PEN EDUCATION SOCIETY,
PEN, PIN-402107, Dist. Raigad,
Maharashtra State, India
Estd. 1910      Phone 91 2143 252032

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A Brief History

We have come a long way! Old memories seem far distant, but one needs to move down the memory lane. Especially when you look at your Alma Mater, you might wonder how it all began. Here’s then a short history of events that led to today’s solid edifice known as PEN EDUCATION SOCIETY.

Before 1875, children had to go to Mumbai—perhaps the only place to learn English— to get high school education. But unlike today it was not that easy to go there, and the seventies of this century were infested with plague and malaria, insurmountable diseases. Hence, Some Christian missionaries had started three primary English classes. Then Alibag was deemed to be the district headquarters, and as a result, the school unit was moved there. Some industrious citizens in Pen did not like the closure though. They moved mountains and the classes reopened in Pen. Later the Municipal Council took over. Now there were five classes. Despite this facility students had to go elsewhere for the next two classes. Shri. Vinayak Narayan Manohar, who had studied somewhere else, started these two classes known as the ‘Pen Candidate Classes’. Some of his educated friends joined him in the effort. Plague, however, wreaked havoc and the classes were closed again.

Later Shri Bhikaji Krishna Patavardhan, a Taluka Magistrate, proved to be a booster to the revival of the Anglo-vernacular school. Around 1900, an industrial training school, known as ‘Kokan Vidyalaya’ was opened. Shri Balkrishna Shankar Karandikar, who had set up this school, was arrested for his involvement in the Nasik Conspiracy case, and this school had to be abandoned in 1909.

Now there was no time to be lost doing small things and undertaking haphazard educational activities. It was on the 9th April of 1910 that the District Collector organized a meeting of eminent citizens in the presence of the Deputy District Collector Shri. M. S. Jaykar and the Pen Taluka Magistrate Shri. Babasaheb Donde. This marathon meeting literally burned midnight oil—the eve extended to the next daybreak—and the tenth of April saw the birth of Pen Education Society. It was also decided that they start a new school named Pen Private High School—this explains how the acronym, PPHS, came into being.

As the school needed a building, Shri. Shankar Khanderao Phanse came to the rescue, and rented out his bungalow—today known as the Maternity Hospital—for Rs. 25. The PPHS was housed here until October 1912.

The land on which you see a new building standing is government land. Shri. Antaji Vinayak Kolhatkar, a retired Collector of Customs, had unfortunately lost his young son. So he created a trust of his savings and handed it over for safe custody to Shri. Mahedeo Manohar who, with this money, erected a building at the foot of a hill which is known as Peer Dongari. Thus came into being the Pen Private High School.