As the town of Andover grew, the center of its population no longer centered around its original meeting place. South and West Parishes could not be conveniently accommodated by Franklin Academy. Families were not willing to send and board their daughters in the North Parish. For fifty years after the establishment of Phillips Academy, young woman from the South and West Parishes had no educational advantages except to be sent to small private schools, or to be instructed at home.
In time the residents felt it was important for an academy for woman of the same base as the institution for men. Rev. Dr. Jackson, pastor of West Parish, Rev. Mr. Badger of South Church and Deacon Mark Newman were influential in this movement. Mrs. Sarah Abbot, the childless widow of Nehemiah Abbot was the actual founder. It was she who donated $1000.00 of her monies and sought donations for the erection of an academy building. Mark Newman gave an acre of land and eventually there were 23 acres on the property.
The school opened on May 6, 1829 with 70 students enrolled. It was the first academy incorporated in the State solely for the education of woman. Tuition of $5.00 for a term was often earned by a week's work at a cotton loom. Original accommodations were meager as one broken stove heated the entire recitation hall. The building was bare of equipment and teaching books, and it was fortunate that the students were able to "supply by their own bright minds and earnest will what was lacking in their surroundings". (1)Weathier families could easily afford tuition at Ipswich Seminary or Hartford, but both rich, and not-so-rich families in Andover were pleased to chose their own "self-made school", Abbot Academy.
(1) p 486: "It must be remembered that children ten to nineteen years old provided a substantial proportion of family income. A daughter in school could mean factory wage forgone as well as tuition fees paid for. According to Daniel Webster, a male workman in 1843 could save $12.00 a month after paying essential expenses....."
Abbot Students 1829 - 1835
Abbot Officers, Matrons and Nurses
All photos taken and copyright by P. Chagnon, 2004-2008
Phillips Academy Home Page
Phillips Academy
Source : Historical Sketches of Andover by S. L. Bailey, and A Singular School, by S.M. Lloyd, 1979, pp 39-40. Transcribed and copyright JAS 2004-2008
Special thanks to the Archive Librarian at Phillips Academy for generously providing me with information, and lists from Abbot Academy.
