From the Archives
A Historic Moment in Time – The Continuing Story of Pymble
The year is rolling by at the usual ‘Pymble speed’ (i.e. – fast!) and what a year it is. 2026 is the 110th anniversary of Pymble Ladies’ College! We are celebrating this is various ways and I’ll explore some of those in my piece, plus some other news and updates from the Archives.
Pymble Ladies’ College is 110!
This year, we celebrate 110 years since Pymble Ladies’ College opened. Happy birthday to Pymble!
The architectural plans for the College were hand drawn in 1914 and the College opened in 1916 with just 3 buildings onsite – the Colonnade and the first two boarding houses. These were originally called First and Second House and were later renamed to become Marden and Lang. There were 60 students at the time of opening – 40 of whom were day girls and 20 of whom were boarders.
The College, very early days, c1920. To the left – the two boarding houses; to the right – the back of the Colonnade building
Colonnade plans, 1914
Boarding house plans, 1914 (the two boarding houses are almost identical. These plans, and others, have ‘No. 2 house similar’ written on them)
One of the traditions throughout the years of the College has been taking photographs – all manner of photographs. Photographs to document classes and grades and sporting teams and some candid gems that document the ‘everyday’ lives of our students and boarders and wider College community.
School prefects, 1929, on the verandah of the Colonnade building
Netball, 1934, on the grass behind the Colonnade building
Whole school photo, c1929, on the grass in front of the Colonnade building
On a few important occasions, whole school photographs have been taken and at one stage, a cherry picker was employed to capture an all-school photo. A past Principal, Miss Buckham, went up in the cherry picker in the 80s as part of one such photo, much to the delight of the students! Perhaps you remember this?
Principal, Miss Buckham, went up in the cherry picker as part of the celebrations of the College’s 70th anniversary in 1986
This year, in 2026, an all-school photo has been taken, in celebration of our 110th milestone. The latest technology was engaged for this exercise, with drones sent up into the sky to capture the whole school … all standing in the formation of ‘110’, no less. The girls were excited to be part of this moment in history as we acknowledge 110 years; they even stayed largely still and quiet for the whole time that it took for these images to be taken!
Foundation Day – 110 years
Every year, the opening of the College in 1916 is remembered and celebrated on Foundation Day. This year was particularly special as it was our 110th Foundation Day. The occasion was marked with an assembly for the whole College outside on Gloucester lawn, highlighted by a number of Alumni who attended as special guest speakers.
The day was also the launch of our new College book ‘Celebrating 100 Years’ which showcases the stories of 44 remarkable individuals, all of whom are Alumni. We were blessed to welcome more than 20 of the Alumni featured in the book, to our special Foundation Day. It was a delight to watch them interact with the students after the Foundation Day service as they participated in meet and greet time.
To commemorate this important day, each student, staff member and special guest was given a commemorative 110 years badge. The badge featured an outline of the Colonnade building, the special dates and the College colours.
Another highlight of this special day for all the students and guests was – birthday cake! There were multiple cakes throughout the College (34 to be exact), allowing everyone to enjoy a piece of birthday cake for their school. (The cakes were chocolate ganache, featuring an edible image of the school on top – yum!).
The youngest students returned to their classrooms during the meet and greet time, to participate in some history-related activities on the day, in celebration of Foundation Day and our 110th anniversary. For Kindergarteners, there was an age-appropriate activity to learn about the history of the Chapel and its many elements (I focused on just one historic element, to ensure that it was digestible for them), culminating in the students doing a colouring–in of the special stained-glass windows of the Chapel. They later went to the Chapel to experience it first-hand.
The older grades in the Junior School completed an activity passport, exploring several elements of their school and learning about our history. The passports featured some of our historic photographic collection from the Archives, with the students answering and drawing what they learnt.
Archive activities created for Foundation Day 2026. The centre image is a kindergarten student’s colouring in of the stained-glass windows.
Overall, Foundation Day 2026 was a fun, exciting, historic and special day. It was fantastic to see the whole College involved in the festivities, in a variety of ways. Pymble had a lovely birthday celebration and this extraordinary place is still looking good, despite her turning 110 years old!
Celebrate 110 years with our merchandise
A range of merchandise has been produced in celebration of our 110th year. This includes the book mentioned above, commemorative cufflinks and a stunning scarf that have been created.
You can now purchase memorabilia directly through our online uniform shop. Please see below for direct links:
Heritage Furniture Restored
It was a timely project to have a range of our heritage furniture restored in conjunction with our 110th year. This involved the analysis of our heritage collection, professional assessments and the works executed as needed, including rebuilding, reinforcing, restoration and reupholstery. The end result is beautifully finished pieces of furniture.
These items have now taken up residence in the new hub of Boarding which is located in Hammond House, between Marden and Lang House. Another element of the College’s history has been saved and restored to ensure its longevity and will be enjoyed by boarding students and their families for many years to come. Perhaps you remember seeing these items while you were at school or perhaps you even sat on them?
Some of our heritage furniture, before and during restoration works
After. Our beautiful carved chairs have been restored, reinforced and refinished to return them to their former glory. They are now being utilised again in the College and their story continues
(Note: these chairs were made during the era in which we were called Presbyterian Ladies’ College).
After. Our Boarding Hub features some lovely pieces of our heritage furniture collection now.
Year 3 History Experience
The Curriculum in NSW requires that Year 3 students learn about change and how things remain the same or are different over time. As part of this unit, I was asked to work with the students to explore the concept of change through the history of the College. And so, I presented to Year 3 for 1 hour (which involved 130 students in total), exploring the history of their school, how it came to be and how it has changed throughout its history. I asked the girls to be detectives as we dove into the images they were shown, using their skills to try and work things out from what they saw.
I wove the concept of stories into the presentation; that reading is a wonderful endeavour and that our school is made up of stories, upon stories, upon stories and that there are many ‘characters’ connected to the stories of our school. I told them that each of them has their own unique story within the broader College story and they are part of the story of Pymble.
The girls have since gone on to pursue in-depth research and analysis of change as it pertains to their school, some of which is done electronically on their laptops! (That in itself is an example of how things have changed – classrooms today are very different to days gone by).
The photographic image collection of the College was extensively utilised for this project, with many of the images surprising and even shocking the girls. Learning what came before them is an important element for their understanding.
Submissions closed for our artefacts
The Archive Collection of Pymble Ladies’ College is a unique and irreplaceable part of the cultural heritage of our school, dating back to before 1916. It includes photographs, objects, uniforms, papers, letters, memorabilia and other items. Together, this special collection tells the story of your school.
The physical space we have onsite, however, is limited and so submissions for the Archives are largely closed at the present time. We have a plethora of school magazines and other items so we are unable to accept any more at this time.
(The only exceptions to this are unique and individual items that are unusual and personal in nature). No objects can be accepted without prior correspondence and approval from the College Archivist.
The College continues to nurture and educate the leaders of tomorrow, but our foundations and history are ever present. I hope you have enjoyed these small insights into just some of the current archives and history-related happenings at your school today.
Yours in history …
Kate Murray
College Archivist
