The Roar - Issue 13 Term 2 2026

80 Years of Boarding on the Senior Campus

This being National Boarding Week, it would seem to be appropriate that, in its 80th Anniversary year, this week’s article be devoted to boarding at Scots.

Scots has always been a boarding school. The “Karralee Boys” of the Scots College Branch School were nearly all boarders, and although there were day boys, the majority of boys being boarders carried through into Scots School Bathurst in its early years.

KARRALEE

For a few years into its history, most boarders had rooms in “Karralee”.  The early old boys remember cold nights spent in rooms heated by log fires that went out and had to be relit in the mornings. Matron Ellie Rivers, who accompanied the boys from Scots in Sydney, was appalled by the thin blankets and poor quality pillows sent to the Branch School, and insisted that better ones be brought in. The “Karralee Boys” do recall that during the war and into the early years of The Scots School, many food items were grown on the premises, and that they had better food than the boys in Sydney.

Karralee was not an ideal residence for boarders.  They had to be fitted in around the Headmaster and his family, the House Matron and assorted other staff.  Over the years, its use as boarders’ accommodation was reduced as new purpose-built boarding houses were built. The last boys appear to have moved out in 1966.

THE KENNEL (Now IVES HOUSE)

The school grew very rapidly in its early years, and in 1947, the decision was taken to build a timber boarding house on the site where Aikman Hall now stands. The Housemaster was John Bulkeley, who was a big man with a loud voice nicknamed “The Bulldog”. The building he lived in was consequently called “The Kennel”.  The room he lived in was just large enough to accommodate a bed, an easy chair and a desk.  It became the Junior Boys’ house, with the older boys living in rooms in Karralee.

In 1972, The Kennel, much added to and renovated, was turned around 180 degrees and relocated to its present site to make way for Aikman Hall.  It served for a while as a Year 12 house. In 1979, Howard Davoll convinced the Headmaster to re-establish a junior boarding house for Year 7. Early in 1982, a brick wing was added to the building.  It remained as a junior boarding house for a few years. Mr Maher headed a house of 80-90 Year 7 and 8 boys from 1987 to 1989, and had to write a Housemaster’s report on each one!

Entering the 1990s and a fall in boarder numbers, The Kennel was put to other uses. The brick wing was an annexe to Cooerwull House for Cooerwull Year 12 for a few years. During Rod Fraser’s time, the Health Centre—which was felt to be a more positive name than Sick Bay—was relocated to The Kennel. The Uniform Shop was also moved down there for a few years as well.  The Korean Keystone Group, which brought students to the school to stay for a few months, also used parts of the building. It was the first accommodation for girl boarders in the School, but was not a great success in this role. By the late 1990s, the wet areas were poorly designed after some earlier renovations that solved immediate problems but were not far-reaching enough to be workable.

The brick wing was revived as a Junior Boarding house during 2016-2018. During the summer of 2018/19, the Maintenance Supervisor, Jeff Reeks, pulled off a minor miracle and refurbished the house substantially to accommodate about half of the boys in the newly formed Scots All Saints College.  With John Bulkeley a long distant memory, and some mothers looking askance at their boys being assigned to a doghouse, the name was changed to Ives House in honour of Betty Ives and her 54-year association with The Scots School.  It was given another major renovation at the end of 2019 and became the Senior Girls’ House with Mrs Lynne Woodlock as Head of House until her retirement.

COOERWULL HOUSE
The need to free up space in Karralee led to the construction of Cooerwull House. In 1951, Headmaster Alan McLucas reported that the construction of a cottage for the Headmaster had freed up space in Karralee for boarding.  The following year, the Headmaster’s residence was surrounded by the front section of Cooerwull House, which at the time was the epitome of an up-to-date boarding house.  The boarding house was named Cooerwull after the Presbyterian Cooerwull Academy that operate in Lithgow 1882-1916. In 1953, the Old Cooerwullians spent £70 to move Andrew Brown’s crest from the La Salle Academy (formerly the Cooerwull Academy) to Cooerwull House.

With the school growing rapidly again during Michael Aikman’s time, two more dormitories, a games room and a Matron’s flat were added and opened in 1967.  Cooerwull’s long career as a boarding house gradually faded after 1997 when the Junior School moved into some of the downstairs rooms, eventually occupying the whole upper floor.  Cooerwull became the English Department when Scots and All Saints integrated.

BULKELEY HOUSE

With numbers booming during the Aikman Years, construction of a third boarding house began whilst the mortar was still setting on the additions to Cooerwull House. Initially, Bulkeley was known as MacPhillamy House. There had long been a sporting house of that name. However, not long after it was opened, it was renamed New House, the name by which many Old Boys from that time still refer to it.  It was renamed Bulkeley House in 1971 to commemorate John Bulkeley, the veteran boarding master, who died in 1971.

Bulkeley underwent a refit in 1997 to create more single rooms for senior students. It was further renovated in 2005 when new cupboards and furniture were installed. In his time as Housemaster, Duane Bailey organised a number of working bees to get the house repainted and tidied up. But, by 2019, it was in a very tired state, with cramped rooms and some convoluted renovations that were not working very well.  It was closed at the end of 2019 and underwent a massive refurbishment that replaced old, leaky plumbing and improved the structural integrity of the building.  The lower level was reopened as a strength and conditioning centre and an examination room. In 2025, the upstairs area was reopened as the College’s Junior Boys’ boarding house.

THOMPSON HOUSE

Thompson House was the first of two new boarding houses that were opened in John Hunter’s time.  Boarding numbers continued to grow throughout the late 1970s, and in 1979, Thompson House was opened to accommodate around 60 boys. It was named after Brian Thompson, who had been Deputy Chairman of the School Council, had offered his property for use for cadet camps, and had been a great contributor to the school. He died suddenly in 1978, although there are continuing family connections. The first Housemaster was Grant Wood, who was moved from Cooerwull.

Thompson functioned quite successfully for many years. From the 1990s onwards, boarding schools became unfashionable, and with economic recession and drought affecting rural enrolments, boarding numbers dropped off.  Use of the house was sporadic. It re-opened for a few years as the Junior Boarding House during Eric Bernard’s time, and was also used to provide low-cost accommodation for parents staying for open weekends and for visiting groups.

In 2018, it was refurbished and, upon integration with All Saints Thompson, became one of two girls’ boarding houses. It resumed its role as a boys’ boarding house in 2020 and is currently the senior boys boarding house.

GALLOWAY HOUSE

Enrolments at Scots peaked at 386 boys in 1986.  The great majority of them were boarders, and they were housed in four boarding houses with up to ninety boys in each.  Prep was done in classrooms in the Quadrangle each night, as there was no room in the house. Junior boys were literally on top of each other in double bunks.  In that year, the School Council resolved to build a fifth boarding house, which opened as Galloway House in 1990. It was named after Rev. Bruce Galloway, the first Headmaster of The Scots School, who was also the first Housemaster. Brian Mair was the foundation Housemaster.  By the time it opened, numbers in the school overall were down, and there was some criticism of the decision to build the house, but the effects were immediate, with prep being done in the boarding houses, and the disappearance of the double bunks.  There were some initial difficulties.  The boiler for the hot water and heating was very temperamental.

After Scots went co-educational, Galloway was allocated as the girls’ house, a role that it has fulfilled for a quarter of a century.

Mr Andrew Maher
Archives

Photo 1: Don WIkner, J and G Ferguson and John Naismith outside The Kennel in 1948 when it was still quite new, and on its original location where Aikman Hall is now sited. 

Photo 2: The new Headmaster’s residence in 1951. Moving the Headmaster and his family out of Karralee freed up space for more boarders. The front section of Cooerwull House was added in 1952.

Photo 3: 1954. A dormitory in Cooerwull. This room is now an English classroom.

Photo 4: 1964. The Kennel boys held a birthday party for Mr Bulkeley.

Photo 5: Bulkeley House under construction in 1967. Old Boys from its early days refer to it as New House, which was its name until 1971, when it was retitled Bulkeley House after the death of John Bulkeley.

Photo 6: Mark Hill, the first Captain of Bulkeley House revisited the house many years later.

Photo 7: The Pipes and Drums escort The Kennel on its relocation in 1972.

Photo 8: Thompson House in 1982. The garden was added later when Ian Doney was Housemaster.

Photo 9: Mrs Galloway, James Bunn (House Captain), Mrs V. Mair, Dr David Galloway, Mrs Helen McGeorge and Mr Brian Mair (Housemaster), at the opening of Galloway House in 1990. Mrs McGeorge and Dr Galloway were the children of Rev. Bruce Galloway, and lived in Karralee.

Photo 10: 1996. The billiards table in Galloway and some keen players.

Photo 11: 2006. A photo of some Galloway girls photographed by Frank Colzato for promotional purposes.

Photo 12: 2025. Bulkeley House refurbished and reopened as the Junior Boys boarding house.