From the late 1700s through the 1800s, academies were formed to meet the educational needs of Maine communities. Some were established on religious principles, some offered boarding programs, and many relied on a combination of tuition and community support.
Lincoln Academy
Newcastle’s Lincoln Academy was chartered in 1801 by the General Court of Massachusetts to promote piety, religion, and morality. Residents from surrounding towns supported the original petition and contributed funds to establish the school.
Early academies that continued operating
Berwick Academy in South Berwick, the first of these institutions in Maine, was founded in 1791—before Maine became a state. People from Berwick, York, Kittery, Wells, and neighboring New Hampshire communities worked together to improve educational opportunities at a time when public schooling was limited.
Fryeburg and Washington academies followed in 1792. Additional schools appeared during the nineteenth century, serving local students as well as wider groups of surrounding towns.
Private academies generally relied on tuition paid by families or by school districts contracting with a school. Several early institutions also received land grants that could be sold or managed to meet operating expenses.
Academy grant townships
- Days Academy Grant Township
- North Yarmouth Academy Grant Township
- Pittston Academy Grant Township
- Taunton and Raynham Academy Grant Township, associated with a Massachusetts academy and adjoining Brassua Township
Other academies and later uses
Gorham Academy was approved by the Massachusetts governor in 1803, when only six incorporated academies existed in Maine. Its building was dedicated in September 1806. Tuition and the sale of granted wildlands helped finance operations. The institution changed between male, female, and coeducational instruction before becoming Gorham Seminary in 1856. It closed in 1877 as students shifted to the new State Normal School.
Cherryfield Academy was founded in 1829. A Union School District established in 1850 gave it a permanent home. The building combined public and educational functions: its first floor served as a town hall and entertainment space, while classes occupied the second. Academy instruction continued until a regional high school opened in 1964.
Freedom Academy was authorized by the state legislature in 1836 and operated until its building was destroyed by fire in 1957.
Limington Academy was incorporated in 1848 and opened in 1851 in the village schoolhouse. It later used a Masonic building before moving into a building of its own.
Lewiston Falls Academy was established in 1834 with an endowment and a nine-acre property. Its educational legacy continued through Edward Little High School in Lewiston.
Litchfield Academy began classes in 1840 as a private, tuition-based school in the Congregational Meetinghouse. Its former academy building later became a community center.
Bridge Academy in Dresden was founded in 1891 and supported by both private and public funds until 1966.
Patten Academy was incorporated in 1847 and continued into the late twentieth century. Students in Patten later attended schools operated by a regional school unit.
In 1859, the Harpswell Academy Corporation met in North Harpswell to create an academy building. The structure later served as a community center before fire destroyed it in 1912.
