Actuated by a legacy from Josiah Penfield, Mercer University was founded here in 1833 as Mercer Institute. After considering several locations, the Trustees moved the institution to Macon in 1871 and, in 1880, transferred all holdings in Penfield to the Georgia Baptist Association, except the venerable Penfield Cemetery where Jesse Mercer, Billington M. Sanders, Mrs. Sanders, and other notable Mercerians are buried. The chapel was given to the Penfield Baptist Church, founded in 1839 with Rev. Adiel Sherwood as pastor. The academy building became the Penfield public school building.