John Phillips (December 27, 1719 – , 1795) was an early American educator and the cofounder of Phillips Exeter Academy in

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the nor ...

, along with his wife, Elizabeth Phillips. He was a major donor to

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native ...

, where he served as a trustee. He also made significant donations to

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...

and

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...

Early life and education

Phillips was born on January 7, 1719, to Samuel and Hannah (White) Phillips in Andover,

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. He was a descendant of the Rev. George Phillips of Watertown, the progenitor of the New England Phillips family in America. Phillips entered

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

at the age of eleven, and graduated in 1735, at the age of 15. He returned for a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

, which he earned in 1738. While studying

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

and medicine under his father, he headed schools in Andover and neighboring towns.

Career

In 1741, he moved to Exeter,

, where he headed a private school for a year, and afterwards a public school for a year. From 1767 to 1775, he served on the council of

Sir John Wentworth, 1st Baronet Sir John Wentworth, 1st Baronet (9 August 1737 – 8 April 1820) was the British colonial governor of New Hampshire at the time of the American Revolution. He was later also Lieutenant-Governor of Nova Scotia. He is buried in the crypt of St. ...

, the governor of the

Province of New Hampshire The Province of New Hampshire was a colony of England and later a British province in North America. The name was first given in 1629 to the territory between the Merrimack and Piscataqua rivers on the eastern coast of North America, and was n ...

. He represented Exeter in the

New Hampshire General Court The General Court of New Hampshire is the bicameral state legislature of the U.S. state of New Hampshire. The lower house is the New Hampshire House of Representatives with 400 members. The upper house is the New Hampshire Senate with 24 mem ...

from 1771 to 1773, and also served as a judge of the inferior court of common pleas from 1772 to 1775. He also served as the deputy of the first New Hampshire Provincial Congress and a member of the Provincial Council. In 1772, he was chosen to be the colonel of a militia called the Exeter cadets. In 1762, he became the first major donor of

, when he sent a gift to

Eleazar Wheelock Eleazar Wheelock (April 22, 1711 – April 24, 1779) was an American Congregational minister, orator, and educator in Lebanon, Connecticut, for 35 years before founding Dartmouth College in New Hampshire. He had tutored Samson Occom, a Mohe ...

. In 1770, as the college, then named

Moor's Charity School Moor's Charity School was founded in 1754 in Lebanon, Connecticut (now in the town of Columbia), by the Puritan CalvinistDavid J. Silverman, ''Red Brethren: The Brothertown and Stockbridge Indians and the Problem of Race in Early America'', Cornel ...

, wished to relocate to

Hanover, New Hampshire Hanover is a town located along the Connecticut River in Grafton County, New Hampshire, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 11,870. The town is home to the Ivy League university Dartmouth College, the U.S. Army Corps of En ...

, Phillips donated large sums of money and land to the college. He also donated £37 to the college, establishing the Phillips Professorship of Theology. He was a trustee of Dartmouth from 1773 to 1793. He and his wife founded Phillips Exeter Academy in Exeter, New Hampshire, in 1781, donating $134,000, and served as the president of the Board of Trustees until his death. His nephew,

Samuel Phillips, Jr. Samuel Phillips Jr. (February 5, 1752 – February 10, 1802) was an American merchant, manufacturer, politician, and the founder of Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts. Phillips is considered a pioneer in American education. Biograp ...

, had, three years prior, founded the nearby Phillips Academy in

Andover, Massachusetts Andover is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. It was settled in 1642 and incorporated in 1646."Andover" in ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th ed., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 387. As of th ...

. Inspired by the success of the school, Phillips was encouraged by his nephew to create his own school in Exeter. John Phillips' donations in land and money totaled $31,000. These two schools, longtime rivals, are among the oldest and most prestigious preparatory schools in the United States.

Personal life

On August 4, 1743, he married Sarah (Emery) Gilman, a wealthy widow. He had previously proposed to her daughter, Tabitha, but was turned down. At her death on October 9, 1765, Phillips was the wealthiest man in Exeter. He married his second wife, Elizabeth (Dennet) Hale, on November 3, 1767. He died on April 21, 1795, in Exeter, and left no children. Phillips left one third of his large estate to Phillips Academy and two-thirds to Phillips Exeter Academy. His donations to Exeter totaled about $60,000. He was awarded an LL.D. degree by

in 1777.

Early life and education

Career

Personal life

References

Further reading