Now a public university, College of William &amp; Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, was founded by royal charter in 1693, making it the second oldest college or university in the United States, after Harvard University. The college severed formal ties with Britain after the colonies declared independence, but remained a private institution until financial troubles forced its closure after the Civil War. It re-opened in 1888, but did not become public until continued financial troubles forced it to accept funding from the Commonwealth of Virginia beginning in 1906.