Xavier College was opened by the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits) in 1878.;xNLx;‘To find God in all things’ was the aim of St Ignatius Loyola and his Jesuit companions, including St. Francis Xavier, who first formed a community at the University of Paris early in the 16th century. ;xNLx;Jesuit education encourages the individual to develop fully his or her talents and fosters reflection, so that the person’s heart, mind, body and spirit may become deeply engaged to serve in the wider world.;xNLx;The traditions of a world-class education, begun by the Jesuits at Xavier, strongly influence our teachings today, so that our students may become ‘men and women for others’.;xNLx;Scroll through our time-line using the slider at the bottom of the screen or sit back and watch time pass. Click on a story for more information, or to see the image in a larger format. You may change your view from 2D to 3D and back again.
We respectfully acknowledge the traditional custodians of the land on which we stand, the elders of the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation, past and present.
'The discovery of the Victorian Goldfields has converted a remote dependency into a country of worldwide fame;
An Act to incorporate and endow the University of Melbourne.
The Act ‘XVI. Out of the Monies disposable by the said Legislative Council there shall and may be appropriated…being One hundred and thirty thousand pounds for Public Schools and Ten thousand pounds towards building an University Melbourne.’
Bishop Goold appointed Dr. Laurence Shiel as President and Mr. Whyte as the Headmaster.
The Irish Jesuits were invited to Melbourne by Bishop Goold, to run the diocesan school of St. Patrick’s College, East Melbourne.
The Superior of the Jesuit Mission arrived in Melbourne in 1866.
Fathers Joseph Dalton, Francis Murphy and Edward Nolan SJ purchased land from Patrick Mornane in the rural area of Kew, some seventy acres bordered by Barkers Road, from Denmark Street to Glenferrie Road for £7000.00. This was to be the foundation of the Jesuit’s new boarding school.
The foundation stone of Xavier College was laid with the celebration of an open air Mass.
1st Rector (1st Head). Father Cahill arrived in Melbourne in January 1872 from Macao, where he had been teaching English in the Portuguese Jesuit seminary.
St. Francis Xavier's College opened with 92 students of whom 71 were boarders. Of these, 44 had transferred from St. Patrick’s College East Melbourne.
2nd Rector (2nd Head). Father Nolan was one of the first Irish Jesuits to arrive in Victoria.
3rd Rector (3rd Head). Father Nulty, a hundred boarders and eighteen Jesuits were all living in the South Wing in crowded conditions during his early rectorship.
Constructed in 1889, the West Wing was designed to ease overcrowding in the South Wing and provide the study hall, dormitories, lobbies and classrooms for the growing school.
Constructed in 1890, this spacious building, built in the style of a giant conservatory, was added along the eastern wall of the new West Wing. The hall measures 183 feet long, 48 feet wide and 39 feet high.
4th Rector (4th Head). Father Brown initiated the building of the Great Hall upon his arrival at Xavier, showing great foresight.
The first Xavier College Cadet Corps was established in 1891 and became part of No. 2 Cadet Battalion (set aside for Melbourne public schools and colleges), one of nine junior battalions.
A major international depression hit the Australian economy and the Federal Bank failed on 30 January 1893.
5th Rector (5th Head). Father Ryan was transferred to Xavier at one of the most difficult periods in the history of the school.
The first gathering of past students took place, forming the Old Xaverians’ Association.
We issue to-day the first number of THE XAVERIAN in commemoration of the Silver Jubilee of St. Francis Xavier's, the school of which we are all so proud.
On the 10th February 1900, the first student of Xavier College to die in war was killed at Slingesfontein. Only a dozen or so former students went to fight against the Dutch–Afrikaner settlers, known as Boers. Lest We Forget.
2nd Pavilion. The new pavilion, built by Mr. James Bishop, of Kew, is a pretty structure capable of seating some 250 persons.
St. Patrick’s College’s membership of the Public Schools’ Association was passed to Xavier College.
6th Rector (6th Head). Father Keating arrived at Xavier in 1901 and began teaching the senior classes for the Public Examinations.
7th Rector (7th Head). Father O’Dwyer was one of the first Jesuit educationalists in the history of the Australian province.
There were several crests and mottos used by the College but in 1909 the crest and motto that are still in use today were adopted.
1910 saw both the Xavier 1st XX ( now XVIII) (football) and 1st XI (cricket) win their respective APS competitions. The 1st XX were awarded the APS Football premiership on the 25th August and on the 18th November, the 1st XI were awarded the APS co-championship.
The first purpose-built science facilities were completed in time for the students arrival on the 10 February 1913.
410 Old Xaverians enlisted and 52 gave the ultimate sacrifice. An average of 75% of past students enlisted. Lest We Forget.
8th Rector (8th Head). Father Sullivan was born in Melbourne and educated at St. Patrick’s College, making him the first Australian-born Rector of Xavier.
With the end of World War I, the OXA started fundraising for a new Memorial Chapel, to remember and honour Xaverians who did not come home.
Businessman and philanthropist Thomas Michael Burke donated the house and land known as ‘Studley Hall’ to Archbishop Daniel Mannix, who in turn passed it to the Jesuits.
The Xavier Preparatory School, Studley Hall, was opened on the 13 February 1921.
9th Rector (9th Head). Father Frost won the hearts of all by his natural, simple, unassuming manner.
On 21 June 1927, the feast of St Aloysius, before an admiring school community, J.E. Cooke, president of the OXA, turned the first sod to start the construction of the chapel’s foundations.
Xavier has only won the head of the River five times since first competing in 1906: 1928, 1929, 1937, 1948 and 1999.
The first musical production established a tradition of musical theatre at Xavier.
American stock prices began to fall in September and their stock market collapsed on Tuesday 29 October 1929.
10th Rector (10th Head). Father FX O’Brien was a bright, cheerful, breezy person, wonderful at making friends and with prodigious memory.
Construction of the Xavier College Memorial Chapel was finally completed in September 1934, to the design by architects Schreiber and Jorgensen.
On Sunday 18 November, the Dedication of the Basilicas of the Holy Apostles Peter & Paul, the Memorial Chapel, was blessed and dedicated by Dr Downey, (Archbishop of Liverpool) assisted by Archbishop Mannix and Dr Nicholas (Bishop of Fiji). In the official party were the superiors of the various Jesuit communities in Melbourne and the headmasters of the Melbourne Grammar School and Scotch College.
11th Rector (11th Head). Father Hackett was probably assigned as rector because of his high degree of personal charisma and apostolic zeal.
Father Hackett purchased the house and land at Brighton known as 'Maritima' on the 2nd August 1936 from Miss Heath for £12,000.
Kostka Hall opened on the 10 February 1937 and was named in honour of St. Stanislaus Kostka SJ.
More than 950 Old Xaverians saw active service and 79 gave the ultimate sacrifice. At nearly nine per cent of the total, this is more than twice the national average for Australians who died on active service. Lest We Forget.
12th Rector (12th Head). Father Costelloe was only 33 when appointed as rector.
The two storey classroom block that runs along the northern boundary of the College was built in 1951 and named after Charles Rigg (XC 1881-1883).
On the 6 February 1951, the ‘Stratheden’ pulled out of the Port of Melbourne heading to India, carrying six Australian Jesuits to pioneer the new Jesuit Mission in Hazaribag.
13th Rector (13th Head). Father Gleeson was the first Rector of Xavier that had been educated at the school (XC 1920-1929).
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