Anna Owen

Moreton Bay College

Moreton Bay College was founded in 1901 by Miss Alice J Alison Greene and her sister Anne, in the heart of Wynnum town, on Bay Terrace. The school was originally called Moreton Bay Girls' High School and provided, in addition to classrooms and other rooms, boarding facilities for 30 boarders. The first roll contained six boarders and 20 day scholars. In 1944, the Greene family handed the school over to the Methodist Church. The Methodist Church gave the school to the Presbyterian and Methodist Schools' Association (PMSA) to administer, and they appointed Miss Ellen Christensen in 1946 to the Headship. Miss Christensen was the Headmistress from 1946-49 but family illness led to her absence, during which time Miss Popple was Acting Principal. Eventually Mrs Millicent Drewe was appointed and was Headmistress from 1950-1964. In 1957, the name was changed to Moreton Bay College, to avoid confusion with the State High School system and to be more in keeping with the College names of the other PMSA schools. In 1965, after a period as Acting Head, Mrs Viola Owen-Winchester was appointed Principal. At the beginning of 1980, following the retirement of Mrs Owen-Winchester, Mr Ken Waller was appointed Headmaster, the first male principal in the College's history. The boarding house was closed at the end of 1980. At the end of 1981, the College acquired 20 hectares of hillside land on Wondall Road and the Board began planning the relocation of the College to the new site. Moreton Bay College continues to be one of this country's finest independent girls' schools and pre-eminent in the education of young women in Brisbane, and its partnership with MBBC will see it become even more prominent in the Queensland education sector.