Peabody High School

My great-grandfather Andrew Nichols attended "Peabody High School, Danvers" -- according to his handwriting, dated April 1853, in the front pages of an history textbook printed in 1852.

I've had that old leather-bound book in my bookcase for decades, along with many other dusty old books inherited from my father and his Danvers ancestors. Not until last night did I begin to READ that book and think about the school in which it was used.

Peabody High School? In Danvers?  

I don't recall ever hearing of such a school in my hometown. I've known, of course, that a southern portion of Danvers had eventually separated and become Peabody. And I'm aware that my great-grandfather's earliest years, before his father died, were spent in south Danvers.

My curiosity about this is heightened right now. I plan to come to Danvers on April 21, and to attend Salem Ancestry Days April 22-23.    

I've just looked up the history of Peabody, to review when Peabody became separate. The website of the Peabody Historical Society and Museum has a very helpful "Timeline for the Evolution of Peabody." That includes formation of the Middle Precinct of Salem (1710); founding of the District of Danvers (1752) with the Middle Precinct becoming known as South Parish of Danvers; Town of Danvers incorporation (1757); official separation from Danvers, to become Town of South Danvers (1855), with later name change to Peabody (1868) and incorporation in 1916 as the City of Peabody.

Thus, young Andrew Nichols lived and attended high school in Danvers (the South Parish of Danvers). That school was already named "Peabody" – no doubt in honor of the famous George Peabody, born in South Danvers in 1795.

According to the Peabody Historical Society and Museum,

Peabody had to leave school at the age of 11 to work and help support his family. Because of his lack of schooling, Peabody’s desire to provide access to education became the foundation of his philanthropic philosophy. Following the war of 1812, Peabody started a wholesale dry goods company based in Baltimore, Maryland, then a major hub for trade and commerce. By the 1830s, he had transformed the company into a mercantile banking empire based in London. Peabody’s vast earnings enabled him to donate more than $7 million to museums and educational institutions in England and America.

Now the words "Peabody High School, Danvers" written in 1853 by young Andrew Nichols make sense to me.

See next post for photos of his history book, and information about its content.