About

History

A  GRAVE  PAST

Campbell Street Primary School opened in 1926. The land upon which the school sits was once the Holy Trinity burial ground, where free settlers and convicts were laid to rest during the 1800s. There was a creek that divided the grounds in two, with free settlers buried on one side and convicts on the other. The convicts were jailed at the Campbell Street Penitentiary which was located opposite the current OfficeWorks site.

Campbell Street Primary was a 'practising' school, meaning that it was a school where student teachers came to learn their craft. Each classroom once had a working fireplace. The chimneys are visible across the rooftop and the fireplaces are boarded over. Adjacent to the school is one of the early houses built in Campbell Street. It was owned by Henry Jones, the founder of the IXL company, famous for the local Hobart jam factory that is now the site of the Henry Jones Art Hotel and surrounding shops.