Monticello College

Monticello Female Seminary founded in 1838 was the first of the large, female boarding academies west of the Alleghenies.

It was founded by Benjamin Godfrey a former sea captain who had moved to Alton, Ill. To help in the planning and as the first principle, he hired Theron Baldwin, a member of the "Yale Band", who had helped found Illinois College in Jacksonville, Ill. After Baldwin resigned in 1845, the school expanded greatly under the leadership of Miss Philena Fobes, who managed the school for the next twenty years. One of the teachers during this time was Miss Lucy Larcom, who later became a published poet. She was followed by Harriet Haskell, who remained at Monticello for forty years. She got the school out of debt and led the rebuilding after the seminary was destroyed by fire in 1888. After Miss Haskell the school had many different leaders over the years. It's name was changed to Monticello Seminary and then Monticello College. In 1971 due to financial problems it was sold to Lewis and Clark College.

From the description of Records, 1794-1971. (Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library). WorldCat record id: 45611039