Topic: Education
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An Examination into the Leading Principles of the Federal Constitution
Noah Webster wrote this essay to support the constitution produced by the recent convention in Philadelphia. Critics condemned the constitution’s plan for a strong central government, which seemed to endanger...
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B. Rush Proposes a System of Public Schools for Pennsylvania
Benjamin Rush of Pennsylvania wrote this book to promote public education in his state. Rush wanted children to receive at least a basic education at a tax-supported “free school” because...
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Benjamin Rush
This portrait of Benjamin Rush of Philadelphia was done by the American painter, Charles Willson Peale. The painting depicts Rush, who was an author, physician, statesman, and social reformer, in...
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Bill for More General Diffusion of Knowledge
Jefferson proposed this Bill for the More General Diffusion of Knowledge in 1779 as part of a larger plan to democratize Virginia. He wanted a three-tiered system of public schools....
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Declaration of Sentiments
This document is the Declaration of Sentiments issued by the participants in the Seneca Falls Convention of 1848. At this gathering in upstate New York, 342 women and men wrote...
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Dolland Telescope
Jefferson owned three telescopes, including this one. Science was a common hobby for educated men of Jefferson’s era and astronomy was especially popular. Key discoveries by astronomers launched the seventeenth-century...
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James Madison to George Thompson
In this letter, James Madison praised Virginia’s “Magnificent” college in Charlottesville. Though Madison shared Jefferson’s belief in the need to educate citizens in a republic, Virginia was not the first...
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James Madison’s State of the Union Address
In this speech, President Madison asked Congress to establish a national university in Washington. Both Washington and Jefferson had supported this idea. In his will, Washington even set aside money...
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Jefferson to Albert Gallatin
In this letter to Albert Gallatin, Jefferson expressed his desire to recruit top European academics, particularly scientists, for his new university. When the University of Virginia held its first classes...
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