St Patrick's College was an independent

Catholic school Catholic schools are Parochial school, parochial pre-primary, primary and secondary educational institutions administered in association with the Catholic Church. , the Catholic Church operates the world's largest parochial schools, religious, no ...

Melbourne, Victoria Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

from 1854 until 1968. It was the second independent school and the first

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

secondary school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...

in Victoria founded with a government grant of £2,500. In 1865, following financial difficulties, it was transferred to the care of the

Society of Jesus The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 ...

(Jesuits). The school became immediately important to the intellectual and spiritual life of the Catholic community of Victoria and remained so for its existence. The College was a member of the

Associated Catholic Colleges The Associated Catholic Colleges (ACC) is a group of thirteen independent Catholic boys schools in Victoria, Australia. The Association, formed in 1911, and renamed in 1948, provides the basis for interschool sporting and other competitions bet ...

from 1928–1948. The school was shut down at the end of 1968 in order to provide space for a new Catholic

diocesan chancery A diocesan chancery is the branch of administration that handles all written documents used in the official government of a Catholic, Anglican, or Orthodox diocese. It is in the diocesan chancery that, under the direction of the bishop or his r ...

. After significant public opposition the buildings were demolished in 1970. Over 5000 students attended the school between its foundation and closure. The St Patrick's Old Collegians' Association continues to exist. ] ]

Notable alumni

* Keith Brennan (1915–1985) – diplomat *

Vincent Buckley Vincent Thomas Buckley (8 July 1925 – 12 November 1988) was an Australian poet, teacher, editor, essayist and critic. Life Buckley was born in 1925 in Romsey, Victoria to Patrick Buckley, a carter and sometime farm labourer, and his wife Fra ...

(1925–1988) – poet, essayist *

Frank Costigan Francis Xavier Costigan, , (14 January 1931 – 13 April 2009) was an Australian lawyer, Royal Commissioner and social justice activist. Costigan is renowned for presiding over the Costigan Commission into organised crime. Background an ...

(1931–2009) – lawyer * Michael Costigan (1931– ) – writer and public servant * Henry Doyle (1859–1929) – politician * John Nash (1857–1925) – politician *

Jack O'Hagan John Francis O'Hagan (29 November 189815 July 1987) was an Australian singer-songwriter and radio personality. Early life O'Hagan was born as John Francis O'Hagan, in Fitzroy, a suburb of Melbourne. He was the son of Pat O'Hagan, a hotelk ...

(1898–1987) – singer-songwriter and radio personality * Richard Michael "Dick" Pirrie (1920–1944) – VFL Footballer, Naval Officer, died in the D-Day Landings of 6 June 1944 * Joseph Santamaria – judge of the Court of Appeal,

Supreme Court of Victoria The Supreme Court of Victoria is the highest court in the Australian state of Victoria. Founded in 1852, it is a superior court of common law and equity, with unlimited and inherent jurisdiction within the state. The Supreme Court compri ...

*Thomas Fidelis Hawkins, (1940–1946) – Commonwealth Bank of Australia *

James James may refer to: People * James (given name) * James (surname) * James (musician), aka Faruq Mahfuz Anam James, (born 1964), Bollywood musician * James, brother of Jesus * King James (disambiguation), various kings named James * Prince Ja ...

and John Toohey - Founders of Toohey's Brewery. and NSW politicians

Rectors

* Rev. Thomas Cahill SJ (1874–1878) * Rev. William Lockington SJ (1916–1923)

References

Educational institutions established in 1854 Catholic schools in Melbourne Demolished buildings and structures in Melbourne Educational institutions disestablished in 1968 Defunct schools in Melbourne Buildings and structures demolished in 1970 1854 establishments in Australia 1968 disestablishments in Australia East Melbourne, Victoria {{VictoriaAU-school-stub