Stories For A Century

Weston Fenhagen '37

Life in the main house corridor is very pleasant but it has its unhappy moments; for instance the inspector may find a bit of dust in the corner of a room when he examines it in the morning.

Living in the main house is, in a great many ways, very convenient. The classrooms are situated right below us, and the locker room and showers are also in the same building. If only the dining room were in the main building it would be very luxurious, but that is too much to be hoped for.

Most of the main house boys are on the second floor but there are five or six boys and a master on the third floor which is decidedly the best part of the building from their point of view. From the third floor rooms one commands a beautiful view of most of the school grounds.

All the boys of the main house rise at seven each morning except Saturday and Sunday morning when they stay in bed until the late hour of seven thirty. Breakfast is served a half hour later after which all the boys clean their rooms thoroughly. They have about a half hour in which to do them, and then the masters or appointed boys inspect every corner of all the rooms. When this is over, the boys then retire to their respective classrooms for their day's work.

In the evening after all the boys have come in from football and have taken their showers, the main house boys come to the reception room on the main floor where they are served a hot cup of tea and a sandwich before they go to chapel. It is very pleasing to come in from playing all afternoon and be warmed up with this hot stimulant.

After supper, the boys have study hall for an hour and a half, after which they prepare for bed. The eight-thirty-to-bed boys are told a story by one of the masters every other night, and the nine o’clock boys are also told a story, a little while later.

The boys come down to the corner room on the second floor for their story in their bathrobes. The light is turned off and a fire is lit, throwing shadows back and forth across the room. 

All in all, the main house boys have a great many privileges that the others do not have. The boys have a great time in the main house and enjoy their life very much.

Written when Weston was at Rectory School, this story appeared in The Rectory News, Vol. X, No. 1, October 21, 1935. Today the Main House is named the Grosvenor House.

Image: Weston Fenhagen (right), Rectory Archives, 1935