Edward George Wollaston came from a family of churchmen and educators. He was named for his great-grandfather, Edward Wollaston, who was master at Charterhouse School, London where his maternal great-grandfather, Dr Ramsden was headmaster. Edward's grandfather, John Ramsden Wollaston, was educated at Charterhouse and Christ College, Cambridge where he took his degree and was ordained. He married Mary Amelia Gledstanes and they produced a family of five sons and two daughters. Edward's father was their fourth son, George Gledstanes Wollaston.¹

To support their growing family, John and Mary migrated to Western Australia where John was promised a ministry at a proposed new settlement on Port Leschenault. On arrival, however, he was dismayed to find he had to construct his own church before receiving any wages. He and his sons set about building a small wooden church with a thatched roof, which was consecrated in 1842. Colonial life suited John, and his personal qualities and dedication to missionary work led him to remain in the West where he became Archdeacon of Western Australia, an office he held until his death. His sons, George, Henry and William, moved on to South Australia where George, a religious man of resolute faith, became manager of Poonindie Aboriginal Mission. He later travelled through South Australia and Tasmania, visiting influential acquaintances with letters of introduction from his father. He married Mary McGowan, daughter of the Reverend James McGowan, who ran the first classical school in Adelaide. Their first son, Edward George, was born at Gum Creek on 3 October 1857. In 1860 George became manager of Lake Hamilton Station near Port Lincoln, where Edward spent his childhood.²

Edward's early education was at Whinham College in Adelaide but at the age of eight he was sent to Victoria where he remained for the rest of his life. He lived with his Uncle Henry who had become Minister of Trinity Church on the corner of Hoddle and Hotham Streets and he attended the attached Denominational school that later became State School 303, Hoddle Street, East Melbourne. In 1873 Edward was appointed pupil-teacher under the head master Stephen Trythall and two important strands of his life, pedagogy and religious commitment, were established.³

The pupil-teacher system was a method of teacher training designed to provide staff to the growing number of state schools under the jurisdiction of the Department of Education. Edward's acceptance of a pupil teachership indicates that his family thought this a useful career and one that would enable him to proceed to higher education. Edward was ambitious and diligent in following this path. As a pupil-teacher he was efficient and obedient. In 1878 he was praised by head teacher Stephen Trythall: 'Mr Wollaston was trained under my charge during four and a quarter years. I always found him active and reliable, thoroughly conscientious, scrupulously neat and exact in his work'.⁴ Having gained his Licence to Teach, Edward wrote to the Department of his ambitious plan to matriculate and continue on to a university degree.⁵

Mary Davies Barker commenced duty at Alexandra State School 912 in 1873, the same year that Wollaston was appointed pupil-teacher. Mary was born in Devonshire around 1843 and was about nine years old when her family travelled to Australia.⁶ They settled in Sandhurst where her father, Charles Eli Barker, was a land surveyor. Mary commenced employment as a teacher in 1867 at the Church of England School, New Gisborne but was dismissed from her position when deemed to be 'a female teacher not being equal to the growing requirements of the school'.⁷ She later took up employment with the new Department of Education at Alexandra State School 912. Her records show she was frequently absent for long periods, her health already affecting her ability to work. Inspectors Main and Gamble considered her 'Moderate in ability but lacks energy' and Inspector Craig thought she 'has skill - lacks life'.⁸ In April 1877 Mary was joined on the staff by the young, bright and ambitious second assistant, Edward George Wollaston. Edward was then twenty years old and Mary about thirty-five and most certainly frail in health.

In August 1877 a confident Edward requested a transfer to a larger centre at either Ballarat or Melbourne where he could pursue his studies for a university degree. In November he wrote again to the Department, stating his need for time for study. By December he had passed the literary section of his Certificate examination and again applied for transfer to Ballarat. Almost a year passed. By October 1878 he was fearful he would lose his position at Alexandra due to falling attendances. He did not want his career stalled through transfer to a small bush school and again pleaded his case for removal to a city where he could pursue his studies. 'I respectfully beg that I may be transferred to Ballarat or another of the large centres,' he wrote, 'where I may have a better opportunity of making myself efficient in the higher branches of learning than I possess here.'⁹

Edward and Mary were distressed when the school was examined in November 1878 and they each received a poor report from Inspector Gamble. Mary, as noted above, was described as 'moderate in ability', but Edward received the devastating judgement of 'poor'.¹⁰ Fearing the report would have a prejudicial effect on their careers, they worked together on a reply. 'We respectfully beg that the adverse report of Mr. Gamble may not affect our credit in the department', they wrote. Epidemics had swept through Alexandra and obviously affected their results. In addition they thought the examination 'was unusually severe'. The letter is written in Edward's hand and he attached several testimonials, a strategy he practised throughout his career. In 1878 these were copied carefully in his hand, but later his testimonials were published in a brochure that he affixed to appropriate letters.¹¹ Edward would use Trythall's 'much superior to the generality of junior teachers' and Inspector Main's 'active and skilful in the discharge of his duties' as testimonials for the next thirty years.