The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1867-07-17

Rev. Richard Peters In the year 1743, and in
lI49 1t was revived by him. in connection with
| Thomas HopkinsOn and others. On this occasion
| Franklin issued pamphlet entitled ''Propo-
| sails relative to the education Of youth in Penn
4 sylvania." In his introduction to this PAM
4 phlet, however, with characteristic modesty,
he took care to represent the scheme, mot as an
act of his, but of some public-spirited gentle
> men, avoiding as much as he could, according
| to his usual rule, the presenting himself to
! the public as the author of any scheme for
! their benefit" The new Academy was placed
| under the control OF a Board Of Trustees, in
| cludng Franklin himself, James Logan,
Thomas Hopkinson, Richard Peters, Jacob
Duche, Philip Syng, Charles Willing, and
other influential men of the town. William
b. Reed, Esq, in his Centennial Address
before the Alumni of the University, on the
| 18th of November, 1S49 justly remarked that
| they were ''men of character, and standing
and learning; or where, as with the greatest
of them, mere scholarship was wanting, Of
masculine intelligence, and pure, vigorous,
American mother wit" He adds that
''the master-spirit then, as the master
spirit in every effort to do public good from
the hour when he landed penniless at Market
street wharf, till the distant day when, at the
| end Of almost century, he was carried amidst
mourning crowds and tolling bells to his
modest and almost forgotten grave, was Benja-
min Franklin. His mind conceived and his
1t should also be remembered, in this connec-
tion, that at the time Franklin made his'frst
proposition to organize the Academy, there
were but three collegiate institutions in the
colonies-HOward, Yale, and William and
Mary.
The articles of association were signed by
the Trustees on the 18th of November, 1749,
and on the following day over f2000 were sub
scribed by them towards furthering the noble
object they had in view. To this sum large
additions were soon made by the citizens, in
the way of subscriptions, gifts, and legacies,
and G200 were granted by the City Councils,
in addition. Franklin deemed it matter of
vital importance that the proposed Academy
should secure permanent location, and with
this object in view, he shrewdly took advan-
tage of the religious excitement which had
been created in the community by the cele-
brated Methodist preacher, John Whitefeld.
For the accommodation of the latter and SINH
lar itinerant preachers of the gospel, build
ing had been erected and placed under the
control of members of the different religious
bodies One of the members of this
board had been a Moravian, but as
his course had not been satisfactory
to his colleagues, it was resolved, ON his death,
to omit his sect altogether. AS there was no
other denomination from which to select his
successor Franklin secured his own election,
on the ground that he belonged to no sect at
all. Having become member of both boards,
Franklin was enabled to accomplish the object
he had in view, that of uniting the school and
the meeting house. In accordance with the
agreement then made the main hall of the
University is still thrown open to itinerant
preachers, and frequently during the past
winter it has been occupied by them. The
building in which the itinerants preached in
those days had been commenced in 174l and
completed in 1744 In 1749 Franklin secured
its purchase by the association he had
formed for the sum of E777, and in 1851
the new Academy was opened in 1T,
with English, Latin, and mathematical depart
ments, and separate instructor in each.
charity school was likewise opened in eonnee-
ton with the Academy, in which the children
of such citizens as were too poor to pay the
| fees were taught gratuitOusly. Charles Ihom-
son, who subsequently became Secretary to
| Congress- was for four years one OF the tutors
! The location of the building was on lot at the
! corner of Fourth and Arch streets, where 1t
still stands. During the war for the Union,
the university Light Infantry" occupied 1t
as an armory.
The proprietaries of the province, in l753
granted charter to the organization, under
the title of ''The Trustees of the Academy and
Charitable School in the Province OF Pennsyl-
Vania." The course of instruction was then
extended so as to embrace logic, rhetoric,
and natural and moral philosophy, and the
Rev. William Smith, who subsequently De-
came the first Provost of the University, was
employed to give instruction in these branches
In 1855 new charter was granted, the COT
poration receiving the title of "The Provost,
Vice Provost, and Professors of the college,
and Academy of Philadelphia in the Province
of Pennsylvania" By this charter collie
giate character, with the power OF confer
ring degrees, was impaired to the institution,
and the Rev. William Smith, scholarly
Scotchman, who had given much attention 10
the subject of education, was appointed rro-
vost. The first class, numbering members
graduated on the 18th of May, l757. Among
these first graduates were Jacob Duche, OhaP-
lain of the Continental Congress, and francls
HOpkinson, signer of the Declaration Oh IN
dependence Provost Smith, in l762, maze
voyage to Europe, in company with James
| Jay, of New York, to solicit contributions IN
behalf of the Colleges of the two cisles, az al
e effort in which they met with consiuer"Oi0
success.
/ Under Smiths management the lnstlt9elon .a
soon became popular, number OF sVIoenss sVT1Is
from other provinces and the West y lhules @
3 being among its attendants. In lfo1 ,, W"e
found necessary to erect separate oullulpS tuN
for the accommodation of the students rom ~, q
/ distance the requisite funds being reaaidg cendg
raised by lottery. In this way about 1gooo ;oo
was realized, including the home subscrip
r and legacies. grant of three Thousand acres
f of land in Bucks county, accompanied w |"
7 contribution of $500 in cash, had peen re-
5 ceived from the Proprietaries when the nlss 81
o | charter was obtained. The amount Iean.e1 u