Page 7 - v3 Yearbook

BRIEF HISTORY OF THE SCHOOL

Wesley Girls’ High School, Cape Coast was founded by Mrs. Harriet By 1900, the School was on its own again with Mrs. H. J. Ellis as the
Wrigley, the wife of the second Methodist Missionary to the Gold Headmistress. The school in the early twentieth century was dominated
Coast, in 1836 with twenty (25) girls. Her aim was to give the girls by the able leadership and constructive work of Sister Evelyn Bellamy,
basic training in housekeeping and catechism. Classes were held at a deaconess who headed the School from 1914 to 1943. It was during
the Manse in the Standfast Hall near the Victoria Park in Cape Coast; her reign, precisely on 8th June 1925, that Dr. Kwegyir Aggrey visited
and subjects taught included writing, reading, sewing and religious the School and penned these words in the log book; “to educate a boy
education. This lasted about five months until Mrs. Wrigley passed is to educate an individual but to educate a girl is to educate a family”.
away.
In 1951, the secondary section of the School was separated definitely
She was replaced in 1837 by Mrs. Elizabeth Waldron who took over the from the primary section when Miss Olive Compton moved it to its
administration of the School for forty-three (43) years. Mrs. Waldron present site at Kakumdo. With time, the glamour of the high school
laid a solid foundation for what was to become the Wesleyan Girls’ eclipsed the primary section which has not regained its former glory
School and Training Home. Values such as fortitude, integrity and till today.
truthfulness soon became the hallmarks of the products of the School.
Their high academic achievements encouraged the Methodist church The firm establishment of the High School is attributed to Miss
to agree to the provision of higher education for girls. Consequently, Compton who conceptualized the School as H. M. S. Excellence (a
in 1884, Rev. W. M. Cannell, the Headmaster of Mfantsipim School ship) and had the School designed architecturally as such, with the
at the time, started the Secondary section with twenty (20) girls. The chapel being the bridge of the ship.
primary and secondary sections continued by fits and starts and were
sometimes closed down due to acute shortage of funding. It even The School had four houses or student dormitories at the time
suffered a temporary loss of identity when it had to team up with celebrating the founders (Adikanfo) – Bellamy (Block A), Ellis (Block
Mfantsipim as a co-educational secondary school under a new name, B) and Waldron (Block C) on the right and Wrigley (Block D) on the
The Collegiate School. left.
Ms. Clarice Garnett, the subsequent headmistress and the last of the

WEYGEYHEY 96 7 20TH ANNIVERSARY YEARBOOK