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Germantown Academy: The Beginnings
On December 6, 1759, a group of citizens, concerned about the education of their children, met with Daniel Mackinett, at the Green Tree Inn on Germantown Road. At this meeting The Germantown Union School (now known as Germantown Academy) was founded.
Subscriptions were solicited and land was purchased near Market Square on Bensell's Lane, later to be renamed School House Lane. On August 11, 1761, school opened in a spacious new building. The wish of the founders that these buildings ". . . be continued for that use, and no other, forever . . ." is still honored today.
Germantown Academy had its beginning in the midst of the struggle that surrounded the birth and growth of a new nation. The bell tower and the bell that announces the beginning of each school day have become the symbols of the continuance of the school.
The bell was cast in England and brought over on the tea ship "Polly" in 1774. Because of the unrest in Philadelphia at that time, the "Polly" turned around and, with cargo intact, headed back to England. It was not until 1784 that the bell was returned and placed in the bell tower. The weather vane, with its crown of England and copper ball, attests to its presence during the War for Independence by the scars it bears from musket balls fired by British soldiers who occupied the area and used the school building as a hospital for a brief time during the Battle of Germantown. The troops of General Howe's Third Brigade used the playing fields for the first cricket match played in America.
The second English Master in the school's history, Peletiah Webster, devoted much of his energy to improving the quality of education offered; at the same time he encouraged the board of managers to seek a charter from the state. The charter was granted in 1784 to the "Public School of Germantown," which remains the Academy's corporate title to the present day.

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