AS students made their way into the Marist College Bendigo grounds for the first time yesterday, few families were as excited as the Sharkeys.

In 1915, James Sharkey started year 7 at the former Marist Brothers College on McCrae Street.

One hundred years later, almost to the day, the new Marist College campus at Maiden Gully meant his great grandson Ashley Sharkey could follow in his footsteps.

Not only did the pair start year 7 one hundred years apart, they were also born a century apart - in 1902 and 2002.

Despite the parallels, dad John Sharkey said the situation did not dawn on the family until after Ashley was enrolled.

"It pretty much just happened that way," he said.

The Sharkeys have a long history with the Marist Brothers College, as all three generations after James Sharkey have attended the school.

Among their possessions are Marist College newspapers from 1914 and 1915, detailing the impact of the war on the surrounding communities.

They also proudly own perfectly maintained photographs of James Sharkey during his time at the college.

A one hundred year old cross, often worn by one of the brothers at Bendigo, is also a part of their collection.

The similarities between the new campus and the former McCrae Street grounds may be few and far between, but for grandfather Terry Sharkey, the ideals of Marist Brothers will always live on.

"School is school," he said.