Vytautas the great gymnasium (S. Daukanto Street 31)

The Lithuanian gymnasium was established in the hall of Sandora organisation in 1922 and had 28 pupils. In 1923 it was transferred to the premises of the Teachers’ Seminary. There the number of pupils kept growing, while the gymnasium was led by P. Mašiotas and later – K. Trukanas. In 1930 the Lithuanian gymnasium was named after Vytautas the Great.
In 1933 the Ministry of Education allocated funds for the construction of a new building, designed by H. Reissmann, working together with A. Nixdorff. The new building was opened in 1934, however, that was only the first stage of the construction – the building was supposed to resemble the letter “E” – the left wing, intended for the future Trade Institute was planned to be built later. Aside from 20 classes, a laboratory, an aula, a sports hall, a diner, workshops and an apartment for the principal of the school, the attics of the building also had rooms for incoming tourists.
It used to take 9 years to graduate and pupils used to study according to a reformed programme of German gymnasiums, approved by the Ministry of Education. For a while girls and boys studied separately and parents had to pay for their schooling, but the Government used to offer benefits to compensate a part of the tuition. Just like in all schools of Klaipėda region, the school year used to start in April and continued until March with a month of summer holidays. The number of pupils continuously grew, reaching almost 500 in 1939. In 1938 the gymnasium employed 25 teachers. In 1939 the gymnasium was transferred to Palanga and the building in Klaipėda was used as barracks and later – military hospital.