The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-12-17

ner William and John SITS, New York.
ciples of knowledge and character in this
old institution and many O. their most pre-
ctous memories are connected with their
cary associations there
The Chatham Academy might almost be
said to date flom the beginn,tg of Savan-
nah's history. 1t is un loubtedly the Oldest
Institution of learn ng in the SLATE, and
among the Oldest in The South. Incorpor-
ated in 17S8, just after he ravoluu1nary
war, it was fer many years the center Of
educational interest of the city and the
STATE. The institution had is orig n in the
beneVo.ent int ntions and purpos es Of the
Rev. Batholl NEW Zu lerbuhler, one of he
early recto of Christ Church, whose
tomb may sin be s en- in the old Col NAL
ctn etery, who devils d his es' ate or en-
evolent purposes 1t appearing to be i'm
practicable to carry out the wishes of the
deVisor exact Y as he had de ed and he
need of education being soreiy re The
Legislature OF the state then in session
at Augusta, was ap called 10, and a charter
was gran ed to the trustees of the Chal-
ham Acaoe envy, the terms Of the char er
specifying that the property of he late
Mr.. Zub rbuhl r, lying in Chatham coun-
~, should be placed in the poss sson of
the trustees by the sheriff of the county
for the purposes specified in the act.
The Legislature further ordered that FL
COO pounds of specie of confiscated money,
evidently of Tories driven from the colony
which had just become a state, should be
placed in the hands of the trustees by
the sheriff of the county. 1t was also or
dered that 5000 acres of vacant and I'M
granted land should be reserved to the
trustees for the purpose of the academy,
to be selected from any ungranted lands
within the state The latter provision.
strange 10 say, was never taken advantage
of, although there was at that time and
for many years after millions of acres of
ungranted land within the limits of the
state
The trustees of the academy, named in
the charter of 1888, were John Houston
john Habersham, William Gibbons. Sr,
William Stevens, Richard Wylly, James
Houston, Samuel Ebert, Seth John Cuth-
bert and Joseph Clay, Jr.. all well known
names in the history of the city and the
state. The idea seems to have been that
the academy should be an institution of
learning of a high order and from the
first it seems to have aroused the public
interest and support The first duty of
the trustees, of course, was the erection
of a suitable building
The Chatham Academy and the Union
Society were for a long time closely as
ISOLATED. The Bethesda College, as the
Institution which preceded the present
Union Society was known, was founded nv
the Rev. George Whitfield for literary and
benevolent purposes, and was devised by
him in trust to Selma, Countess DoWager of
Huntington, and one of the chief patrons
of the institution, and invested in her
by an oct of the general assembly of C,eor-
gia for the purpose of establishing an
academy in the county of Chatham. Az
ter the Revolutionary War and the death
OF the Countess of Huntingdon the trust
was adjudSed to be concluded, so far as
her interests were concerned and nom
residents We're pronounced incapable of re-
celVing or executing the same and the
property was placed in the hands of a
board of trustees for the purpose of carrv-
ing out the intention of the original act
II proved impracticable to carry out the
terms of the trust. and in December 1895
the Legislature passed an act authorizine
the sale of the property and directino ne
division, one-fifth to the Savannah Poor
House and Hospital Society and tba "a
mainder TO be equally divided between tbo
Union Society and the Chatham Acad-
cmy.
IL was not until 1910 that the trustees Of
the academy had accumulated snf7cian+
funds to warrant them in undertaking
building. The five lots on the south side
or Oglethorpe avenue Chen South BROAD
streeO, between Bull and DraYton streets
were granted by the city in April, 1910. on
the joint application of the Chatham Acad-
envy trustees and the Union Society. 10 be
used for the erection of a building to he
used for educational purposes. This grant
only included the ,ots fronting on Ogle-
thorpe avenue, and did not include the
lane TO the south nor the lots fronting on
Hull street. The building was completed
in 1913, but the Union Society, not being
able to pay all of ITS share of the cost
sold its interest in all of the buildings ex-
cept the western wing to the academy
trustees for the sum of 1888 1t was the
intention of the Union, Society to use the
wing or portion of the building fronting
on Bull street. as an orphanage but this
intention was never carried into effect
The western wing was rented at first for
school purposes and later on became the
Pavilion Hotel, under which name it be-
came one of the well known institutions
of the city.
The whole building, as completed in 1913,
was only three stories in hight. The OPEN
ing of the academy, which took place on
Jan 5, 1913, was public occasion. there
being a large attendance of the ladies' and
citizens generally. The address of the oc-
casion was delivered by Rev Henry Kol-
lock, D. D. At a meeting of the trustees.
held at the house of Mr.. John Brtton. on.
Oglethorpe Square, Feb. %, 1913, there
were present Mr.. william Stevens, presi-
dent and George Woodruff, Matthew Nc
Allister, John Britton, John Lawson, VIII
liam B. Bulloch and Georse Jones.
After having been successfully launched
the academy has continued to be the CEN
ter of educational interest in Savannah
until the present day. Until the conso,i-
dation of the public schools of the county
under the Poard of Education the acad-