January 15 - 21, 2017: Issue 296

Bob Langbein

A gentleman many will have seen on Pittwater beaches during annual carnivals and swims, a SLS SNB Coach, Bayview Golf Day Organiser for the Interbranch Team and Collaroy Life Member is Bob Langbein, who keeps a fair amount of all he has done well hidden but is allowing us to create a record - and share a small insight into how, if you look after your body your body will look after you.

This octogenarian is still sharp as a tack, always busy, always doing something for others to support younger members of surf sports locally. He also loves heading to Narrabeen Sports Centre to support grandchildren who run - possibly as fast as he once did.

This week a small celebration of one of our local living legends who in 2017 clocks up 70 years as a member of Collaroy SLSC. 

Where and when were you born?
In 1929 at Cammeray in North Sydney.

Did you grow up there?
Yes I did, attending North Sydney Boys High School.

What did you do for fun while growing up?
I was into athletics and in 1940 won the district 100 yards championship before going to North Sydney High. At that time at Cammeray Public School and they used to have this All Schools Championship. This was held out at Ashfield.
When I went on to North Sydney I was lucky enough again in 1944 to win the NSW Combined high Schools and also the All Schools 100 yard championship. So athletics was what I was into when growing up.

What was WWII like for you?
It’s really hard to describe or explain that: when France succumbed to the German might in 1942 I was a member at North Sydney High of what they then called the Cadet Corp. 
At that stage the school were trying to get people used to the military style of things and that discipline.  The war certainly did have an effect on me.

Can you remember the evening Japanese submarines were in Sydney Harbour?
Yes I can. That night was rather disturbing that they’d come so close. We could hear it where we were.

Did you experience any rationing then?
Not really. I grew up in The Depression years, in being born in 1929, so I and my family were subject to those deprivations more then than during WWII. The only thing during the war years I recall being short of was clothing because you needed coupons to buy clothing then.

What was North Sydney Boys High like?
A very good school. I must confess that I will be forever grateful to North Sydney High because they had a Latin motto Vincit qui se vincit, which translated into Australian is “He conquers who conquers himself”.
They were really very strong on discipline, self discipline, and I really feel forever grateful that the foundation that I got at North Sydney High has carried me right through my life.

What did you do after leaving High School?
I became a Commercial Cadet for a company called Johnson Leather, who had tanneries in all the major mainland states, eventually becoming Sales Manager in 1971 for that company. The company was taken over via an insider trading deal, today these sort of people would go to gaol. The company was in turmoil and it was a shock for me to think that this could happen. I was lucky that the association I’d developed with various clients pointed me in other directions. One gentleman said there was a German company called Carl Freudenberg that were looking for an Australian person. 
Through their local agencies I went to Germany, met the German executives, and was subsequently appointed Managing Director for Carl Freudenberg in Australia, where I stayed for the next 25 years.
So I really have only ever had two jobs – one with Johnson Leather and one with the company called Carl Freudenberg.

How many years did you end up working then?
50. I suppose the year I really retired was in 1994, and in that particular year I was lucky enough to win the Australian over 60 Beach Sprint championship. So there was a bit of a passing out of Athletics and passing out from a career at the same time. 
I actually stayed on with that German company for two years as the Chairman of the board; they wanted people they could trust and asked if I’d stay on for the next couple of years to help with a business I then knew well. So 1996 was when I finally retired.

Which was the first beach that you went to?
This year, 2017, I’ve been a member of Collaroy Surf club for 70 years. I joined in 1948 and then in 1951 I was lucky enough to be a part of the Collaroy Beach Relay team which won the Australian Championship. 
Then 53 years later I had a son who also won the same championship for the same club.

How did you begin at Collaroy? – Cammeray and Collaroy are not close to each other…
While living at Cammeray I befriended a fellow by the name of Neil Montgomery and invited Neil to join the local athletics club, the Northern Suburbs Athletics Club, of which I was a member and of which, at that time, I was the Junior Champion. This guy had shown quite a lot of potential.
He said to me, ‘Bob, I have a relation who is in Collaroy Surf Club and I’ve got into doing a little bit of beach sprinting. I think you should come down and have a look at it.’
During those initial years I’d travel from Cammeray to Collaroy and then I got married and lived locally. We were at Dee Why first of all and then at Collaroy.

What was Collaroy Surf Club like in 1948 – the clubhouse, the people…
The clubhouse was different to what is there today and was quite rudimentary. They had a remarkable development of the club in 1952.


Collaroy lifesavers on and off duty yesterday. (Above) John Allan uses the public address system on the look-out over the club's new, partly builtclubhouse to warn swimmers to surf only inside the safety flags. ONE LIFESAVER WARNS SURFERS; SECOND SPORTS SEA-SHELL HAT (1954, November 29). The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), p. 1. Retrieved from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article18454764

What’s the best part of being a member at Collaroy?
When I first joined the club and we were lucky enough to have that success over in Western Australia. I became what is called an Assessor, got into helping as a Coach and Bronze Medallions Exams and then got on to the Board of Examiners.

My reasoning was that any club, and when we flew over to Western Australia to represent the club the club had actually raised the funds to support us in this, and this was an amazing thing for me, to have joined the club and doing my Patrols, to have them put something back into the Members, I then wanted to put something back into the club. So I became an Instructor then got onto the board of Examiners and felt that was, in some ways, starting to pay it back.

You have done more than that though – people often see you on the beach in Pittwater helping out at many carnivals…
Since then I went on to helping out and at one stage became the Secretary for a couple of years; I was determined to do all I could.
Because of the work I’d done, for 17 years I was the Coach of Sydney Northern Beaches Interbranch Team. 
I’m now a Life Member of Collaroy Surf Club. I’m also a Life Member of Sydney Northern Beaches and Surf Life saving New South Wales.

70 years of hard work there Bob – what else have you done locally?
I’ve also been a member of Bayview Golf Club for 60 years. I’m a former Captain and President there.
For the last 23 years I’ve organised the Fundraising Golf Day for the Interbranch Team at Bayview Golf Club which has raised in excess of a quarter of a million dollars. This is where we get the basis of the funds for our Interbranch Team, for the uniform, for the transport, the accommodation, for whatever they need.
Bayview Golf Club have always given me a tremendous amount of support in this and in supporting what is a community activity. They have a great community focused ethos at Bayview.

Why did you begin playing golf?
I first started playing golf when my company at that time realised that golf was an avenue to become friendly with clients. You would invite a client to have a game of golf and perhaps a meal and then would perhaps have a chance to discuss a bit of business. Mostly these were a conduit to be able to promote the company. With Bayview Golf Cub the company would pay my fees for many years because they regarded that as an asset to develop better relationships with clients.

Bayview is a beautiful course – you would have seen a few changes there?
Absolutely, it’s a great golf course. I was Captain of the club in 1968 when we were able to buy the course form the widow of the guy who built it, a fellow by the name of John Orr, back in the 1920’s.  Our President at the time, a fellow named Howard Robertson, would visit Mrs. Orr and let her know that the trees may need trimming or the grass mowing and he would get some of the golf course staff to come and look after her.
She stated that what she really wanted was the course and clubhouse to be left as a memorial to her late husband, telling Howard, ‘as you know, he was a golfing tragic’.

In 1968 that particular committee at the time; Howard Robertson, Ron Nicholson, the Treasurer, and myself as Captain, were able to secure that clubhouse and course for 140 thousand dollars. The Members contributed 100 thousand dollars of which we paid them 8% debenture issue and the other 40 thousand dollars came through Ron Nicholson the Treasurer who had a relationship with the then Wales Bank in Manly.

Why have you stayed so long in Surf Life Saving? – 70 years is a good run
When I marred a second time I was lucky to have a son, Ross, who was born in 1982. This is the son who for the last 4 years has won the Australian Masters Beach Sprint championship. Ross has won in excess of 110 medals by now from when he started as a Nipper.

Around 1989 or 1988, we were living at Collaroy, we went down to the baths. Ross asked ‘what are those people doing on the beach?’
I said, ‘son, that’s part of surf life saving and that’s what they call the ‘Nippers’. It’s for kids – they learn to swim and have a little bit of fun, and run, all that sort of stuff.’
I said I’d join him up and he could see whether he liked it. 
He liked it.
From there he won his first championship in the Under 8 Sydney Northern Beaches Sprint Championship. He has just gone on from there.
So when you ask why I’ve been in so long, when he went in as a Junior I was then the Coach of the Nippers and of course when he went on from the Juniors to the Seniors club, I continued on as the Coach.

He’s a part of the Collaroy Open Beach Relay Team, of which I’m lucky enough to be the coach, and for the last 7 years they’ve won three Australian Gold, three Australian Silvers, one bronze and also a Worlds Gold Championship. 

That has kept me, as an old bloke, young. Because through this I feel that I’m making a contribution; I’m walking down Memory Lane, I’m sharing what knowledge and experience I have – I feel like I’m contributing something worthwhile.
You can get to the stage where, as in the case of some, you feel like you’re hanging around waiting to die. You have got to use it to not lose it.
I fell I’m extremely lucky to be able to do this, and it’s the same with Bayview Golf Club. I was President at the time of the new clubhouse being built and there was a lot of work that went into that. I have to stress that this was never a one man show – I was lucky at Bayview to be part of a team; we developed a team culture and it was the team that was successful. 

What are you eating though, heaps of vitamins, too many Weet-bix - how do you do it?
(laughs)
I’m living very simply – for breakfast it’s cereal and a banana, orange juice and a coffee – it’s nothing special.
Collaroy Surf Club have got a very nice gym though, as a matter of fact I’ve already been down there this morning. A couple of mornings a week I will go to the gym and then pop around to the pool and just ensure I keep the working parts working.

There must be something going on at Collaroy – they’re consistently among the results whether it’s surf boats or beach sprints – what is it?
Yes, you’re right – the previous year (2015) they won two surf boat championships, lat season they won the March Past, they’ve been a very strong March Past club over the years in both male and female. There’s a tremendous friendly competition that goes on between the male and female teams there.

What are your favourite places on the Northern Beaches and why?
I must confess that I enjoy going to the Collaroy Beach Club. The present President at the moment there, Chris Montgomery is my nephew. There’s a tremendous synergy between the Surf Club and the Beach Club. In fact, just recently when we had those tremendous storms there which caused around a million dollars worth of damage, Chris came over to the Surf Club

Just a small insight on the Beach Club at Collaroy, which some may not be aware of – one of the jobs I’ve had over the last year has been running the electronic finishing gates at the major championships. When they go through the line it registers, I print out the times and then the judges can then see electronically who has run the race. Now all that equipment was sponsored by The Beach Club. The reasons that it was sponsored by The Collaroy Beach Club was that Chris Montgomery’s father, Neil Montgomery, with whom I was in the team in 1951 which won the Australian Championships,  Neil subsequently became the President of The Beach Club and was down at the athletic track at Narrabeen with his granddaughter and noticed this particular electronic equipment. He inquired about it, the guy showed him how it worked, came back to the Beach Club and said, ‘look, every year we’ve got to dedicate a percentage of our turnover back into the community. What I’m asking is can we support Surf Life Saving and provide them with this particular equipment…’
So the Beach Club provided that and as this equipment modernises and has become more efficient, every year they’ve given us more money to upgrade this and keep it current. 

I also have a lot of happy memories associated with Bayview Golf Club too of course. That’s always a walk down Memory Lane for me.

What is your ‘Motto for Life’ or a favourite phrase you try to live by?
I still think it would be hard to go past instilling self-discipline in your self and your life. So I still like my school’s motto of Vincit qui se vincit, - “He conquers who conquers himself”.
I also like the idea of having respect for other people – irrespective of their station in life, I really feel that respecting other people is something I’ve always tried to live by  - whether it’s respecting the person serving you in a restaurant, or wherever you are, respect others, respect equality.
Notes

STAWELL GIFT IS AIM OF BEACH RUNNER


Bob Langbein, at left, with Collaroy clubmate, Neil Montgomery.
It is a far cry from beach sprinting to running in a Stawell Gift, but that is the aim of visiting Collaroy Surf Club member, Bob Langbein. 
On Sunday, Bob with Neil Montgomery, of Casino, who is working at Sydney and is a member of Collaroy Club, outsprinted the best on the Far North Coast.
And so he should, for he is being trained by Frank Banner, probably Australia's best sprint trainer. To the best of Bob's knowledge, Frank has trained five Stawell Gift winners.
Frank took Bob in hand in 1940 after he had won a State junior championship, but it was not until two years ago that he put him into training.
Even though Langbein can run the 100 in evens, Frank Banner considers him "raw" and wants him to do a few yards better than evens before he will consider him a prospect. STAWELL GIFT IS AIM OF BEACH RUNNER (1950, January 11). Northern Star (Lismore, NSW : 1876 - 1954), p. 7. Retrieved from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article99071498 

SPEEDY JUNIORS
Juniors who are expected to perform with credit In the State swimming championships excelled themselves In club events during the week-end.
Russell Willett (Bondi) won the club under 15 years 110yds championship In time that constituted a record for the Bondi Baths, while Bryan Collett, a member of The Spit club, swum 75 yards In 44.2s. the best known time for a boy of his age.
Balmoral club's leading junior. J. Duncan, gave away starts up to 88 yards in the club's handicap and won his heat In 2m 36s. but was unplaced In the final. Immediately after he and Devon Cornish won the 100 yards brace relay. Results:
BALMORAL.-schoolboys' handicap. 50yds: R. Langbein (41.4s), 1. 200yds handicap, final: R. Hansen (3m 18.8s). 1. Brace relut. 100yds: J. Duncan end Devon Cornish (57.5s). Swimming (1941, November 24). The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), p. 12. Retrieved fromhttp://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article17775390 

NORTHERN SUBURBS v. MASCOT
100 Yards — R. Langbein (NS) 1, K. West (M) 2. J. Holton INS) 3; 10%.  TRELOAR'S SLASHING RUN DESPITE STRONG WIND (1947, February 1). The Sun (Sydney, NSW : 1910 - 1954), p. 5 (TEST STUMPS). Retrieved from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article230001786 

TRACK STARS TO TRY FOR RECORDS
John Treloar and Morris Curotta will assist each other in attempts to break sprint records at the Sydney Cricket Ground this afternoon.
Treloar hopes to better his Australian record of 9.6s for 100 yards, and Curotta will at-tempt to break the 300 yards record of 31s.
It is expected that Treloar will run at 2.30. p.m. and Curotta shortly afterwards.
Treloar, will be assisted by Curotta, Bob Langbein, Max McKay, and Charlie Campbell.
Pace for Curotta will be supplied by Treloar and Mervyn Finlay.
Treloar and Curotta may compete in a 100 yards race at the Showground Speedway meeting on Saturday night.
Treloar said last night that he would not make any' decision until he had inspected the Show-ground track. TRACK STARS TO TRY FOR RECORDS (1948, March 3). The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), p. 8. Retrieved from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article18062928 

John Treloar, AM (19 January 1928 – 23 July 2012) was a track and field athlete, who is considered to have been one of Australia's greatest male sprinters. He was ranked as one of the world's fastest men between 1947 and 1952. A triple gold medallist at the 1950 British Empire Games, Treloar made the 100 m final at the 1952 Summer Olympics finishing sixth – just 0.1 s behind the winner – in the closest finish in Olympic history.
In his career, Treloar won a total of six Australian championships at 100 or 220 yards.

UNIVERSITY v. NORTH. SUBS.
100 Yards.— J. Forsythe (NS) 1, R. Job (Uni.) 2, R. Langbein (NS) 3; 10 2-5.  120 Yards Hurdles. — D. Kelly (Uni.) 1, R. Woodward (Uni.) 2, M. Rothwell (NS) 3; 16 4-5.
Mile Walk. — D. Branagan (Uni.) 1, J. Hanman (NS) 2, 8.44. Discus. — B. Evans (Uni.) 99.8 1, M. Fomenko (NS) 2, J. Arnott (Uni.) 3. TRELOAR DOWN TO BULLOCK IN 100 (1948, November 27). The Sun (Sydney, NSW : 1910 - 1954), p. 6 (FINAL SPORT LAST RACE). Retrieved fromhttp://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article228688695 

The Australian Championships
THERE is something strange about the fact that people so beach-minded as West 'Australians should' be so apathetic towards Surf carnivals. Metropolitan club carnivals seem to pass almost unnoticed and even State championship carnivals draw comparatively small crowds. But most amazing of  all was the fact that even the Australian Championships, held in this State this year for the first time, failed to attract anything like the number of  people expected at Scarborough.

Apart from the financial side of things-and there is little doubt that the Surf Life-saving Association will lose heavily--the lack of public interest in this Jubilee surf carnival has been a tremendous disappointment to those officials and participants who worked and trained so bard to make it a success. Some young men from the Eastern States even gave up their jobs in order to make the trip to W.A., and many more pooled their savings to pay for their transport.

These are the young men who daily risk their lives in order to keep Australian beaches safe for the countless thousands of swimmers who flock to them. Many hundreds of persons are saved from drowning every year by these young life-savers-some of whom have sacrificed their own lives that others may live. It is poor thanks they receive at any time, but this latest expression of public apathy reflects little credit on West Australians.

Certainly, there were a host of other sporting attractions on Saturday afternoon and many thousands of persons would be away holidaying or spending Easter quietly at home. But that cannot be the whole excuse. For some reason or an. other the general populace is not attracted to the spectacle which a surf carnival offers.

It could not have been the heat which kept people away from the beach for the weather was quite mild-and anyway, who hasn't seen thousands grilling themselves at the beaches with the thermometer soaring over the century? It may have been that some were kept away by the thought that the crowds would be so dense as to be uncomfortable-but memories of football-final scenes tend to discredit this. The prices of admission to certain parts of the arena may have discouraged some-but admittance to a racecourse costs much more.

No; for some reason the public was just not greatly interested. It would be something of poetic justice if life-savers lost interest in the beaches, too, next summer. Then, perhaps, we would suddenly realise just what a worthwhile job they have been doing in the past.

But, fortunately for us, life-savers are not like that. They'll be back again next year guarding our beaches, asking no thanks-and getting little, unless we have a great change of heart. It's up to us.

Saturday's Events

WESTERN Australia suffered its first setback early in the main programme when Don Morrison, the Cottesloe surfer, lost the Australian belt title which he had regained at Coolangatta last year, to G. Timperley, of Byron Bay, New South Wales. Timperley had gained inclusion in the final of the event (in which Morrison automatically qualified) by winning a qualifying heat in the morning, and he was given a rousing reception when he won the title narrowly from the former champion, with A. Wil-liams (Queenscliff, N.S.W.) in third place. ....
Full results of Saturday's events were as follows:
Belt race: Senior: G. Timperley (Byron Bay, N.S.W.) 1; D. Morrison (Cottesloe, W.A.) 2; A. Williams (Queenscliff, N.S.W.) 3. Junior: J. Bloomfield (Kiama, N.S.W.) 1; P. Atherdeh (Swanbourne-Nedlands, W.A.) 2; J. Neumann (Currumbin, Qld.) 3. Rescue and Resuscitation championship : Senior: Protest by Dee Why up-held; race re-run Monday. Junior: Race annulled; re-run Monday. Surf teams' race: Senior: North Wollongong, N.S.W.), 27 pts., 1; Freshwater (N.S.W.), 28 pts., 2; Cottesloe (W.A.), 35 pts., 3. Junior: North Bondi (N.S.W.), 26 pts., 1; Merewether (N.S.W.), 34 pts., 2; Swanbourne-Nedlands (W.A.), 47 pts., 3. March past: South Narrabeen (N.S.W.), 1; .Scarborough (W.A.), 2; City of Perth (W.A.), 3.i Surf-race: Senior: S. Wilkes (Alexandra Heads, Qld.), 1, G. Timperley (Byron Bay, N.S.W.), 2; R. Hartley (Cottesloe, W.A.), -3. Junior: J. Mcphee (Freshwater, N.S.W. ), l; R. Hounslow (Cottesloe, W.A.), 2; J. Mooney (North Bondi, N.S.W.), 3. Open surf race: Senior: M. Riddington (Manly, N.S.W.), 1; S. Wilkes (Alexandra Heads, Qld.), 2; R. Barry (Manly, N.S.W.), 3. Junior: J. Bloomfield! (Kiama, N.S.W.). 1; J. Campbell; (Bondi, N.S.W.), 2; P. McCarthy (Cairns, Qld.), 3. Surf board race: R. Calnan (Coogee, N.S.W.), 1; K. Hurst (North Bondi, N.S.W.). 2; D. Trumper (Coogee, N.S.W.), 3. Single surf ski race: F. Okulich (Dixon Park, N.S.W.), 1; C. Whyte (Stockton, N.S.W.), 2; L. Lazarus (Newcastle, N.8.W.), 3. Boat race: Senior: Cronulla (N.S.W.) 1; South Curl Curl (N.S.W.), 2; Swansea-Belmont (N.S.W.), 3. Junior: Cronulla (N.S.W.), 1; Swansea Belmont (N.S.W.), 2; South Curl Curl (N.S.W.), 3. Double surf ski race: L. Lazarus-R. Connelly (Newcastle, N.S.W.), 1;_ J. Jones-R. Larkin (Coogee, N.B.WJ. K; a, King-D. Shepherd (Warrnambool), 3. Beach sprint: N. Montgomery (Collaroy, N.S.W.), 1; I. Moil (Leighton, W.A.), 2; N. Scott (Bunbury, W.A.), 3. Beach relay: Collaroy (N.S.W.), 1; Cronulla (N.S.W.), 2; Maroubra (NÜ.W.), 3. Musical flags: J. Tenneson (Collaroy, N.S.W.), 1; Pillow fight: H. Gee (Dee Why), 1. The Australian Championships (1951, March 29). Western Mail (Perth, WA : 1885 - 1954), p. 60. Retrieved from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article39115170

Bliss League's Top Sprinter
Johnny Bliss, Manly-Warringah winger, yesterday won the Rugby League 100 yards sprint championship at the Sports Ground.
BACKS. - First heat: R. Dimond (W.S.). 1; R. Langbein (N.S.). 2. Second heat: J. Bliss (M.W.), 1; J. Carmody (B.), 2. Final: J. Bliss, 1; J. Carmody, 2; R. Dimond, 3. Won by 11 yards.
FORWARDS-First heat: F. Burke (E.S.), 1; N. Brennan (P.), 2. Second heal: M. Williams (B.), 1; R. Neilsen (S.S.), 2. Final: R. Neilsen, 1; F. Burke, 2; M. Williams, 3. Won by inches.
REFEREES.--First heat: W. Stewart, 1; A. Holt, 2. Second hear: J. Tubridy, 1; A. Dengate, 2. Final: W. Stewart, 1; A. Holt, 2; A. Dengate, 3. Won by inches. Bliss League's Top Sprinter (1950, September 17). The Sunday Herald (Sydney, NSW : 1949 - 1953), p. 12 (Sports Section). Retrieved fromhttp://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article18474601 

Surf Treble To Freshwater
MCMAHON SHINES
Freshwater Surf Club won the senior, junior and teams surf races at the Manly club carnival yesterday.
Beach sprint, final M Montgomery (Collaroy), 1, R Langbein (Collaroy), 2, P Hickman (Cronulla), 3 Beach relay, final Collaroy, 1, Deewhy, 2, Cronulla. 3 Surf Treble To Freshwater (1951, January 28). The Sunday Herald (Sydney, NSW : 1949 - 1953), p. 12 (Sporting Section). Retrieved fromhttp://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article18495930 

NEW SURF CLUB AT COLLAROY
 
Collaroy on the Sydney side of Narrabeen, is one of the most popular of our beaches. The lifesaving club has now been provided with a fine, well-equipped club-house, which was officially opened by Mr. Parkhill, M.P., on Saturday. The Camera As a News Recorder (1927, November 23). Sydney Mail (NSW : 1912 - 1938), , p. 19. Retrieved from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article158297122


North Sydney Boys began off site in temporary classes in 1912, as North Sydney Intermediate High School, which was located in Blue Street. At the beginning of 1915, the new school on the corner of Falcon Street and Miller Street, Crows Nest was opened to 214 students. The School chose the Falcon as its logo according to the location of the school on Falcon Street, even going as far as to name its Old Boys Alumni "Old Falconians" in 1933. After years of controversy, it has been decided to celebrate the centenary in 2012. 
The first headmaster was Nimrod Greenwood. He had been headmaster of the North Sydney Superior School before the establishment of the High School and had 33 years of service as Headmaster of the two schools. On his retirement in 1915, he was succeeded by C R Smith who had founded Newcastle High School and was to go to head Sydney High School in 1918. Smith was succeeded by the headmaster who had replaced him at Newcastle High School, William Williams, who guided the school for the next 13 years. On his promotion to Inspector, Williams was succeeded also succeeded by the then Headmaster of Newcastle Boys High School, R F Harvey, in 1932; Harvey was head until his death in 1947.