of which was an infants gallery where the rows of seats were tiered. Enrolments slowly grew to 450 in the early 1920's, with sudden drops in student numbers caused by the First World War and the opening of new schools in the area. |
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The school grounds in 1990
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After further dramatic drops in enrolment caused by the Second World War, student numbers again began to rise, peaking at over 1000 in 1966. Since 1954, a steady building program has been implemented, including Blocks B, C, E, F, G (Resource Centre), H, I and J. The school has also constructed a large covered play area and new tuckshop. All this construction meant that space on the original school site was becoming severely limited. In 1991 the school bought some of the land in Anderson Park from the Townsville City Council to expand the grounds. This area (at the top of the adjacent photograph) now contains the parent carpark and school basketball court, as well as fully matured trees and grassed areas for play.
In 2000, the school had an enrolment in excess of 600 with 7 teaching blocks. |
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School Badge designed by
Peter Hetherington in 1957
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The current school badge is the result of a competition organised in 1957 by the then Head Master Mr James. The competition was won by a Year 7 pupil Peter Hetherington.
The Book of Knowledge represents the school's education values; the athlete is a symbol of the school's considerable athletic achievements and the aborigine shows the school is Australian. The spinifex grass was part of Mundingburra which grew along the school fence and could be seen on Castle Hill. The school motto "Act Well Your Part" is at the base.
Tragically, Peter Hetherington disappeared in a boating accident in 1962 when he was eighteen years old. |
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