knox grammar school

Story Wall

Old Boys share their fondest memories of their time at Knox as they wish our School a very Happy 100th Birthday!

Hear from Old Boys

We still bleed Black and Blue

'“What I loved most about my time at Knox was meeting so many terrific people and making so many life-long friends, most of whom still put up with me today, some after 50 years or more of suffering!

Our mates are a pretty rum bunch. Journalists, doctors, lawyers, accountants, authors, teachers, farmers, actors, engineers, inventors, museum designers, truck drivers, carpenters, mechanics, academics, builders, real estate…you name it, we have it. We thoroughly enjoy our five year reunions and look forward to tall tales and truth from the legendary past. We applaud the numerous triumphs and successes of our cohort and support those who have gone through tougher times.

We still bleed black and blue.

A few highlights: Towards the end of 1976, Year 10 students attended an outdoor education camp. It was a particularly hot summer and, as a result, there were numerous bushfires in the Hawkesbury River region, some of which threatened the camp and neighbouring properties. The decision was made to evacuate the camp to ensure the safety of students, however a small core of volunteers stayed to establish a small brigade to help protect the camp and assist neighbours. No doubt it was traumatic for our parents at the time but we had a wonderful time carting our water-filled backpacks [great rugby training] and flaying at the oncoming tide of flames. We emerged a few days later exhausted, filthy but delighted that we had been able to assist in some small way.

Rugby and Rugby tours were a great highlight for me. I have fond memories of trips to the Gold Coast with a great bunch of fellow enthusiasts, training incessantly, playing good footy and playing hard as well.

Knox was privileged in 1978 to have Julius Sumner Miller, a renowned physicist, at the School as a visiting teacher. Sumner Miller, famed for his catchphrase, “Why is it so”, was intrigued and perplexed by the intricacies of the rugby scrum and was known to attend 1st XV training to better understand the complexities of that most wonderful embodiment of teamwork. [In my opinion, there is little better than a good scrum.]"

Rob Johnson (OKG78)

OKGA President

Knox became a constant in my life

My Knox experience starts with my father, Ian Ferguson, who started at Knox on day one in 1924 and in many ways he never left.

He suffered from very poor eyesight and was told at the age of 15 that his eye problems were a result of too much reading and that he should leave school immediately. Although he was no longer physically at the school, I think his heart was still there and for the rest of his life his close friends remained those other early Knox boys. His association with Knox was an unbroken thread in his life. He was an active member of the OKGA and Lodge Knox and an early president of the Senior Knoxonians, then known as the ‘Over Seventies’.

When I was a little boy he enjoyed taking me to school events, so even though I was not yet at the school, Knox became a constant in my life as well. It was naturally assumed that I would follow in his footsteps but for one reason or another I started when I was 15, so in one sense I ended up completing the years that he missed. For many pupils a change of schools is a traumatic event but when I started at Knox I was already so familiar with the place that there was almost a sense of ‘coming home’. Nevertheless I vividly recall on my first day standing on my own when another boy came up to me with the words “My name is Bob Petterson, welcome to Knox, let me show you around”. I can now never see someone standing alone without remembering Bob’s small act of kindness.

My passion at school was languages and we were taught by two teachers with completely different techniques. Our French master, Anatole Makaroff, ruled us with a rod of iron and we endured his lessons in a state of sheer terror! Our Latin master, HV Jacques, on the other hand, gave our small class the freedom of university students and we couldn’t wait to get to his lessons, which frequently diverted into fascinating side paths of ancient history and mythology and Classical Greek. Interestingly the two teachers with their diametrically opposed methods produced classes with virtually identical Leaving Certificate results.

I have had the great pleasure of seeing two sons, Iain and Don, and a grandson, Robbie, go through the school, and my wife Cecile serve on the Council for many years. For most of my practising life I was on call as emergency dentist to the School (“there’s been a rumble in the boarding house and I’ve got a boy with a broken tooth!”) and was privileged to observe the gentle compassion that the school matron, Marian Noach, displayed to the boys in her care.

We recently experienced this Knox compassion on the passing of our grandson when the words ‘Knox family’ were shown to be more than a cute phrase, but deeply appreciated emotional and practical support.

Today our family home has been swallowed up by the new Performing Arts Centre and I am sure that my father Ian, a one-time jazz player, and Robbie, a bass player, would be pleased to see that it contains a music room, the Ferguson Family Rock Lab.

Rob Ferguson (OKG61)

Rob with Iain (OKG88) in the middle and Don (OKG90) on his right.

Knox: what an eye opener for me

In 1948 my parents moved to the family farm at Cattai and aged nine, I was sent as a boarder at Knox Prep, where I was placed in class 4B.

The 4B classroom was adjacent to Ewan House main entrance hall and it was where junior prep was held each weeknight.

To say I was a shy, naive lad would be an understatement. So much of what I was to experience differed from my previous three years of schooling when I lived with my parents on a dairy farm at Fairy Hill, a rural district located about 10km from the northern NSW town of Casino.

The local public primary school I attended was a one-teacher, single room building with an enrolment of about 20 pupils. I was the only one in my class for the three years that I attended the school.

What an eye opener for me to enter a school with not just 20 in the school, but more than 20 in the class!

As a boarder I was allocated a locker for my clothes. A young lad named Ian MacPherson had the adjoining locker. We remain firm friends to this day.

My bed for the first year was in the junior dormitory. For the next two years it was on the veranda off the senior dormitory.

Some of the many things I had to adjust to were:

Getting dressed in a suit and tie each day.
Wearing shoes and socks to class every day.
Wearing a strange looking straw hat.
Queuing to shower each night and for the morning cold shower.
Daily locker and bed making inspections.
Daily shoe cleaning on wooden benches in the yard where the day boys sat to eat their lunch.
Assembling on the veranda before each meal in Lion, Leopard, Lemur or Lynx patrol groups where we were inspected for tidy clothes, neat hair and clean hands and shoes.
Dining at allocated tables. I recall that meals were generally tasty and plentiful – especially when ice cream was served. Not so when sago (frogs eggs) pudding or macaroni were served!
Walking in double file to St John’s Church in Wahroonga on Sundays where we deposited our penny in the collection plate during the service and returned to school following the children’s sermon.
Writing compulsory letters to my parents on weekends when I didn’t go on leave.
Occasionally walking to the Upper School during the weekend for a swim in the pool. It was here that I was given lessons and learnt to swim.
Observing some students arriving at school on bikes – not horses!

At various times, simple schoolyard games included marbles, cards and jacks. Small balsa wood gliders were used in attempts to perform air loops. Dinky toy cars were treasured for a time. A popular place to play with them was under the hedge of trees beside the path leading to Cleveland Street.

Lack of attention in class or similar misdemeanours could be punished with the student having to write, 50 or more times, lines such as “I must pay attention in class” or similar relevant words.

Another punishment required the student to pick 50 or more “rat tails”. These were a narrow spike seed cluster of a weed which grew throughout the lawns of the school.

In 1951 my parents moved to Pennant Hills and for my final five years at the Upper School I became a day boy in North House (later Reid).

Friendships made in the Prep School were strengthened here and new long lasting, continuing friendships made.

I value my eight years at Knox. The education, self discipline, need for co-operation, ability to accept responsibilities, leadership skills, ethics, sports activities, friendships and the importance of showing respect to others prepared me for a very satisfying career as a registered surveyor in private practice for 45 years in the central west town of Parkes.

AND,

Though far from thee my footsteps bend ....... there is in my heart a call first heard in the assembly hall ........ Later on in field and school ..... I learnt to understand the call ....... As through life I wend my way ....... do not think that I’ll forget lessons that I treasure yet:

Sic Virile Agitur, Virile Agitur.

Richard (Dick) Arndell (OKG 1955)

Boarding at the Prep

"It was in 1942 that my twin Michael and I walked through the main entrance to Knox Prep. Little did I realise 82 years later, Knox had only been established for some 18 years. My parents were caught up with WWII and bundled us up, at the age of four years and 10 months, into Knox Prep as Boarders.

Looking back, I must say I enjoyed the boarding experience. My memories include going to sleep with our school clothes and shoes at the end of the bed in order to have an air raid drill at midnight in the basement of the Prep School. There were trenches dug around the perimeter of the grounds. The wife of the Headmaster, Mrs Haslett, would, on many occasions, invite Boarders up to her dining room on Sunday nights for supper and she would read us excerpts from Doctor Doolittle while we knitted rope for camouflage nets.

Other highlights were the birthday parties. On one occasion, I was invited to John Fields’ birthday. A Rolls Royce picked us up from outside the entrance to Ewan House and drove us to the City Club on Rowe St, Sydney. On another, Phillip Deaton’s birthday was held at the Manly Hotel (owned by Mr Deaton); a sumptuous display of goodies was laid out in one of the dining rooms and we all received a gold pass to visit the Manly Wharf Amusement Park.

We were well fed in those years; however a monthly line-up at the dispensary to have a dose of castor oil made me appreciate any type of food. Our afternoons were spent playing sport, tree climbing and making small villages amongst the roots of the grand trees which had been planted many years ago. There was a line of camphor laurel trees running from the Cleveland Street entrance to the Assembly Hall, about 100m. I held the time record for going from one end to the other without putting my feet on the ground.

School classes were good; my favourite teacher was Miss Stow. I can remember in a cricket match against the teachers, I had Miss Stow LBW. Unfortunately the ball hit her ankle and drew blood. Some years later after Miss Stow passed away, I was able to organise a clock (the Stow Clock) in her memory. It is located in the tower building overlooking Yeldham Oval near where her classroom was.

On Sunday mornings, we all had to scrub up and go to Church. We were given a coin to put into the plate. However, I must have had a hole in my pocket as on occasions I could not find the coin.

Looking back, I really enjoyed my time as a Prep Boarder. Towards the end of WWII, I became a Day boy and moved to the Upper School (and long trousers) in 1950."

Robert Constable (OKG54)

I felt valued

"The thing that I loved about my time at Knox is my mates. I was never going to be a Rhodes Scholar but I was accepted and felt valued for the boy/man I became. So much fun was had on sporting fields or in the musicals but the best thing is that I still have so many mates that I met over 40 years ago…that’s priceless."

Gus Worland (OKG86)

Old Boys still together after 70 years

“In mid-1952, when I was almost ten-years-old, my parents moved from Melbourne to Sydney and sent me to Knox. At the time, I thought that my life had been ruined. A group photograph of ‘Gary’ Cooper’s Form IVB at the Prep School that year shows me as a skinny, bespectacled boy wearing a Victorian double-breasted school suit – standing to one side, seemingly quite out of place. But I got over that, settling in at Knox with good friends and a supportive atmosphere that catered for all sorts of talents and dispositions. The Class of 1959 emerged seven and a half years later to pursue a wide range of careers and personal priorities. Some of us OKG59ers – now elderly gents – meet regularly for lunch on the first Monday of each month. We are a motley crew with diverse backgrounds, but friendships forged at Knox still bind us together.

The following photo was taken at our informal OKG59er lunch in November 2022. All nine ‘boys’ present had been at Knox Prep together 70 years ago. Clockwise from the right: Malcolm ‘Jock’ MacGregor, Adrian Stark, Richard ‘Vic’ Flint, David ‘Ed’ Donnelley, Robert Felton, Ramsay Moodie, Brian Orr, John ‘Bunny’ Bryant (deceased 2023) and Roger ‘Quent’ Rigby."

Brian Orr (OKG59)

Happy Birthday Knox: I'm older than you!

Marsden Hordern (OKG39)

Knox is unique

"I look back very fondly at my time at Knox principally because of the fantastic memories and strength of the friendships that were forged. The ongoing strength and relevance of the OKGA network and its associated clubs is rare amongst other schools and is further evidence of the impact of the School on people's formative years."

Oscar Alcock (OKG14)

Forged in the fire

"Fortune will chide us and get us some tumbles;
Mingled caresses and kicks is her rule;
But she’ll not break the strong link that here binds us
Forged in the fire that we tended at school."

Tony Osman (OKG57)

Years made extra special by two teachers

"My Knox years ’54 to ’62 were made extra special by two teachers:

John Meikle (OKG50) in 3rd class made Arithmetic fun; by the class building an outline of the property with stones in a large sandpit at the western side of the Prep School, thereby tricking us into learning about yards to inches scaling, and by each row in the class competing against the others to most quickly recite the times tables.

Barrie Blackwell (OKG56), after being School Captain, Barrie returned as a teacher. But as a swimming coach he made a great impression on me; by devoting a decade of his Christmas holidays to boys who wanted to improve their swimming. Barrie developed our swimming ability every weekday for two hours in the morning and in the afternoon, with time trials on Friday evenings."

David Stark (OKG62)

Knox helped shape the man I became

"On the first Tuesday of February 1951, along with twenty other boys, I started in first form at Knox Grammar Preparatory School. There was no Kindergarten at Knox in those years, so we arrived with grounding from various ‘feeder’ kindergartens, including WPS and, in my case, Aberfeldie at Turramurra. That was the start of a 70+ year association with the School, OKGA and Senior Knoxonians. Friends made in first grade are regular coffee or lunch companions to this day.

If pressed for one highlight from my eleven years as a Knox student, it might be my time in the Cadets. Aristotle said, ‘He who has never learned to obey cannot be a good commander.’ The Cadet Unit brought me out of my somewhat shy self, gave me confidence, self-discipline, and the opportunity to develop leadership skills. I often reflected on how these traits helped me in life after school.

Happy Centenary, Knox! Thank you for helping to shape the man I became."

Ken Powell (OKG61)

It feels like I never really left Knox

"When I arrived to board at Knox in 1959 the School was just thirty five years old so as we approach its centenary, some sixty five years later, it is only natural to reflect on what Knox has meant to me.

As a Boarder in Gillespie House for my first three years and a Day boy for my last year I have always thought that I experienced the best Knox has to offer and it didn’t stop there. Lifelong friendships were formed both at the School and later playing with the Old Boys Rugby Club, serving on the Old Boys and Senior Knox Old Boys Committees and as a Member of the School Council. As enjoyable as those years have been, the real reward from my years at Knox came when at the age of twenty four I had the confidence and skill set to leap into the unknown and accept roles in Asia and Europe that would see me travel the world extensively for the next 45 years. Along with my parents, Knox gave me not only a good education but also the opportunity to learn leadership, accept responsibility and the courage to have the strength of my convictions. Qualities that have stood me in good stead and for which I shall be forever grateful.

It seems unfathomable today to recall we spent many Friday afternoons at the Rifle Range located on the School premises shooting 22 caliber Enfield Rifles at the Railway Embankment behind what is now known as the Middle Academy Building.

There was a Master in Charge, whose name escapes me, whose main responsibility was to make sure that we stopped shooting whenever a train was approaching. It was always the unwritten responsibility of those who were waiting their turn to shoot to engage the aforementioned Master in meaningful conversation whilst the rest of us blazed away at the Railway stanchions and power lines. I’ve always wondered what the people in the houses on the other side of the line made of all the lead that must have showered their homes and gardens but to my knowledge there were never any complaints. Shooting must have been part of the Inter-House Competition because I was awarded Gillespie House Colours for Shooting in 1959 and 1960. I was also proud of the Crossed Rifles on the sleeve of my Cadet uniform which I think were earned on the Field Firing Range during Cadet Camp in Singleton.

Knox continues to be a major part of my life. So far this year, I have had lunch with a group of my fellow leavers, participated in an Old Boys Classic Car Display, visited the grave in Yokohama Japan of Errol Wannan (OKG38) who died there in WWII, had afternoon tea in Brisbane with my Old Boys Rugby Coach Jim Graham (OKG50) and breakfast in Noosa with a gaggle of Sunshine Coast Old Boy friends who left between 1954 and 1965.

Needless to say my son was at Knox for twelve years and my grandson is enrolled to follow in his father’s and grandfather’s footsteps.

Sometimes It feels like I never really left Knox."

Alan Foulkes (OKG62)

John Laurie in 2022 wearing his Knox blazer.

Cricket in the 1950s

John Laurie (OKG52) was one of five boys to attend Knox and recalls a love of schoolyard cricket. During his time at Knox he played in both the 1st and 2nd XI teams.

"Being one of five boys; I was the eldest, the eldest four were all born within a year or two of each other and so from a very early age we played cricket…really encouraged by our mother.

She passed on this enthusiasm and interest in cricket to us at a very early age and indeed played cricket with us. And so, we were playing cricket from about the ages of four, five or six with her. We’d play after school, we played before school, we played during the weekend, we’d have test matches amongst the four of us.

I was the left-handed opening bat and my 1st XI coach Mr Horne bowled a very good out-swinger and he had a lot of influence on me because he said, 'My advice to you is you take guard on Leg Stump or Middle and Leg and just be very conscious that your movements should be down the pitch, not across the pitch.'

He probably gave me the best advice of any coach I’ve ever had. I was a very good hooker of the ball. I had a very good cut.

What Knox used to do was have trial games. We didn't seem to play other schools so much, but what we did do was organise trial games between different Knox teams.

We got washed out from time to time. They wanted you to play if you could play but sometimes… it was a ‘sticky wicket’ because that's what it really was at Knox because if you think about the topography, the water was going to come down from the hill and it was going to go away into the drain near the railway line, but if there was a lot of rain, we got washed out from time to time."

John Laurie (OKG52)

None of this would have happened without the start I got at Knox

Bruce Wood receiving his OAM in 2022, pictured with New South Wales Governor Her Excellency the Honourable Margaret Beazley AC KC.

Bruce Wood OAM (OKG74) has devoted his life to cricket and in 2022 was awarded an Order of the Medal of Australia for Services to Cricket.

"My mum used to say that [my twin brother] Steve and I were so keen on our cricket that we would have ‘post-mortems’ of the Saturday game until about Tuesday.

Steve and I would talk about all the things that happened and what we could have done better, and then we'd switch into prep mode on Wednesday.

'Right, we're playing Aloys this week, they've got this guy, he likes cover drives...' so we’d talk about cricket all week. It was debriefing and then planning. Bruce Wood

One thing I want to say is thank you to Knox, as I've made a life out of cricket and none of this would have happened without the start I got at Knox from 1967 onwards, and I think that's really important.

If I didn't get that initial 11A gig and do well and Prep 1st XI and get Prep Colours and so on, I wouldn’t have fallen in love with the game and formed lifelong friendships.

I don't think any of this other stuff would have happened, so I think there’s an actual pathway / a sliding doors moment. If that didn't happen, I probably wouldn't be here."

Bruce Wood OAM (OKG74)

Boarding at Knox as a seven-year-old

I started at Knox in 1951 as a seven-year-old boarder at Ewan house. My parents had relocated from Fiji to British North Borneo (now the Malaysian States of Sabah and Sarawak) as my father was employed by the British Colonial Service and had been promoted to a larger role. After a year in Borneo with my parents and brother David in 1950, where I was home schooled by my mother, I was enrolled at Knox.

Some memories of the early days include:

My first teacher, in form 2, was Miss Joanne Stow, a long serving and well-loved teacher at the Preparatory School, who served the school from 1943 to 1977. She was a wonderful teacher and a very caring person - important for seven-year-olds with parents not nearby.
Mr R E Horricks used to look after the boarders. We had ‘voluntary cricket’ after school, that we all had to play.
We went to church, in uniform, every Sunday at St John’s Wahroonga.
There was regular letter writing where the master would put suggestions on the board for the boarders to use in their letters. My mother kept all the letters, and I have them today. Here’s my letter written in March 1951 - "Dear Mum, we played Barker, we lost. Won't be long till Christmas now mum. Love Robert."
I met some lifelong friends in that first year – David Bolitho, Tony Clarke and others.

I had leave once a year to fly home to Borneo. I remember well Miss Stow coming to me at the end of 1951, as the school was breaking up, and she gave me a ticket …

I asked her what the ticket was for … she replied – “That’s your plane ticket to go to Borneo”. I think I asked her … “am I going to Borneo?” ... to which the quick response was “Yes … you are … better get packed.”

I was duly picked up a couple of days later by family friends who delivered me to the airport to catch the plane. At the airport I was pleased to find that a fellow boarder, Arnold Offenberg (OKG57), was there as he was also travelling north, but he was flying to the Dutch Colony in the southern half of Borneo (now Kalimantan, Indonesia). Arnold, two years older than I, was a very good friend who helped considerably, with some luggage left untended, and again when our allocated seats, were incorrectly appropriated by some fellow passengers.

On one flight home to Sydney, I met and travelled with Archbishop and Mrs Mowll, who looked after me and then Mrs Mowll wrote to my mother in Borneo to report the trip.

My experiences and the memories from those early days, while daunting at the time, included many acts of kindness.

Robert Gray (OKG60)

The Authors (from left) - Chris Lowry OAM (OKG63), David Gray (OKG63), Phil Howson (OKG63), Roger Knight (OKG63)

It's All About The Team

To celebrate Knox's centenary year (1924), I decided to revisit Knox's sporting achievements from 1958-1968, analysing the effects of the enthusiastic, dedicated coaches such as Barrie Blackwell (OKG55) and Bill Lawson in Track and Field, and inviting three fellow Old Boys (Roger Knight (OKG63), Chris Lowry OAM (OKG63) and David Gray (OKG63)) to make contributions about Rugby, Swimming and Cricket.

I benefited greatly by having access to a young brigade of teachers who were keenly aware of what was happening both around and beyond the athletics track. They put in place winning strategies to help us pick up as many points as possible in every event, meaning we all worked as a true team.

This is exactly why Knox was able to run so many years of success together from 1958-1968, and then on to the turn of the century. These young masters were looking beyond the schoolboy athlete towards the ancillary equipment such as starting blocks, the right kind of shoe, and the best surface, be it grass, cinders, mod grass or indoor timber. Lawson was one teacher who sent back to Australia his thinking on how the US relay team baton changes could assist Knox relay teams, and they did!

It is interesting to note that during the period 1957 to 1968, Knox won seven out of 12 CAS Track and Field Championship carnivals. Of note are the carnivals of 1966, 1967 and 1968, when the influence of these young teachers must have been at its peak.

I am sure this young brigade of teachers would also give credit to the support they received from Old Boys, interested parents, and even nonaligned parties such as the late Mr Kevan Gosper AO (1956-1960 Australian Olympian). Mr Gosper would visit Knox regularly over several years offering advice to the boys.

All these advantages went into the mix of why Knox benefited so much from having access to young teachers eager to try out new things.

It would be interesting to know whether any of the Knox athletes from this period went on to lnterclub, University, State Titles, Commonwealth or Olympic competitions and we could assess their prowess.

Mr Barrie Blackwell and Mr Bill Lawson left an indelible mark, contributing to the future success of Knox sporting teams.

Blackwell, who became a classroom teacher in 1958, continued to change the tone of the School’s sporting approach. He was a stickler for sportsmanship and gentlemanliness in sport. He set rigorous standards, expecting and encouraging the boys to reach them, and they did. He was the sort of person the boys would march through brick walls for. Starting with the swimming team, he reorganised training in the Senior School, so swimmers did more training than ever before. The spirit among the boys was wonderful and the way he had them working was remarkable. Many boys came back in later years to help coach.

Lawson arrived at Knox in 1959 and began coaching the Knox Prep team, many of whom formed the nucleus of Knox teams at Associated competitions. He took over the coaching of Knox Athletics while Tony Gifford handled all sports administration, leaving Lawson free to concentrate on coaching. The two worked very closely together with marked success. Lawson was a successful athlete in his own right, having been open champion of Brisbane Boys' College in 1955, and until 1967, was the holder of their open hurdles record.

"Lawson believed athletics was a team sport and he concentrated on developing this belief within Knox."

Relay success was a feature of his coaching, as he introduced a new method of baton changing after watching films of the Russian Olympic Team. Blackwell was given great assistance in establishing this technique whilst Lawson was studying overseas (1965-1967). Bill was fortunate to study under the former world pole vault record holder and top US coach, Cornelius ‘Dutch’ Warmerdam. He also studied the form of many top overseas athletes and attended coaching seminars with some of the world's top coaches.

The OKGA Office has been presented with documentation which confirms why the period 1958-1968 is so important to the School’s sporting history. It was a period where Knox was able to string together multiple victories, enhancing its reputation amongst the other Associated and GPS schools.

Phil Howson (OKG63)

Contribute to the Heritage Centre

Leave your mark and continue the legacy by donating memorabilia and photographs to the School. Email archives@knox.nsw.edu.au for more info.