Syms-Eaton Academy

This article includes a improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (March 2015) (Learn how and when to remove this message )

The Syms-Eaton Academy was America's first free public school. Also known as Syms-Eaton Free School, the school was established in

. The schools were so popular that in 1759 a statute was passed to provide for the attendance of only poor children at Eaton School.

In 1805 the schools were merged by act of the

in 1896. The trust fund created from the Syms and Eaton donations has remained intact since the 17th century and was incorporated into support for the Hampton public school system.

A number of schools are successors in name or location, including:

• Syms Middle School, a middle school feeding Kecoughtan High School, Hampton, Virginia
• Eaton School, a middle school feeding Phoebus High School, Hampton, Virginia
• Syms-Eaton Elementary School, a former school, now a pavilion in downtown Hampton, Virginia
• Hampton High School (Hampton, Virginia)
  , is a public secondary school that is arguably a successor to the Syms-Eaton Academy
• Eaton Fundamental Middle School, a feeder to
  Bethel High School (Hampton, Virginia)

References

• Armstrong, F. M. (1950). The Syms-Eaton Free School: Benjamin Syms, 1634. Thomas Eaton, 1659. Houston Print. and Pub. House.
• Davis, J.E. (1903). Hampton Schools Between 1850 and 1870, The Southern Workman, vol. 32. Hampton Institute.
• "Syms-Eaton Academy". 2006. Archived from the original on 2008-07-08.
• "Hampton Academy". 2009.