Traditional Boarding Schools: Country Homes
Figure 1.-- The site of choice for the early prep schools were large country houses. These homes had the room to create classrooms, dormitories, and other facilities. Some of the early prep schools were founded in more modest homes. This varied grearly from school to school and the circumstances of the individuals founding the schools. Some of the more elaborate homes were acquired by schools after World War I when for economic reasons it became increasingly difficult for individuals to afford to maintain large esttes.
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The site of choice for the early prep schools were large country houses. These homes had the room to create classrooms, dormitories, and other facilities. They also had surrounding grounds that could be converted into playing fields. Commonly the schools took on the names of these homes. This is why the names of the prep schools are commonly very different that those of the public schools. Few of the early schools had purpose-built school buildings. Some had other buildings like stables which could be converted for other pirposes. Some of the homes had extensive grounds. Some even had impressive formal gardens, but this varied from school to school. Some of the early prep schools were founded in more modest homes. This varied grearly from school to school and the circumstances of the individuals founding the schools. Some of the more elaborate homes were acquired by schools after World War I when for economic reasons it became increasingly difficult for individuals to afford to maintain large esttes. The school life of the early revolved around the large country homes. Only gradually were other facilities built. Many of the elaborate facilities now offered by the schools whave been built rather recently.
