Tamsui Elementary School 2014

The annual celebration of the establishment of Tamsui Elementary School was held recently. This school was founded in 1895 soon after Taiwan was ceded to Japan. Initially it was a language school with only a handful of pupils. It was formalized as an elementary school in 1902 at the present site.

The festivities included demonstration of boat-rowing exercise 【漕艇体操】, a century-old tradition passed down from the Japanese colonial era. And this year, it was performed by 4th grade pupils:

2014年 淡水國小校慶

Courtesy of Mr N Hirokawa

In these 1939 photos, the top one shows the same occasion and the same exercise. The only difference is that before the 1950s, this school was for boys only.