Education in early Taupo was a squeeze - or a riddle

Taupo Times, Volume 23, Issue 58, 23 July 1974, Page 6

Education in early Taupo was a

squeeze - or a riddle

By

WARWICK

KEYS,

Taupo Historical Society I mu » — — « — — i i — m ■

The old must make way for the new. It is a sad thought that so much of our past, our heritage, must disappear so that we can continue to progress. Old buildings, in particular, have to come down when they become obsolete or uneconomic, or whatever. A recent story in the Taupo Times brought to notice the fact that yet another old building will soon be no more. The two old classrooms at the Taupo Primary School must make way for a modern, relocatable double room unit. The old rooms are sub-standard, and they have been for many years. As a member of the Taupo Primary School committee I will be glad to see the new rooms take the place of the old ones. They should have been replaced a long time ago. As one actively interested in "old Taupo", however, I will be sad to see the old rooms come down in the name of progress. Several generations of the early Taupo families have learned their ABC in those old rooms. One of the rooms dates from 1897 and the other from 1924. Perhaps someone, or some organisation, will find a use for them. I hope so. The first Taupo school was probably established in 1873. It was a private school. However, it is not known who ran it. The premises used were, more than likely, an Armed Constabulary hut erected on the site now occupied by the Taupo Bowling Club. Very early photographs of Taupo, taken from the Nukuhau side of the Waikato River looking towards the present town, clearly show a building on this site. A Lands and Survey plan of 1910 shows the spot marked as "school site", although a new school had by then been built on the present site in Tamamutu Street. The name of the first schoolmaster (or mistress) is unknown, but we do know the name of the master in 1878. In the Rev. T. S. Grace's edited diaries, published as

"Pioneer Missionary Amorig the Maoris", Mrs Grace records her and her missionary husband's final visit to Taupo (Tapuaeharuru) in 1878. "Mr Forster, the schoolmaster, and his wife kindly entertained us." This Mr Forster is the first schoolmaster of whom there is any record, and that record is just his name and the fact that he was married. The first schoolroom was, as I have said earlier, •» an old Armed Constabulary hut believed to have been brought in from Opepe, which was the Taupo district headquarters for the A.C. force. It measured

10 feet by eight feet. In October, 1894, the school became a public one under the board of education, but it remained housed in the one small room. The first school committee was formed at this time. The school was by then overcrowded and still exposed to the prevailing winds. If the room was only 10 feet by eight feet, then a glance at the accompanying photograph will show why the room was . a little crowded. The photograph was taken in 1893, and shows the class of that year.Could they all have really fitted into a 10 feet by eight feet room? Clearly, some further digging for information is necessary, and this will be touched on at the end of this article. This first school committee thus had its problems, just as committees do today. The members wanted a new school and they approached the board on the subject. The board said no and wanted to renovate the old building. The committee dug its toes in and, in December, 1896, took firm action. In a no-nonsense letter to the board the committee said: "The present building is too small and too old (23 years). The proposed repairs would be nearly half

the cost of a new building and, when completed, would be unsatisfactory. "The proposed breakwind would be insufficient and if the windows were boarded up the room would be too dark. "The committee would also point out that this school has been maintained privately for many years and, with the exception of the stove, this is the first outlay made in this district by the board." The letter showed the determination of the committee and produced results. In May, 1897, . a contract 4 for a new school building on the Tamamutu Street , , *

site was signed at the tendered price of 205 pounds. This small room is still in use today. Following further complaints of overcrowding a second room was added in 1924. One of the strong men connected with the school, and many other community projects in Taupo i from the 1890s, was the Rev. H. J. Fletcher, a Presbyterian minister, who founded the first church in Taupo. Mr Fletcher was chairman of the school committee for many years from his arrival in 1895. It was through his efforts that the second classroom was built. What happened to the original schoolroom, the one used from 1873? I have been told that it was moved to the present^ school site and was used for storage until very recently. / Some time ago a lady rang me to say she had * been led to believe that the building she used as a garden shed was the original room. Unfortunately when I moved house just over a year ago I lost the slip of paper with her name and address. t I would be very happy to hear from, her again to help solve this little riddle. v Is the old room still standing? Was it really only 10 feet by eight feet? If it was, how could they have possibly crammed 20 or more pupils and a teacher into it? Did they hold different classes at different times? And so on. I am sure that there are readers who can help me to solve the riddle.