Fryeburg Academy

Last updated
Fryeburg Academy
Fryeburg Academy main building.jpg
Main building
Address
Fryeburg Academy
745 Main Street

Fryeburg
,
Maine
04037

United States
Coordinates 44°01′12″N70°58′31″W / 44.0200°N 70.9754°W / 44.0200; -70.9754
Information
Type Private, Boarding
Established1792;232 years ago (1792)
Head of SchoolJoseph R. Manning
Faculty53
Enrollment
  • 650 total
  • 185 boarding
  • 465 day
Average class size15 students
Student to teacher ratio11:1
Campus Rural, 238 acres (1 km2)
Color(s)Blue and White
Athletics40 teams
MascotRaider
Website www.fryeburgacademy.org

Fryeburg Academy is a private secondary school located in Fryeburg, Maine. The academy was founded in 1792, making it the oldest high school in Maine and one of the oldest private schools in the United States. [1] Daniel Webster was one of the first administrators, teaching at the school for a year. [2]

Contents

Boarding students come from across the United States, North America, Europe, Asia, and Africa. The Academy also serves as the high school for the MSAD 72 school district. Around 75% of the school's student population comes from the local school district. [3]

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) categorizes the school as private. [4]

History

Fryeburg Academy was founded in 1792, replacing an earlier public schoolhouse. From its inception, the academy was closely linked to Bowdoin College. [5]

Daniel Webster served as the school's preceptor in 1802. Webster served just one year; his successor, Rev. Amos Cook, would serve over three decades. [2] Cook grew the academy's stature considerably, and attempted to obtain books and other materials from former President Thomas Jefferson, with the help of another former president, John Adams, in 1815. [6] Jefferson supplied a handwritten letter from George Washington, which Cook kept as a private keepsake; it was sold at auction in 2006 for $273,600. [7] [8]

During Cook's tenure, Fryeburg Academy moved to its current campus. [2] The celebrated painter Rufus Porter, who would go on to found Scientific American , enrolled at Fryeburg Academy in 1804. Cook may have helped Porter obtain support for his first published work, Martial Musician's Companion, in 1814. [9]

Fryeburg Academy has always been a co-ed institution, although men and women received different instruction in the school's early years. [10]

By the mid-19th century, Maine had at least two dozen private academies, plus Fryeburg Academy. These institutions served local communities and offered room and board. The state began standardizing its education system, requiring compulsory, public education, in 1873, and the number of public-serving private academies in Maine has since fallen to less than half of its 19th century peak. [11]

Elroy O. LaCasce served as principal of Fryeburg Academy for thirty-three years. [12] The LaCasce Dining Room on campus is named for him. [13] His youngest son, John Steward LaCasce, founded Burlington College in 1972, and served as its president until 1994.

In the early morning hours of October 12, 2005, a fire destroyed the Gibson Gymnasium at Fryeburg Academy. The fire was determined to be arson, and two former students were charged. [14] Financier Bion R. Cram, an alumnus, bequeathed $15 million to help rebuild the school's facilities and establish scholarships for students. [15]

Notable alumni and faculty

Images

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References

  1. ↑ Fox, Cooper (2023-07-27). "Were You Lucky Enough To Attend The Oldest High School In Maine?". B98.5. Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  2. 1 2 3 Scott, Tim (2016-10-07). "White Mountain Chronicles: The Academy and Daniel Webster". The Conway Daily Sun. Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  3. ↑ French, Edward (2022-11-20). "Private schools' public funding raises concerns". The Maine Monitor. Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  4. ↑ "FRYEBURG ACADEMY". National Center for Education Statistics . Retrieved 2024-03-11.
  5. ↑ "Fryeburg Academy, ca. 1777". Maine Memory Network. Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  6. ↑ "Founders Online: Amos J. Cook to Thomas Jefferson, 18 December 1815". founders.archives.gov. Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  7. ↑ "Founders Online: Thomas Jefferson to Amos J. Cook, 21 January 1816". founders.archives.gov. Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  8. ↑ "Washington's Letter To Jefferson Leads Freeman's Americana Day - Antiques And The Arts WeeklyAntiques And The Arts Weekly" . Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  9. ↑ fatlinestudios.com, FATLINE- (2020-09-03). "Rufus Porter, Art, and Enterprise in Portland, Maine | Americana Insights" . Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  10. ↑ Cummings, Karen (May 18, 1984). "The Founding of Fryeburg Village". The Mountain Ear. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  11. ↑ Burnham, Emily (September 27, 2022). "Why Maine has private high schools that serve public students". Piscataquis Observer. Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  12. ↑ Lacasce, Steward (2005). The Mr. and Mrs. of Fryeburg Academy. Aventine Press. ISBN   9781593302658.
  13. ↑ "17. LaCasce Dining Room". Fryeburg Academy. Retrieved 2023-11-08.
  14. ↑ "Fryeburg Academy fire trial begins". The Bangor Daily News. Associated Press. Retrieved 2016-07-15.
  15. ↑ "Fryeburg Academy Receives $15 Million Bequest". November 6, 2010.
  16. ↑ Harlow, Samuel Ralph and Boone, H. H. (1867). Life Sketches of the State Officers, Senators, and Members of the Assembly of the State of New York, in 1867. Weed, Parsons, Printers. p.  50.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  17. ↑ "Maine Governor John Winchester Dana". National Governors Association. Retrieved December 13, 2013.
  18. ↑ "FARRINGTON, James, (1791 - 1859)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved December 13, 2013.
  19. ↑ "Gibson Music Hall". Fryeburg Academy. Retrieved December 13, 2013.
  20. ↑ Gray, Spalding (2012). The Journals of Spalding Gray. Random House LLC. p. 40. ISBN   9780307474919.
  21. ↑ "HARPER, Joseph Morrill, (1787 - 1865)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved December 13, 2013.
  22. ↑ Hammond, Karen T. (2011). Backroads & Byways of New England: Drives, Day Trips & Weekend Excursions (Backroads & Byways). The Countryman Press. p. 212. ISBN   9781581578911.
  23. ↑ "Check out Marc Murphy '88 on Good Morning America". Twitter. 2011. Retrieved 2015-05-06.
  24. ↑ "RIPLEY, James Wheelock, (1786 - 1835)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved December 13, 2013.
  25. ↑ "Scenes Fall 2011" (PDF). Fryeburg Academy. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 4, 2013. Retrieved December 13, 2013.
  26. ↑ "It's A Crime Radio". It’s A Crime Radio. Retrieved December 13, 2013.
  27. ↑ "Webster Hall". Fryeburg Academy. Retrieved December 13, 2013.
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