Menu
Otto Krome
DESCRIPTION
BiographyOtto Krome was born in Hannover, Germany, in 1863. He was sent to South Africa by his family at the age of 16 due their growing concerns about increased militarism in the German regions, and to ensure that he avoid being forced into joining the Prussian military service.
Otto completed a Bachelor of Arts and taught in South Africa before emigrating to Bendigo in 1890. In 1893 he moved to Melbourne, teaching at Wesley College before co-founding University High School. He joined MLC in 1906, already a highly regarded teacher and educational administrator and during his time, he encouraged and fostered academic and athletic excellence amongst students. It was Mr Krome who introduced the prefect system in 1906, and it is thought that because his favourite colour was green, MLC students started adopting green as in aspects of the College’s first uniform, and which has remained MLCs official colour ever since.
Mr Krome’s five daughters – Otillie, Gretchen, Victoria, Lawrence, and Helene – all attended MLC and were top students and sportswomen. Victoria Krome later became Headmistress of The Hermitage (now part of Geelong Grammar School).
A great sadness entered Mr Krome’s at the outbreak of World War I. Anti-German sentiment in Australia led to terrible and unjustified criticism of Mr Krome, whose loyalty to the Commonwealth was questioned because of his Germanic background. His high-profile position as MLC’s Headmaster made him the target of newspaper attacks, and the College received anonymous letters criticising MLC for having a German person in a senior position. He was subjected to police and military investigations. On the eve of his daughter Ottilie’s wedding in 1916, her fiancé’s family even received a threatening letter warning them not to let their son marry into the Krome family.
The MLC community, particularly Principal Rev. Dr. William H. Fitchett, supported and defended Mr Krome completely, but his health failed in large part due to the stress caused by these criticisms and he died in 1917. Distraught MLC students (particularly the prefects) staff and families raised funds for a lasting tribute to the beloved Headmaster, and the beautiful Krome Memorial Gates were opened in 1923 when the wall along Glenferrie and Barkers Roads was also completed. Mr Krome’s wife, Eleanor, officially opened the gates with a sterling silver key that was later donated to the MLC Archives by the Krome family. Two small plaques were previously on the back of the gate record its history – these are now also in the Archives.
In 1921, the school commissioned artist John Farmer to paint an oil portrait of Mr Krome. At the unveiling ceremony in 1921, a colleague stated: "To those of us who knew Mr. Krome, the portrait seemed intensely real - the noble and kindly expression, the strong features, and the clever head are so faithfully portrayed, that no explanation of his character is needed."
Mr Krome was further honoured at MLC when a school House was named for him in 1937 and when the Krome Dining Room was opened in the Centenary Building in 1982. Each year we remember Mr Krome when we walk through the gates on Founders’ Day and farewell our Year 12 students on their last day.
Otto Krome’s story shows us that MLC’s history is not only part of an Australian story, but one that showcases how a world event, thousands of miles away, still impacted MLC and its community in a significant and poignant way. The Krome Gates are one of MLC’s most visible and aesthetically pleasing icons, passed each day by hundreds of pedestrians and drivers, marking an historical chapter in MLC’s and Melbourne’s history. Date of Birth1863Date of Death1917
Otto completed a Bachelor of Arts and taught in South Africa before emigrating to Bendigo in 1890. In 1893 he moved to Melbourne, teaching at Wesley College before co-founding University High School. He joined MLC in 1906, already a highly regarded teacher and educational administrator and during his time, he encouraged and fostered academic and athletic excellence amongst students. It was Mr Krome who introduced the prefect system in 1906, and it is thought that because his favourite colour was green, MLC students started adopting green as in aspects of the College’s first uniform, and which has remained MLCs official colour ever since.
Mr Krome’s five daughters – Otillie, Gretchen, Victoria, Lawrence, and Helene – all attended MLC and were top students and sportswomen. Victoria Krome later became Headmistress of The Hermitage (now part of Geelong Grammar School).
A great sadness entered Mr Krome’s at the outbreak of World War I. Anti-German sentiment in Australia led to terrible and unjustified criticism of Mr Krome, whose loyalty to the Commonwealth was questioned because of his Germanic background. His high-profile position as MLC’s Headmaster made him the target of newspaper attacks, and the College received anonymous letters criticising MLC for having a German person in a senior position. He was subjected to police and military investigations. On the eve of his daughter Ottilie’s wedding in 1916, her fiancé’s family even received a threatening letter warning them not to let their son marry into the Krome family.
The MLC community, particularly Principal Rev. Dr. William H. Fitchett, supported and defended Mr Krome completely, but his health failed in large part due to the stress caused by these criticisms and he died in 1917. Distraught MLC students (particularly the prefects) staff and families raised funds for a lasting tribute to the beloved Headmaster, and the beautiful Krome Memorial Gates were opened in 1923 when the wall along Glenferrie and Barkers Roads was also completed. Mr Krome’s wife, Eleanor, officially opened the gates with a sterling silver key that was later donated to the MLC Archives by the Krome family. Two small plaques were previously on the back of the gate record its history – these are now also in the Archives.
In 1921, the school commissioned artist John Farmer to paint an oil portrait of Mr Krome. At the unveiling ceremony in 1921, a colleague stated: "To those of us who knew Mr. Krome, the portrait seemed intensely real - the noble and kindly expression, the strong features, and the clever head are so faithfully portrayed, that no explanation of his character is needed."
Mr Krome was further honoured at MLC when a school House was named for him in 1937 and when the Krome Dining Room was opened in the Centenary Building in 1982. Each year we remember Mr Krome when we walk through the gates on Founders’ Day and farewell our Year 12 students on their last day.
Otto Krome’s story shows us that MLC’s history is not only part of an Australian story, but one that showcases how a world event, thousands of miles away, still impacted MLC and its community in a significant and poignant way. The Krome Gates are one of MLC’s most visible and aesthetically pleasing icons, passed each day by hundreds of pedestrians and drivers, marking an historical chapter in MLC’s and Melbourne’s history. Date of Birth1863Date of Death1917
CONNECTIONS
KeywordsFormer StaffCategoryPeople & Families
Otto Krome. MLC Collections, accessed 26/09/2026, https://mlccollections.mlc.vic.edu.au/nodes/view/1998