William Worrall, Daniel Sharpless, Josiah Rhoads, Edward Fell, Mahlon Parsons, Roger Dirks, Thomas Sharpless and Jacob Minshall are appointed to prepare a subscription paper and promote Friends’ subscriptions towards the establishment and support of the boarding school agreeable to the recommendations of our last Yearly Meeting, and report of their care to next or a future meeting.[678]
The general state of schools under the meeting’s jurisdiction is made known by the following report sent in by the school committee to the monthly meeting held on 1-27-1800.
Three schools under Chester Meeting
The committee appointed to the care of schools report there are three kept within the verge of this meeting under Friends care, viz.:
1. One at Springfield taught by a Friend.
2. One at Middletown, taught by a person not in membership.
3. One at Blue Hill under similar circumstances, all of which we trust are conducted in a good degree orderly, but that there has been little or no addition to our fund since last year, except what it has increased by use. The school committee also informs that the Friends who were by the last will of our Friend George Miller and James Turner, left trustees to the lots at Blue Hill have conveyed the same by instruments of writing duly executed as follows, to wit: the dwelling house and lot to Jacob Minshall, Edward Fell, Ambrose Smedley, Isaac Sharpless, John Hill, Jr., and Joseph Pennell, Jr., and the schoolhouse and lot to George Miller, Edward Fell, Ambrose Smedley, James Smedley, Isaac Sharpless, John Hill, Jr., and Joseph Jonnell, Jr., which said conveyances have since been recorded and are lodged with the other writings relating thereto, in the hands of the treasurer of the school fund which is satisfactory to the meeting.[679]
The Blue Hill School, mentioned in the above report of the committee, no doubt dated back to a few years following 1791, in which James Turner bequeathed his “Blue Hill Estate” to George Miller for the use of schools established at the direction of Chester Monthly Meeting.[680]
“Blue Hill” estate bequeathed by James Turner