Excerpt from Some Historical Accounts of the Founding of King William’s School and Its Subsequent Establishment as St. John’s College, Together With Biographical Notices of the Various Presidents From 1790-1894, Also of Some of the Representative Alumni of the College
In July, 1694, Francis Nicholson entered’upon office as the royal Governor. The Assembly convened on Sept. 21, trans ferred the seat of government from St. Mary’s to Ann Arun del Town at the mouth of the Severn, which was made a port, a mart, and a town. Of the public buildings ordered to be erected, the church is first named, and the Governor’s propo sition, that the poll taxes collected the year before, in Ann Arundel county, should be applied toward the building of the church, was approved without opposition. The first com pleted legislation of this session was an Act for the Advance ment of Learning. The act itself is not extant, but Nichol son promised to give 50 toward the building of the school and 25 per annum toward the master’s support. Sir Thomas Laurence gave pounds of tobacco, the current coin of the province, toward the building, and pledged lbs. Per annum toward the master’s stipend. The House of Burgesses voted lbs. Of tobacco toward the building. The members’of the Council gave from to 2,000’lbs. Of the staple product of the country for this purpose, and among the subscribers to the master’s salary we notice the name of that uncompromising Churchman, Edmund Ran dolph, who gave 10 sterling. It was with great earnestness and interest that these old Maryland Churchmen laid broad and deep the foundations of America’s first public free school.
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