BOARDING SCHOOL ESTABLISHED AT WANG LANG
The first step necessary to establish the new boarding school was to procure a suitable building. Space at the mission compound did not permit of a new building with room for future expansion. It so happened that the mission had already purchased a piece of land with the intention of opening a second station. A residence had been begun but remained unfinished for lack of funds. It was decided to turn this property over to the school and complete the building with funds provided by the Troy Branch. The locality was known as Wang Lang, a name which attached itself to the school for several years. Concerning this site Dr. House wrote:
“The location of the school is a fine one. It is central, healthy and breezy; on the west bank of the noble river Meinam, which rolls through the great city; opposite to, but a quarter of a mile above, the Royal Palace, where its buildings such as they are cannot but testify to prince, noble and peasant as they pass by in their boats of state or barges what Western Christian nations think of female education. They also testify to the generosity and friendship of the American church people.”
As soon as the building could be made ready Dr. and Mrs. House and Miss Anderson moved to the new location. On May 13, 1874, this first boarding school for girls in Siam was opened with six boarders and one day pupil. The building, originally intended only for a residence, was none too commodious. The basement contained kitchen, dining room and servants’ quarters; the first floor had a suite of three rooms for Dr. and Mrs. House and one common living room; on the second floor was one small sleeping room for Miss Anderson and two large rooms which served as school rooms by day and as dormitories for the girls by night. Within a year a second helper was added in the person of Miss Susie D. Grimstead. By the second year twenty girls had enrolled, living in these two rooms, rather small quarters by American standards but ample according to native custom.
In one regard Mrs. House was disappointed in her expectation. It had been her confident hope to attract to this school daughters of some of the nobles and princes. A few of this class came at first but soon the school was left to the girls of the common class. The value of an education was not yet as highly valued among the higher classes as among the lowly; for the women of the upper grades not only had no need to read but no need to work; while on the other hand the practical nature of the training given in the school did not meet the requirements of their social position. In later years, however, there was a decided change, and with the growing popularity of education nearly half of the pupils in the school were from the noble families.