Show OUR FIRST FREE SCHOOL it wa in in he the first free school established in the united states was in the province of massachusetts bay in the year by order ot the general colonial court in 1647 the authority declared that free schools should be established within every town having fifty householders under penalty 0 a fine or ia tula fine was doubled by u declaration made in and again doubled in established free connecticut schools in and levied a tax for their support maryland established free school sla 1604 and lev led n tax on furs and beet and pork pelts nc negroes groes for their support governor berkeley declared in 1649 the hope that free schools would never be established aln virginia but the towns of charleston and elizabeth did establish them in set aside that year and elizabeth acres of land and eight cows the increase from which was applied to support the schools four years later the number ef cows had increased to forty pennsylvania was settled by penn on the delaware river in 1681 and the same year a tree school which Is still conducted under the auspices of the friends or quakers was established in philadelphia among the declarations of penn in bis frame of govern ment he asserted this immortal truth long since forgotten by the men who have been responsible tor the government of the commonwealth any gov eminent Is free to the people under it whatever be the frame where the law rules and the people are a party to those laws more than this Is tyranny oligarchy and contusion this sentence Is inscribed in a bronze tablet im placed in the walls of independence |