Former Site of McTyeire School

Former Site of McTyeire School

The Former Site of McTyeire School is a Shanghai Municipal Cultural Heritage Protection Unit.

Former Site of McTyeire School

No. 155 Jiangsu Road. Shanghai No. 3 Girls’ High School is a renowned century-old institution with over 130 years of history. It has accumulated rich cultural heritage and was once the paradise of old Shanghai’s elite ladies and is now a cradle for talented young women. The Soong sisters all studied here. The school originated from St. Mary’s Hall, founded in 1881 by the American Episcopal Church, and McTyeire School, established in 1892 by the Southern Methodist Episcopal Church. In 1952, both schools were taken over by the Shanghai Municipal People’s Government and merged under the name “Shanghai No. 3 Girls’ High School.”

Yu Xiulian, a former student of St. Mary’s Hall and cousin of Wu Guozhen, the former mayor of Shanghai, recalled that all thirty-plus girls in her class came from prominent Shanghai families. One of her classmates, surnamed Zheng, was the daughter-in-law of Du Yuesheng. On the monthly home-visiting day, long lines of cars would form at the school gate. By comparison, students like Zhang Ailing, who came from less illustrious backgrounds, were relatively modest. She was very thin, not considered pretty, had a gentle demeanor, dressed plainly, and studied extremely hard—qualities that earned her great favor from her teachers.

The current Shanghai No. 3 Girls’ High School on Jiangsu Road originated as McTyeire School (also known as McTyeire Girls’ High School), founded in 1892 by the American Methodist Episcopal Church. It was originally located east of the Muen Church on today’s Middle Tibet Road, admitting girls from Chinese Christian families. The Soong sisters—Ai-ling, Ching-ling, and May-ling—all attended this school. In 1916, the church sold the campus to the Yangzi Company to build the Yangtze Hotel (now Shenjiang Hotel). With the proceeds, they purchased land on Yidingpan Road (today’s No. 155 Jiangsu Road) in western Shanghai to construct a new branch campus, which was renamed McTyeire Girls’ High School in 1930. In June 1952, after merging with St. Mary’s Hall, it was renamed Shanghai No. 3 Girls’ High School.

The Former Site of McTyeire School was listed as a Shanghai Municipal Cultural Heritage Protection Unit in 2014.