MIDDLEBURY COLLEGE, in Middle bury, Vt., was chartered by act of the Vermont legislature 1 Nov. 1800. The charter has never been amended. The institution is governed by a self-perpetuating board known as °The Presi dent and Fellows of Middlebury College.* There are no denominational restrictions and the college has always been non-sectarian. It is the oldest college in Vermont in point of service, beginning its work as a college 5 Nov. 1800 and graduating its first class in 1802, at which time the first academic degrees conferred in Vermont were bestowed. The founders were prominent citizens of Vermont, several of whom lived in Middlebury and adjacent towns. They were counseled by President Timothy Dwight of Yale College and the first presi dent,Jeremiah Atwater, was a Yale graduate. The first building of the college was shared with the Addison County Grammar School and it was 1815 before the college acquired its first permanent structure, Painter Hall. This build ing was named for Gamaliel Painter, a gener ous benefactor. The college had a steady growth for half a century and during its first 40 years was easily the first institution in Ver mont. Dissensions over the slavery question, iollowed by the depletion of students during the Civil War, weakened the institution seri ously. In recent years there has been complete recovery and rapid growth. The college has
now a campus of 140 acres, beautifully situ ated with commanding views of the Green Mountains and Adirondacks. There are 13 permanent building's, valued at $708,455. The endowment is $570,941. There has been a net gain in student attendance annually since 1904, the attendance now being 468, or exclusive of the summer session 351. The college gives the degrees of A.B. and B.S. The curriculum is organized in 20 departments. Special attention is given to the training of high school teachers and district superintendents, which is supported by an annual State appropriation. The State of Vermont also supports 60 scholarships. There are no technical or professional courses. The faculty numbers 32, of whom 10 are full professors. The institution was on the first fist of the accepted institutions of the Carnegie Foundation and has received the co-operation of the General Education Board. The latest additions to the buildings are a memorial chapel, the gift of ex-Gov. John A. Mead, '64, and a boys' dormitory and commons, the gift of A. Barton Hepburn, '71. Since '1883 the college bas admitted women; in 1902 the legislature of the State granted a charter au thorizing the establishment of a co-ordinate college for women.