GESS History

No school perhaps has had a more distinguished array of personalities connected with it than Gan Eng Seng School. We learn that before it became a government school, it had on its Board of Trustees such names as Tan Keong Saik, Ho Yang Peng, Wee Theam Tew, Lee Cheng Yan, S.J. Chan, Wee Swee Teow, Song Ong Siang, and Dr. Lim Boon Keng.

In 1885, a school was opened in some shophouses in Telok Ayer Street by Mr Gan Eng Seng to offer free education to the children of poor parents in the vicinity. It was called the Anglo-Chinese Free School, and in no way connected with the other Anglo-Chinese School founded a year later by the late Bishop W.F. Oldham. In 1888, Gan Eng Seng School became an Aided School. It still owed much to the generosity of Mr Gan Eng Seng. When in 1889, the Government gave the school a site in Telok Ayer Street for a new building, it was Mr Gan Eng Seng who put up the building itself. On 4th April, 1893 the new building was opened by the Governor, Sir Cecil Clementi Smith.

English as well as Chinese were taught at Gan Eng Seng School until the founder's death, when it became a purely English School. Then owing to financial difficulties, it no longer functioned as a free school, and for some time fees were charged.

In 1937 the Board of Trustees owing to financial difficulties was not in a position to carry out major and urgent repairs to the school premises. Therefore in the interest of the school, Gan Eng Seng became a Government school in 1938 after fifty years of useful work.

In 1939, the clouds were already beginning to darken not only over Gan Eng Seng School but over the whole world too. Plans for a new building, which was similar in style and size of Monk's Hill School were completed and passed, but the construction of the new Gan Eng Seng School Building at Anson Road could not begin as the shadow of war soon halted developments of any kind.

In May, 1941, the older section of the school building - the two-storey block in Telok Ayer Street - was declared unsafe for occupation, and had to be abandoned.

Alternative accommodation was hard to find, but eventually the Education Department decided to house the school temporarily in the Sepoy Lines Malay School in Park Road, where it was given the morning session. There was still insufficient space, and the primary classes had to be accommodated in a section of Pearl's Hill School close by.

When the school re-opened on 8th September, 1941, teachers and pupils settled down to their normal duties, quite unaware of the impending clouds of World War. On 5th September 1941, the school broke up for the Christmas vacation, but was destined not to meet again until four years and a half years later.

Soon after the outbreak of the war with Japan, the Sepoy Lines Malay School was requisitioned.

During the occupation, Gan Eng Seng School ceased to exist. With the liberation, attempts to resuscitate the school immediately were not successful. Many of the old members of the staff were assigned to other schools which were fortunate enough to be able to re-open . An attempt to re-open the school in the Japanese National School building in Waterloo Street was not successful at first, for an enterprising Chinese school was quick enough to act first by occupying the building, and meet and overcome objections afterwards.

When, however, the Outram School building was derequisitioned, it was found possible to accommodate Gan Eng Seng School too in the afternoon session. Soon the 13th May 1946, at the beginning of the second term, Gan Eng Seng School was finally re-opened, and the teachers who had been lent to Outram School returned to their own School.

Finally, exactly a year later, in May, 1947, the school succeeded in getting the Japanese School building in Waterloo Street where it functioned until 1951 when it shifted to Anson Road. Gan Eng Seng School is unique among the secondary schools in Singapore being the only one initiated, established and maintained by a local-born citizen with a gift of freehold property, buildings and adequate funds until his demise. Even the illustrious Raffles Institution, the older Mission and Communal Schools, e.g. St. Joseph's Institution and Chung Cheng High School, pale into insignificance in this respect.

In 1986 the new Gan Eng Seng School was opened on a new site beside Keppel Railway Station and officially inaugurated on 12th July 1989.