mshm191 Adams Female Academy Collection, 1824-[present] (bulk 1824-1827) Finding Aid Encoding funded by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Mount Holyoke College Archives and Special Collections

South Hadley, MA

Finding aid generated in MARC format from database, then encoded using Perl scripts and XSL stylesheet. 2003-05-20 Finding aid written in English. 2005-09-23 mshm191 converted from EAD 1.0 to 2002 by v1to02-5c.xsl (sy2003-10-15). Mount Holyoke College Archives and Special Collections Adams Female Academy Collection, 1824-[present] (bulk 1824-1827) Finding Aid MS 0503 Encoding funded by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Collection Overview Adams Female Academy Collection 1824-[present] 1824-1827 MS 0503 LD 7093.38 A4 1 box (2.5 linear in.). Mount Holyoke College Archives and Special Collections

South Hadley, MA

Adams Female Academy. Founded in Derry, New Hampshire in 1824. Collection contains lists of students, teachers and trustees (1824-1827), letters by the Board of Trustees, compositions written by Mary Lyon's students, student records, historical information, and postcards. Primarily documenting the establishment and early years of the Academy. Also documents early teachers including Zilpah P. Grant Banister and Mary Lyon. English. Biographical Note

Adams Female Academy opened in April of 1824. It was funded by a $4000 endowment from Jacob Adams in 1823. Located in Derry, New Hampshire, it was one of the first academies in New England devoted solely to the education of girls. Zilpah P. Grant (later Banister) was the first principal and Mary Lyon was her assistant. The Academy had a high reputation, attracting students from all over New England. The school remained open until 1886, then it was merged into the co-educational Derry School system in 1887.

Scope and Contents of the Collection

The Adams Female Academy Collection consists of trustee records, catalogs, compositions, record for students, historical information and postcards. The documents primarily date from 1824-1827 and provide information on the students, faculty, trustees and the Academy building. In the trustee records is a directive for employees which provides insights to the educational and moral principles of the institution. Also of note are contracts of employment for Zilpah P. Grant (later Banister) and Mary Lyon written by the Executive Committee. The catalogs list names of students and their home addresses, as well as the names of faculty and trustees of the Academy. There are thirty six compositions in the collection written by Mary Lyon's students on topics such as "Autumn", "Friendship" and "Wealth". Records for students list absences, tardiness, "failures in recitation" and subjects studied by each individual in 1826-1827. The history of the founding of the Academy is mostly documented in excerpts and material on the town of Derry. Also included in the collection is a postcard (five copies) showing the Academy building.

Organization of the Collection

This collection is organized into six series:

Trustee Records Catalogs Compositions Records for students Historical Information Postcards Information on Use Terms of Access and Use

Unrestricted.

Preferred Citation

Please use the following format when citing materials from this collection:

Adams Female Academy Collection, Mount Holyoke College, Archives and Special Collections, South Hadley, Massachusetts

Search Terms Banister, Zilpah P. Grant (Zilpah Polly Grant), 1794-1874. Lyon, Mary, 1797-1849. Adams Female Academy (Derry, N.H.) Adams Female Academy (Derry, N.H.) Young women - Education - New Hampshire - History - 19th century - Sources. English language - Study and teaching - New Hampshire - Derry. Schools - New Hampshire - History - 19th century - Sources. Education - New Hampshire - History - 19th century - Sources. Postcards. Corporation records.