Annandale Public School was established in 1886 to serve the growing school population. It has always had a tradition as a local community based school and it continues as a Community School providing quality education for all children.
We continue to serve our community by providing:
Quality education for children from Preschool to Year 6
An Early Childhood Intervention Unit
Before and After School Care
An active P & C Association
Spacious and well-resourced grounds and buildings
Our Crest
The school crest depicts our name in the school colours of dark and light blue, with the school's motto:
"Strength Through Wisdom"
The writer understands that the area known today as Annandale was given to Lieutenant Colonel George Johnston (hence Johnston Street) as a land grant in 1793. The name "Annandale" is derived from the village of Annan in Dumfriesshire, Scotland, the location of Johnston's home town.
To represent this link with the area's colonial history, the floral emblem of Scotland, the thistle, appears on our school crest and "Annan" acts as the name of one of our sporting houses.
We hope this helps students in the building of their character, personality and self esteem as well as a sense of belonging.
Reference: "Our History" - Annandale Public School 1886-1986" (Centenary Edition)
The original school bell stood within the courtyard of the school's main quadrangle, in the centre of the East open end, opposite the veranda.
During the '80s it has been located southeast of the quadrangle adjacent to the Community Room, its voice silenced in favour of an electronic donkey bray of dubious appeal.
In March 1986 the blackened bell-metal mute was cut down from its ancient pole, polished and treated and restored and its use as the school's official assembly voice ensured as a Centenary celebration feature.
It was proposed the bell be relocated in the recently expanded school environment so that it may he heard clearly from all areas of the three school departments, inclusive of the pre-school and infants.
Its new, more central home is near its original, 1886 location, at the northwest corner of the Assembly Hall, adjacent to the amphitheatre where it is hoped, another century of Annandale pupils may progress through their formative education punctuated by its traditional, clarion tones.
(Taken from "Our History" Annandale Public School 1886-1986)
At the time of our centenary celebrations in 1986, Annandale Public School didn't have a school song, so it was decided to hold a competition for students to write the words for a song.
The words of the winning entry were written by Alice De Boos and Anastasia Nicholas. Bev Prunster (Goodwin), a parent and casual teacher at APS at the time, wrote the original score to accompany the words.
"Our majestic school – APS,
At everything we prove the best.
One hundred years haven't changed our style . . ."
Annandale Public School is now one hundred and twenty nine years old and we have grown from the "small attractive school" to a larger though no less attractive one, but we can most assuredly say that we still epitomise the "spirit and flair" that is Annandale Public School.
We are proud of our school, and proud to be able to sing our school song at assemblies and on other special occasions.
Thank you Alice, Bev, and Anastasia.
Images from "Our History Annandale Public school 1886 - 1986" (Centenary Edition)
The gates originally stood just off Parramatta Road, on the crest of the hill, on the south side, where the Globe Cinema now stands. (Since publication, the cinema has been demolished and the Globe Apartment complex built.) At the centre of each gate hung a cast iron shield featuring the Johnston crest, the flying spur. From the gates an avenue of Norfolk Island pines led south to the house.
Dating the gates is not easy in the absence of documentary evidence, but the impression stylistically that they date from about 1875-1880 is consistent with the changing situation of the Johnston family at that time.
The gates had been removed and re-erected at Liverpool showground and subsequently dismantled again. In 1972, they were located by the Annandale Association in storage at Liverpool Council's depot. Liverpool Council presented the gates to Leichhardt Council in 1972, to commemorate Leichhardt's municipal centenary.
In 1976 it was agreed that they should be included in the landscaping by the Department of Education of the area, now part of the school grounds, where the house "Greyholme" had stood. The Education Department, the school's headmaster Mr P. Bracks, Leichhardt Council and the Annandale Association agreed to this proposal.
(Taken from "Our History" Annandale Public School 1886-1986)
