As we gear up to celebrate the biggest day of our College community’s calendar, Back to Newington Day, Archivist Mrs Julie Daly explains how working together for the good of all our students has always been an integral part of Newington’s make up.

Before Back to Newington Day, we had the Moonlight Fete, Back-to-College Carnival, the Great Wyvern Fete and the War Memorial Fete. 

The first charmingly named Moonlight Fete was held in 1894 and started the tradition of our community raising funds for College projects. Held every couple of years until 1905, money was raised for projects such as the Oval Fund and the Athletic Club.  

First held on 4 December 1920, the Back-to-College Carnival was run by the Old Newingtonian Union (ONU). Past students and their friends gathered at the College to witness various matches against present day students in cricket, shooting, running and swimming, and a well-wishers’ fund was begun.  

The success of this first Back-to-College Carnival prompted the ONU to make the next event bigger and bolder and include a fete, with the purpose of raising money to help build a boatshed for the newly introduced sport of rowing.  

This second Carnival was held on 8 May 1922 with enough money raised by the College and local community members who attended for the building of a boatshed. After the fete, two ‘rowing eights’ were donated, as well as a £2000 donation from the Glasson family for the building of the College boatshed, now to be known as ‘The Robert Glasson Memorial Shed.’ The shed was named after Robert Glasson (ON 1864), who was number 33 student on our first school register. His son William (ON 1895) also attended the College.  

The ONU was thrilled by its fundraising efforts and held another Back-to-Newington Carnival in 1924 and an Old Boys’ Fete in 1926, with both raising substantial funds for improvements to the College grounds through the Oval Fund.  

The ONU and Parents and Friends Association, which was founded in 1928, joined forces with the College Council to hold a jubilee fete in 1930, celebrating 50 years of the Stanmore campus. This fete was known as the Great Wyvern Fete. It continued in a similar format every couple of years until 1937, raising funds for the Athletic Fund and Ground Improvements Fund. During the Second World War only one fete was held. Organised by both the Parents and Friends Association and the ONU, to raise funds for the purchase of War Savings Certificates for the Wyvern House Building Fund. 

Following the war, a War Memorial Fete was organised and held every couple of years between 1946 and 1955, once again organised by the ONU and the Parents and Friends Association along with the War Memorial Fund Committee. These fetes raised much-needed funds for the building of the new Memorial Baths and the War Memorial Block/Science Block.  

Fetes were held less regularly after this, with only a couple of mentions in the 1960s and 1970s. Most were organised by the Parents and Friends Association, with a 1977 fete raising funds for the Resources Centre. 1980s fetes were mostly held by our two Preparatory Schools, Wyvern House Prep and Lindfield Prep. 

The first Back to Newington Day was held in 2003. It had developed from a 2000 ON Rugby Day, where the ONU organised for former students to watch the 1st XV play Riverview, enjoy tours of the College and catch up with old friends, a return to the 1920 Back-to-College Carnival. By 2003 this had developed into Back to Newington Day. 

Now enjoying its 22^nd year, Back to Newington Day embraces the spirit and history of the past Back-to-College Carnivals by combining new additions with the original elements.  

This year, get set to enjoy plenty of family activities such as a Kidifarm, Splash Park and a Ninja Warrior Park alongside much anticipated College events such as MOONs Luncheon, IB and the HSC & IB Visual Art Exhibition at Concordia, along with 7 new stalls, new rides and our very own tea blend! 

Involving the whole Newington community, Back to Newington Day represents a return to a major fundraising opportunity for our dedicated Parents and Friends Association and other support groups while celebrating and showcasing the College and its life inside the Stanmore and wider community. 

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Learn more about Back to Newington Day on our website!

Back to Newington Day