William and Mary College

William and Mary College, next to Harvard College the oldest institution of learning in America, was established at Williamsburg, Virginia, in 1693, to train students for the Episcopal ministry. It was endowed with lands, and placed under the patronage of the king and queen of Great Britain; and it became the wealthiest college of America. At the Revolution, however, it lost most of its possessions, half the students entered the army, and the French troops occupied its buildings as a hospital. Here were educated Jefferson, Madison, and Monroe, and General Scott. Its students now hardly exceed a score.