Bobeyan (Tin Dish) School [1907 - 1910]

The Department of Public Instruction declined the 1906 request for the establishment of a new half-time school with Shannons Flat Provisional School in the Bobeyan district and instead offered a subsidy towards the maintenance of a private teacher. The Bobeyan parents accepted and the subsidy was paid from 4th term 1907 to end of 1st term 1910, when the school closed. The school was operating in a rented room when the application was made [for how long is unknown] and no subsidy was paid to cover that time. The parents had to build a school themselves as well as provide accommodation for the teacher.

The school site is east of Boboyan Road, about 100m from Brayshaw's hut. Very little remains of this tiny bush school - just a couple of corner posts, some post holes and a scatter of shaped rocks from what appears to have been a fireplace. Approximate dimensions 12 ft by 15 ft. Images and information about the three historic homesteads in the vicinity and the pioneering folk who lived in them can be found here.

Bobeyan School had only one teacher - William Gottaas, born Biggan 1878, died Bemboka 1950s. He was unqualified. After Bobeyan School closed he taught for a short time at Hollymount Subsidised School near Adaminaby then left the Monaro district. Students known to have attended the school are Elizabeth Dwyer, Eileen Dwyer, Agnes Perry, Ernest Perry, David Perry and Selena Westerman.

[Babette Scougall, June 2014]

Find an illustrated blog entry on 'Tin Dish school' by 'The rambling Wombat' (2017).

References:

Babette Scougall, Remembering Namadgi's Old Bush School. [Canberra Historical Journal, Sept 2007, pp. 16-20]

The Rambling Wombat, blog. June 29 2017. ACT - Namadgi National Park : ramblingwombat.wordpress.com/2017/07/29/tin-dish-bobeyan-subsidised-school/