A history of schools in the Upper Clutha
A list of all schools, historical and current, for the Upper Clutha District:
Albert Town School – opened 1868 or 1869 and closed 1876 or 1878. Opened again in 1886 with its name changed to Wanaka School in 1888, but it closed 1902. Classes started in Albert Hotel in 1906. A new school opened in 1911. Its name changed back to Albert Town School in 1940 and the school closed in 1945.
Ardgour School – opened 1919 and closed 1940.
Bendigo School – opened 1875 and closed 1925.
Cardrona School – opened 1870 and closed 1948.
Haast Pass School – opened February 1940 and closed May 1941.
Hāwea Flat School – opened 1882.
Holy Family Catholic School – opened 2006.
Lindis Pass School – opened 1932 and closed 1943.
Luggate School – opened 1884 and closed 1950.
Makarora School – opened 1895 and closed 1946. It opened again in 1969, but was closed again from 1987 to 1994 when it was reopened.
Maungawera School – opened 1901 and closed about 1906. Reopened 1924 and closed 1946.
Mt Aspiring College – see Pembroke.
Pembroke School – opened 1880, changed to Wanaka District High School 1940. In 1943 the name changed again to Wanaka Primary School. Wanaka District High School reopened 1955 & changed to Wanaka Area School 1976. into separate primary and secondary schools - Wanaka Primary School on Tenby Street and the new Mt Aspiring College on Plantation Road opened that year. Wānaka Primary School moved in 2010 to a larger location on Ironside Drive.
Queensberry School (originally known as Wanaka Road School) – opened 1889 , closed 1900, re-opened shortly after, closed again and then re-opened in 1923. It finally closed in 1964.
Tarras Primary School – opened 1885.
Te Kura O Take Kārara Primary School – opened 2020 in the Three Parks area.
Wānaka Primary, Wanaka District High School, Wanaka Area School – see Pembroke.
Wanaka Primary School Lunchtime, 1951.
Further History of the Upper Clutha Schools:
Albert Town School
Opened in 1868 or 1869 with Mr. G.S. Pope as the first teacher. It was officially closed in 1876, though Minnie Leckie is listed in Wises Directory as schoolmistress in 1878.
A new Albert Town School was built 2km south of Albert Town in 1886 and its name changed to Wanaka School in 1888.
Albert Town, students in the Hotel dining room 1907.
This school was closed in 1902 but classes started again in 1906 in the dining room of the Albert Hotel and continued there until a new school was built on the previous site in 1911. In 1940 its name reverted back to Albert Town when Pembroke became Wanaka, but the roll declined and Albert Town School finally closed in 1945.
Ardgour School
Opened in 1919 and its roll fluctuated from about 16 pupils up to 27 in 1930. It closed in 1940 when a bus service took the pupils to Tarras Primary School.
Bendigo School
Opened in a corrugated iron building in 1875 but was not officially opened until 1878 with Thomas Gilmour as first teacher. In 1880 a new school was built between Logan Town and Bendigo, and the combined school and teacher’s residence opened in 1881. When gold mining declined, the school was shifted down to Bendigo in 1910. The roll continued to decline and the school was closed in 1925.
Cardrona School
Opened in an “old iron residence” in 1870 with Mr. G.S. Pope as first teacher. A committee raised the money for a school and schoolhouse, opening in 1872 with Mrs. Comyn, wife of the local policeman as teacher. The admission registers start in 1874. The roll reached 77 in 1891 after gold was discovered and remained high until 1899, but dropped when the miners left. There were 17 students in 1931 but that dropped again to just 4 in 1947 and the school closed in 1948.
Tom and Katie Little riding to school on horseback, Cardrona c.1918
Haast Pass School
Opened in February 1940 but closed again in May 1941.
Hawea Flat School
Opened in 1882 with Mungo Allison as first teacher. During the 1950s and 1960s it was the largest school in the area with 250 pupils, with an influx of pupils from the Hydro Village.
Hāwea Flat School, 1934. Gordon Sims was the teacher, and Ian Kane is the smallest pupil standing in front of him.
The Hāwea Flat School roll dropped again and in 1976 all the Form 1 & 2 (Year 7 & 8) pupils were moved to the Wanaka Area School.
Holy Family Catholic School
This is a Catholic School for Year 1 to Year 8 pupils, opened on Aubrey Road, Wānaka in 2006. It was opened with three teachers in one block, with two classes (Year 0-3 and Year 3-7), and 27 pupils. By the end of Term 2 an administration block, a two-bedroom apartment, new library, staff room and office suite were completed. In 2017 the maximum roll was increased to 225 pupils.
Lindis Pass School
Opened in 1932 in Mrs Cormick’s Boarding House with 5 pupils and Marion Black as teacher. A two-roomed school was shifted onto a section down the road in 1934. The school closed in 1943.
Luggate School
It has been suggested by some that the school opened in 1884 with “Marion B Steel” as first teacher. “Marion B Steel” is actually Marion Dent Steel (born 1865) and it appears she did live in Luggate at some stage, though in 1884-6 she was studying for a BA at Otago University. It is likely that she was the second woman to graduate at Otago University with a BA. The school was officially opened by the Otago Education Board on 2 March 1885 with Miss Scott as teacher - she transferred from Dunedin (Cromwell Argus 10 Mar 1885). Over the period 1884 to 1885, no record has been found of Marion Steel being a registered teacher (source AJHR’s). Marion graduated with her BA in 1866. It is possible that during University term breaks, she acted as an unofficial teacher in Luggate as she could not possibly have a fulltime job and study for her BA. She did eventually become a registered teacher but not at Luggate.
The first Luggate School opened 1885, burnt down 1924.
The school admission register starts in 1885. Classes were held in the original Luggate Hotel house. A new school was built in 1887. This burnt down in 1924, and lessons took place in the Luggate Hall until a new smaller school was built. This finally closed in June 1950.
Makarora School
Opened in 1895 with 18 pupils and James McLay as first teacher. The school closed in 1946 but opened again on a new site in 1969. The roll dropped again, closing the school from 1987 to 1994 when it opened again.
Maungawera School
Opened in 1901 with James Robertson as teacher. Before then children from the area attended the Albert Town Wanaka School across the river.
Maungawera School, c. 1940s. Donated by the Collins family.
The school closed about 1906 until it reopened in 1924 with Mabel M. Grey as teacher. It stayed open for 22 years, finally closing on 28 February 1946. After closing, pupils took the bus to the Hawea Flat School.
Pembroke School
Opened in 1880 with Rev Charles Conner as first teacher and 22 pupils. When the 50th jubilee was held in 1930 there were 32 pupils.
Pembroke School, 1934.
In 1940 Pembroke School in Tenby Street became the Wanaka District High School but the 17 secondary pupils had to have their lessons in the supper room of the Wanaka Hall. As this was unsatisfactory, the secondary department closed and the school reverted to the Wanaka Primary School in 1943. During that time secondary pupils attended Cromwell District High School or were sent to boarding school. The roll grew to 73 by 1949, and a new school was built along the road on Tenby Street opening in 1950.
Wanaka District Highschool, c.1955.
Wanaka District High School came back into existence in 1955 with 25 secondary students with Mr. Gunn as their teacher. The school changed again in 1976 when it became the Wanaka Area School with a roll of 305 pupils.
The roll continued to grow until the decision was made in 1986 to split the school into Wanaka Primary School for students up to Standard 4 and a new school, Mt Aspiring College was built on Plantation Road for Form 1 to 7 students, both opening in 1987. A new Wānaka Primary School building opened in 2010 on an adjacent block of land to the college.
Queensberry School (Wanaka Road School)
Opened in 1889 with Isabella Hitchcock as its first teacher. There were issues over a lack of members for the school committee and two local commissioners were appointed in 1895. In 1900 the Dept of Education closed the school due to a lack of committee members. It apparently re-opened a short while later, closed again and then re-opened in 1923. Pupils attended Luggate School whilst it was closed. In 1927 the Education Board offered a 50% subsidy to refurbish the school building. The local parents decided to demolish the building (it was 47 years old) and build a new one. The new building opened in early 1928 and the school finally closed in 1964.
Queensberry School, c.1931.
Contrary to other reports, the school did not burn down in 1924 and was subsequently relocated. The school building was still on the land set aside for a school in 1880. The school that burned down in 1924 was Luggate.
Tarras Primary School
Opened with 16 pupils in 1885 in the old Bendigo School building, but a new building was provided a few years later. The school is still operating and offers a library, three classrooms, a swimming pool, tennis court, playground, extensive vege gardens and a resource room.
Te Kura O Take Kārara Primary School – With the increase in population in Wānaka and area, the Wānaka Primary School was under pressure to accept all the pupils wishing register. A new school was planned in 2017/18 and built on an area within the then new Three Parks development. This school opened in 2020.