Former St. George's Girls' School Buildings
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Former St. George's Girls' School in 2008 (7 August 2008)
The Former St. George's Girls' School Building along Farquhar Street next to the Eastern & Oriental Hotel is the oldest existing site for the school. It was constructed in 1888 next to (most likely) the residence of Reverend L. Courtier Biggs, an Anglican missionary with the St. George's Anglican Church. As with the church, the school was named after St. George, the patron saint of England, and also one of the most venerated saints to the Catholics, Anglicans, Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox churches.
Here's how the former school building look like in 2008 and 2010. Little has changed in the last two years.
Former St. George's Girls' School in 2010 (23 October 2010)The government took over the St. George's Girls' School in 1909, and renamed it the Government Girls' School. It was the preferred school among many families as it provided a more secular form of education, as opposed to the Catholic-based Convent Light Street nearby. There was a brief period when the government attempted to make the school co-educational. However, it was not successful. In 1920, the school was returned to the Anglicans, and it reverted to its original name.
To cater to the increased in student intake, the school relocated to Northam Road. The photo of the school at Northam Road is shown in the last photo of this page. The building along Farquhar Street served as a boarding house for the school. At Northam Road, additional school buildings were erected in the 1930's.
In 1954, St George's Girls' School relocated once again, to its present location at Macalister Road, on the site previously used as the race course of the Penang Turf Club, which was moving to the Batu Gantong area. The school building at Northam Road was then occupied by another school, the Northam Road Girls' School.
Former St George's Girls' School Building
After the building was vacated by the St George's Girls' School, it was used by various government departments including the Social Welfare and the Northern Division of the Anti-Corruption Agency. As of 2014, the building will be preserved as part of a new development known as Shorefront Penang.
The St George's School building in Northam Road (19 March 2010)View Former St George's Girls' School Buildings in a larger map
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