Seminaries and Academies

Higher education was as important to Kentuckians in the 1700s as it is today. The Virginia General Assembly and the Kentucky General Assembly approved legislation that provided land for academies and seminaries throughout the Commonwealth. The legislation also donated tax-free land in the former Military District, located South of the Green River, to various academies for speculative purposes. Other acts allowed trustees to be compensated (in land) for locating unappropriated land suitable for seminary/academy ownership.

Disclaimer: The text of these Acts was entered manually; researchers should consult the published versions of the Virginia and Kentucky Acts for official use. Those Acts can be researched at the Kentucky History Center Library, the Department for Libraries and Archives, and the Supreme Court Law Library, all in Frankfort. Enrolled Bills and Governor's Journals (1792-1927) are available on microfilm at the Department for Libraries and Archives.