Dartmouth College Charter
- When
- 1769
- Where
- Hanover, New Hampshire
- Episodes
- 2
On December 13, 1769, Royal Governor John Wentworth issued a royal charter in the name of King George III establishing Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire. Founded by Eleazar Wheelock and Samson Occom to train Native American Christian missionaries, the college was one of nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution.
Episodes
- Founding Purpose and Missionary Aim
Eleazar Wheelock and Samson Occom established Dartmouth in 1769 to train Native American Christian missionaries, as one of nine colonial colleges.
- Royal Charter Issued for Dartmouth College
Royal Governor John Wentworth issued a charter in King George III's name on December 13, 1769, establishing Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire.
Background and detail
Background. Dartmouth College was established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock and Samson Occom to train Native American Christian missionaries, making it one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. The institution was situated in the rural town of Hanover, New Hampshire, in the Upper Valley along the Connecticut River.
The Royal Charter. The Royal Governor of New Hampshire, John Wentworth, provided the land upon which Dartmouth would be built and on December 13, 1769, issued a royal charter in the name of King George III establishing the college. The charter proclaimed the institution was created for the education and instruction of Youth of the Indian Tribes in this Land in reading, writing and all parts of Learning, as well as in all liberal Arts and Sciences, and also of English Youth and any others.
Key Figures. Sir John Wentworth, 1st Baronet (9 August 1737 – 8 April 1820) was the British colonial governor of New Hampshire at the time of the American Revolution, serving as governor from 1767 to 1775. King George III was the monarch in whose name the charter was issued.
People involved
- John Wentworth · Royal Governor of New Hampshire who issued the charter
- King George III · British monarch in whose name the charter was issued
- Eleazar Wheelock · Founder of Dartmouth College and charter recipient
- Samson Occom · Co-founder of Dartmouth College
Sources
- Dartmouth College Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-30
- Sir John Wentworth, 1st Baronet Wikipedia, revision of 2026-04-18
Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.