John McMillan's Log School
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John McMillan's Log School is a landmark log building in
Canonsburg, Pennsylvania Canonsburg is a Borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Washington County, Pennsylvania, southwest of Pittsburgh. Canonsburg was laid out by Colonel John Canon in 1789 and incorporated in 1802. The population was 9,735 at the 2020 census. The town li ...
that was the site of John McMillan's frontier Latin school during the 1780s. It is a symbol of Canonsburg and Canonsburg's educational tradition. In 1930, '' The Pittsburgh Press'' said that the building was "viewed by the pioneers with even more reverence than Pittsburgh now view the towering Cathedral of Learning in Oakland." It is one of the oldest buildings in
Western Pennsylvania Western Pennsylvania is a region in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, covering the western third of the state. Pittsburgh is the region's principal city, with a metropolitan area population of about 2.4 million people, and serves as its economic ...
. It is the "oldest educational building west of the Allegheny Mountains." The school grew into Canonsburg Academy, which eventually developed into
Washington & Jefferson College Washington & Jefferson College (W&J College or W&J) is a private liberal arts college in Washington, Pennsylvania. The college traces its origin to three log cabin colleges in Washington County established by three Presbyterian missionaries to ...
. The building is rectangular in shape and is 14 feet long. It was originally located in a field a mile south of Canonsburg. McMillan based the school on the
William Tennent William Tennent (1673 – May 6, 1746) was an early Scottish American Presbyterian minister and educator in British North America. Early life Tennent was born in Mid Calder, Linlithgowshire, Scotland, in 1673. He graduated from the Univers ...
's
Log College The Log College, founded in 1727, was the first theological seminary serving Presbyterians in North America, and was located in what is now Warminster, Pennsylvania. It was founded by William Tennent and operated from 1727 until Tennent's death in ...
in eastern Pennsylvania. The building doubled as a stable when McMillan was not teaching classes. After only a year, the original building was destroyed by fire and rebuilt. The curriculum was a generalized classical education, including mathematics, grammar, rhetoric, natural history, Greek, and Latin, with a focus on preparing young men for Presbyterian ministry. It was moved to its current location in front of the Canonsburg Middle School, which stood of the location of Jefferson College, in 1895. After McMillan died in 1833, his family continued to operate his farm and used the building as a workshop space. Jefferson College students often made the pilgrimage from Canonsburg to the building. In 1894, the building was offered to Jefferson Academy, which then occupied the former Jefferson College campus. Jefferson Academy closed in 1910 and the maintenance of the building fell to
Phi Gamma Delta Phi Gamma Delta (), commonly known as Fiji, is a social fraternity with more than 144 active chapters and 10 colonies across the United States and Canada. It was founded at Jefferson College, Pennsylvania, in 1848. Along with Phi Kappa Psi, Phi ...
and Phi Kappa Psi, two fraternities that were founded at Jefferson College. In 1930, the building was adopted by the national officers of
Phi Gamma Delta Phi Gamma Delta (), commonly known as Fiji, is a social fraternity with more than 144 active chapters and 10 colonies across the United States and Canada. It was founded at Jefferson College, Pennsylvania, in 1848. Along with Phi Kappa Psi, Phi ...
. The original preservation plan called for the college to be protected by a steel and glass canopy. The fraternity agreed to fund the restoration of the building. In 1940,
Phi Gamma Delta Phi Gamma Delta (), commonly known as Fiji, is a social fraternity with more than 144 active chapters and 10 colonies across the United States and Canada. It was founded at Jefferson College, Pennsylvania, in 1848. Along with Phi Kappa Psi, Phi ...
attempted to move the building to the campus of
Washington & Jefferson College Washington & Jefferson College (W&J College or W&J) is a private liberal arts college in Washington, Pennsylvania. The college traces its origin to three log cabin colleges in Washington County established by three Presbyterian missionaries to ...
in Washington, Pennsylvania, a plan that caused an uproar from the Canonsburg community. In response, Phi Gamma Delta let the town retake control over the building, which was then placed under the care of a "Log Cabin Association." In 2004, the Jefferson College Historical Society's Log Cabin Preservation Project Committee decided to restore the building. The renovation project was jointly funded by
Phi Gamma Delta Phi Gamma Delta (), commonly known as Fiji, is a social fraternity with more than 144 active chapters and 10 colonies across the United States and Canada. It was founded at Jefferson College, Pennsylvania, in 1848. Along with Phi Kappa Psi, Phi ...
, Phi Kappa Psi, and the historical society's Log Cabin Fund.


Gallery

File:McMillan Log College.jpg, An engraving showing the building in its original location File:McMillan Cabin Original Site.jpg, The building at its original location on the McMillan farm File:McMillan Cabin 1895 to 1908.jpg, The building in its first Canonsburg location on the campus of Jefferson Academy File:McMillan Log Cabin Canonsburg.jpg, The building in its current location, showing the "L" landmark tag and the Canonsburg historical marker


See also

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Colonial Colleges The colonial colleges are nine institutions of higher education chartered in the Thirteen Colonies before the United States of America became a sovereign nation after the American Revolution. These nine have long been considered together, notably ...


References

{{Canonsburg, Pennsylvania Log buildings and structures in Pennsylvania Washington & Jefferson College buildings Canonsburg, Pennsylvania Buildings and structures in Washington County, Pennsylvania