Mother Mathilde Raclot, leader of this group, was to become a key personality in the early history of the Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus on Victoria Street.

The nuns began taking in pupils only ten days after moving in, establishing the first CHIJ school in Singapore.

[2] Father Beurel had since acquired all the nine lots of land between Victoria Street and North Bridge Road, originally belonging to the Raffles Institution, that would constitute the entire convent complex.

These diaries cover over a hundred years of convent history, from 1851 to 1971; they are handwritten in French and entitled Annales de Singapour.

Apart from daily chores, the nuns also had to organise and attend mass, grade papers, maintain the buildings and the grounds as well as raise money to support their activities.

[2] Saint Nicholas Girls' School was established on 16 January 1933 and held classes in the four old bungalows which once formed the Hotel van Wijk of the 1890s.

During the Japanese Occupation of Singapore, about forty of the Sisters, together with the orphans and teachers were deported to a camp in Bahau, Negeri Sembilan, Malaya (present day Malaysia), where many of them would die from the harsh conditions there.

By December 1983, both primary and secondary schools had vacated the site and moved to their new premises in Toa Payoh, where they began operations in the following year.

The Urban Redevelopment Authority put up the site for sale in March 1990 and later had the Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus Chapel and Caldwell House gazetted as national monuments on 26 October 1990.

In 1996, after almost five and a half years of conservation and construction work, what was once the Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus and the seat of education for generations of Singapore girls, has been converted into a plaza of theme retail and food and beverage outlets interspersed with ample outdoor spaces and courtyards, cloistered walls and long, covered walkways.

This haven in the city hub of Singapore, now known as CHIJMES, is a S$100 million project unmatched for its location and unique ambiance.

Caldwell House was purchased for the convent by Father Jean-Marie Beurel, a French missionary, who also established Saint Joseph's Institution, the former site of which is now the Singapore Art Museum, and the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd, where he was the parish priest.

The early Gothic Revival style Convent of the Holy Infant Jesus Chapel has finely detailed works, such as the plasterwork, the wall frescoes and stained glass panels.

Some of these physical changes include the 1) lowering of cloister walls along Victoria Street, 2) 4 new entrances, 3) Access to the chapel and Caldwell house 4) removal of cobblestone floor and lifting of the roof, 5) covering of sunken courtyards.

Lowering of cloister walls along Victoria Street New entrances Access to the chapel and Caldwell House Change of cobblestone floor and elevating the roof Sunken courtyards sheltered The wedding scene in Crazy Rich Asians took place at CHIJMES Hall.