Imagine arriving at school one morning to discover your classroom is a tent.

More than 115 years ago, Greerton children received their lessons in a large tent after their schoolhouse was destroyed by fire.

This is one of many remarkable stories from Greerton Village School’s 150-year history.

The first Greerton schoolhouse in the 1890s. Photo / Te Ao Mārama - Tauranga City Libraries Photo 99-1330

The school began in the mid-1870s, when Tauranga was emerging from a turbulent period, teaching assistant Sharon McManus said.

She’s been collating historic photographs for the school’s 150th celebrations this weekend, on November 13-14.

According to historical records, Greerton School opened on October 1, 1876 – 12 years after the nearby battles of Gate Pā (Pukehinahina) and Te Ranga.

Greerton School in 1900. Miss Alice Brain is the teacher, standing at far left. Photo/ Te Ao Mārama - Tauranga City Libraries Photo 04-565

“Mr Richard Sephton was the first head teacher, only serving until December 1876, followed by Margaret J. Allely from January 1877 to August 1883,” McManus said.

The school’s beginnings followed a public call in the Bay of Plenty Times in October 1875, inviting the “Residents of Greerton and the Vicinity” to form a committee and apply to the Government for a school.

Current principal Kimberley Henderson-Ginns (left) and former Greerton Village School principal Anne Mackintosh are looking forward to welcoming former and current pupils and staff to the 150th celebration of Greerton Village School on November 13-14. Photo / Kelly O'Hara

Within weeks, a temporary school was operating. The permanent school opened one year later on October 1, 1876, with 20 pupils.

Their timber classroom measured 20 feet by 15 feet, about 28sq m, and featured sash windows, a fireplace and a small porch.

The school stood on a 10.5 acre (4.2ha) block reserved for education, roughly the same site occupied by Greerton Village School today.

The land has a much older history. Greerton, known as Maarawaewae, was part of a landscape where Māori lived, cultivated gardens and gathered food.

The school was later established on land affected by Crown confiscations following the Tauranga campaigns.

By the 1870s, Greerton was a rural settlement that had developed from a military settlement following the New Zealand Wars, with farms, orchards and small holdings.

Greerton School pupils and teachers in 1920. Photo /Te Ao Mārama - Tauranga City Libraries Photo 04-564.

For local families, the school was more than a place of education. Historic records show the schoolhouse hosted public meetings and religious activities. In 1884, local resident Lucy Mansel established a Sunday school there, teaching it for many years.

Then, on December 15, 1909, disaster struck. The original schoolhouse was destroyed by fire following a school picnic.

“The architect’s report concluded that ‘no blame is attachable to those in charge of the School Picnic’ confirming the teacher was the last to leave and the picnic fire – lit 28 to 30 yards away to boil tea for the children – had been completely extinguished,” McManus said.

With lessons needing to continue, a large tent was hired while the community waited for a replacement classroom.

Greerton School students in 1936. Photo / Supplied

“The new schoolhouse was built in 1910 near the Chadwick Rd boundary and opened as a single classroom,” McManus said. “In 1921, a second classroom was added.”

During the following decades, Tauranga expanded, farmland gave way to housing and Greerton became part of an increasingly urban city. The school grew alongside the community, with classrooms and facilities added throughout the 20th century.

Among pupils was Dorothy Wills, whose father, George H. A. Wills, taught at the school and later served as head teacher from 1921 to 1944.

Dorothy organised fundraising performances at the age of 7 and later became an architect, illustrating how the school helped launch lives that reached far beyond its grounds.

“In 1964, the entire structure was moved across the school grounds to its current location,” McManus said.

Christmas assembly in December 2023 included a plane acting out Snoopy’s Christmas. Photo / Supplied

By the late-1990s, the school had been renamed Greerton Village School to reflect its place in the changing community.

“In 1997, the old school building was officially renamed Ngā Hau e Whā – meaning ‘The Four Winds’ – acknowledging its role as a central hub welcoming students and visitors from all directions,” McManus said.

Today, the surrounding countryside is suburbia. Old photographs show rows of children outside a tiny timber schoolhouse, surrounded by open countryside rather than today’s busy streets.

The faces may belong to another century, but still represent the strongest thread of Greerton Village School’s history.

The residents who campaigned for a school in 1875 wanted opportunities for their children. The community that rebuilt after the 1909 fire was determined that education for local children would continue.

Today, 150 years later, families still bring their children to the school gates on weekday mornings for the same purpose.

Greerton Village School’s 150-year milestone will be celebrated on November 13-14.