The Encyclopedia Americana (1920)/Phillips (Exeter) Academy

PHILLIPS (EXETER) ACADEMY, a noted American college preparatory school at Exeter, N. H., incorporated 3 April 1781, endowed by John Phillips, 9 Jan. 1782, opened 7 May 1783. The institution was the earliest of an educational character incorporated by the New Hampshire legislature, and was named in honor of its founder, John Phillips (q.v.), whose gifts to it totaled $65,000. It accommodates 300 and odd students. Like the sister institution at Andover, it has prospered greatly in recent years, and many new and commodious buildings have been erected within the past decade, the most notable of these being the great dining hall, built in 1903. It has an endowment of $400,000 and an annual income of $100,000. Its alumni number about 10,000. A marked characteristic of the school is its thorough carrying out of the principle of self-government. Consult Adams, ‘Some Famous American Schools’ (1903).