A little of our history
George Henry Crowther arrived in Australia from England with his family in 1857. He graduated from the University of Melbourne BA, LLB and later completed MA and LLD. Dr. Crowther opened his Brighton Grammar School on February 14th, 1882. On that day eight boys were present and by the end of the year the school boasted twenty-nine pupils.
The booming 1880s brought an influx of boys. Outgrowing the coach house the school moved to Temperley Lodge (1883) situated in Outer Crescent just north of Allee Street. In 1886 ‘Pendennis’ was built in New Street and gradually adjacent properties were acquired. In 1890 the school roll listed 160 boys.
The depression of the 1890s halved this number. In 1905 ‘Rosstrevor’, a large Victorian house and its five acres largely covered with trees, scrub and swamp was purchased. Old Boy engineers and 4,000 loads of filling from Brighton’s in-going sewerage system produced a fine oval. The official opening, a gala day of athletic sports, came in 1907.
Dr. Crowther died in November 1918. His son, Lieutenant Colonel Henry Arnold Crowther, a former member of staff, was still on active service in France. He returned in February, 1919 to assume the Headmastership. In 1924 Mr. Herbert E. Dixon was appointed Headmaster and in 1926 the Association was incorporated and came under the aegis of the Church of England. In February, 1927 the Governor-General, Lord Stonehaven, performed the official opening of the first buildings on the present site of the Senior School. Mr. Dixon retired in 1938.
Mr. Geoffrey E. Green came in 1939. An academic, an excellent teacher of modern languages, he effected a marked improvement in academic performance. Sadly sickness caused his sudden resignation in May, 1942.
September, 1942 saw Rev. Philip St. J. Wilson inducted as Headmaster. His Headmastership brought a vast array of changes. Enrolment increased from 250 to 800 but this was accompanied by accommodation problems. Rosstrevor (then the Junior School) was vastly overcrowded so Junior boys occupied former dormitories after the Boarding House closed in 1954. The Memorial Hall and Annandale Pavilion were welcome additions and the Tower Wing was extended. In 1958 BGS joined the APS, the former Brighton Gas Company premises and grounds were bought and Wilson House built. Canon Wilson saw the establishment of the Science wing and the extension of the Library at the Senior School.
Mr. Robert L. Rofe was inducted as Headmaster in May 1967. His years saw many changes to curriculum and extra-curriculum areas. Physical changes included the swimming pool, the Physical Education Centre, the Clive Crosby Building, the Robert Sanderson Centenary Hall, the R.L. Rofe Creative Arts Centre, the Rosstrevor Hall, Zachariah Wing and the Baddiley Building. Numbers steadily increased, academic results were excellent and success on the sporting field became a reality not a dream.
In 1996 Mr. Michael S. Urwin was appointed as the school’s seventh Headmaster. Under his guidance the school has become a leader in boys' education.
Facilities have been extensively upgraded. The Junior School classroom complex was opened for use in 2002. Sporting diversification and success has continued; academic and cultural activities have expanded to include a range of VET studies and regular concerts at the Concert Hall. Student and staff numbers are at their highest and in 2004 the school purchased the 0.87Ha Girrawheen site to the north of Allee Street.
The new Senior School Library complex was completed in 2006. In 2007 the new Sea Change Program for Year 9 was developed. 2009 saw the Junior School and Mitchell Ovals turned into synthetic surfaces along with large water storages established under the Mitchell and Crowther Ovals. In 2010 work began on the formation of the Crowther Institute.
In 2011, the 80 place Peter Toms Early Learning Centre was opened.
Straight from the archives comes this historical footage taken in 1928 at the Official Opening of the Tower Wing