Plainfield Academy (Connecticut)
Plainfield Academy was a school in Windham County, Connecticut[1] founded in 1770 and closed in 1890.[2] One of the school buildings was documented for the Historic American Buildings Survey. The school attracted students from around New England and was considered one of the best in Connecticut.[3] It educated many students who went on to prominence. Chickasaw Indians were among its pupils.[3]
History
Ebenezer Pemberton was the school's first principal.[4] Land for the school was given by Lydia German and others.[5] The school was coeducational, teaching men and women together.[6] Teacher and educational reformer Prudence Crandall, who taught nearby, was inspired by its model including the way it avoided corporal punishment.[6]
An image of the school is included in the 1917 publication The Government of the People in the State of Connecticut noting it as one of Connecticut's most significant educational institutions.[7]
Legacy
After the school closed, two of its buildings (White Hall and Brock Hall) were used for district schools.[4] Rev. Lucien Burleigh was principal of its grammar school from 1855 until 1860.[3] John Witter also served as principal.[5]
Alumni
- John Paine Cushman, U.S. Congressman, university regent, and judge
- J. Cleaveland Cady, architect
- Calvin Goddard, lawyer and Speaker of the House in the Connecticut legislature.[3]
References
- ^ "Old Academy, Plainfield, Windham County, CT". Library of Congress.
- ^ "Plainfield Academy: Grooming Connecticut Scholars in the 18th and 19th Centuries | Connecticut History | a CTHumanities Project". July 22, 2022.
- ^ a b c d Williams, Donald E. Jr. (June 3, 2014). Prudence Crandall's Legacy: The Fight for Equality in the 1830s, Dred Scott, and Brown v. Board of Education. Wesleyan University Press. ISBN 9780819574718 – via Google Books.
- ^ a b Lincoln, Allen B. (November 30, 1920). "A Modern History of Windham County, Connecticut: A Windham County Treasure Book". S. J. Clarke Publishing Company – via Google Books.
- ^ a b Larned, Ellen Douglas (1880). "History of Windham County, Connecticut: 1760-1880".
- ^ a b Williams, Donald E. (June 3, 2014). Prudence Crandall's Legacy: The Fight for Equality in the 1830s, Dred Scott, and Brown v. Board of Education. ISBN 9780819574718.
- ^ Douglas, Charles Henry (1917). "The Government of the People in the State of Connecticut".
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