As I was considering topics for this week’s post, I came across the following photograph.

I’m sure most of you will recognize the building. It’s probably safe to imagine that most of us have sat or stood or even danced around the rooms of Fuller Lodge. You really can’t mistake the rich wood tones, the distinctive French doors, or that fireplace.

What’s a bit fascinating is that at first glance it might seem as if this is a photo from the Manhattan Project era. Maybe a dance for the GIs and scientific staff. Except that the girls are dressed in the sort of “formal wear” we often associate with school dances. And… the boys look awfully young with their slicked back hair, neckerchiefs, and shorts!

This photo is of a Valentines Day Dance in 1941, which was oddly appropriate given we just said goodbye to Valentines Day this week. Honestly, my first thought centered on the girls. Who were they? Where on earth did they come from? Were they daughters of local families on the plateau? The answer might surprise you.

In the 1930s and early 1940s, the Brownmoor School for Girls operated out of four leased buildings at the Bishop’s Lodge in Santa Fe. We tend to think of the Bishop’s Lodge as a fairly high end hotel offering spa services, trail rides, and other amenities to entertain tourists.

Back then the literature suggested it was a boarding school that “appeals to those parents who desire for their girls a development of their abilities under sympathetic guidance, and the maintenance of high standards of work conduct.” In actuality, the Brownmoor School operated quite a lot like the Los Alamos Ranch School did.

The Brownmoor School was founded in 1931 by Justine Ames Browne and Mary Atwell Moore who went on to be directors of the school. Girls came from all over, but many of them were from ranching families throughout the South and Midwest. The usual academic classes like mathematics, history, science and language were offered. Each girl had a horse to ride and spent much of their time outdoors doing archery, badminton, tennis, skiing, and skating. Dancing, singing, drama, and something called “social training” were also included. Which is where the Los Alamos Ranch School came in.

As part of their social training, girls would have the opportunity to attend away parties, gatherings, and events as a way to gain social graces that were a big part of why they’d been sent to boarding school in the first place. Of course, the Los Alamos Ranch School had morphed into the Manhattan Project site prior to the Brownmoor School’s move to Scottsdale, Arizona. The girls also attended events at the La Fonda hotel. Former students of the school recall Santa Fe as a wonderful place to be at that time. Artists from all over the US were plentiful. The food was amazing and unique experiences happened every day. Such as being awakened each morning at 7 AM by a matron with a “tom-tom” in the hallway, a name also given to the school yearbook.

It’s amazing to think that even though we consider Los Alamos to have been “remote” or “in the middle of nowhere” back in the Ranch School days, there was still a connectedness in the region. If you’d like to read more about the Brownmoor School for Girls, check out this article in the New Mexican here. When you’re ready to join our community here in Los Alamos, give me a call! I’d love to chat Los Alamos Real Estate with you!