Lifestyle

8 Schools in Singapore With the Richest History That Makes You Want to Study There

2017-10-10 , 8:03 am

Last Updated on 2022-09-20 , 3:34 pm

Like all old things, old schools are weird, have many stories, and are also very, very scary.

Here are 10 schools in Singapore with a history so rich, you’d wish you studied there. Of course, these schools are most likely haunted too.

Raffles Institution-1823

Anything with “Raffles” in its name will most likely be something extremely prestigious and historical (Raffles hotel etc). Hence, it is no surprise that Raffles Institution topped the list for the school with the richest history.

Other than being the alma mater of the late Lee Kuan Yew, this school is also the oldest school in Singapore. It has one of the largest campuses with the most iconic buildings and also has a whole list of notable alumni that stretches longer than a whole roll of toilet paper.

Hwa Chong Institution-1919

It was called Chinese High School, and it is set up by a man with the name of Tan Kah Kee, who also set up the Xiamen University and have an MRT station named after him. This school has the largest campus in Singapore and have very unique “Tan Kah Kee” styled building which merged western and eastern architecture.

St. Joseph’s Institution-1852

Being the 3rd oldest school in Singapore, this school was used as a hospital and housed a unit of the Civil Defence Force, the A.R.F. (Air Raid Precautionary Group) during the second world war. It was even bombed by the Japanese during the war which left a crater.

Saint Patrick’s School-1933

It was founded in 1933 as a branch school of St. Joseph’s Institution. During World War II, the school was used by the British as a hospital and later by the Japanese as an administrative building.

St. Margaret’s Secondary School-1842

St. Margaret’s School is the oldest girls’ school in Singapore and the Far East founded in 1842 by Mrs Maria Dyer, a missionary of the London Missionary Society. In 1841, Mrs Dyer stopped in Singapore en route to China.

Walking along the streets, she was horrified to see a pitiful group of young girls auctioned as slaves for the homes of the rich. Mrs Dyer resolved to do something for them and obtained permission from the Government to start a home for homeless girls, regardless of race, in a tiny house on North Bridge Road.

Anglo-Chinese School (Independent)-1886

ACS was founded on 1 March 1886 by Bishop William Fitzjames Oldham, as an extension of the Methodist Church. Its name came from the fact that it conducted lessons in English at night and Chinese in the afternoon. By the following year, enrollment had increased to 104, and the school moved to Coleman Street.

Chung Cheng High School-1939

The first supervisor of the school was war hero Lim Bo Seng. This was the school that was associated with student riots during the turbulent years of Singapore history. It has a beautiful lake filled with gigantic fishes and turtles right in the middle, and it has unique Chinese style architectures.

The grand auditorium was the largest in South East Asia when it was built, and it is now included in the list of national monuments.

Methodist Girl’s School-1887

It used to have only Tamil girls, and hence was called Tamil girls’ school. It was founded by Sophia Blackmore who was an Australian missionary sent by the Women’s Foreign Missionary Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church of America.