Prior to the Civil War, the state did not provide for public education, so settlers in the Stilesboro community decided to erect an academy for the education of their children. A public subscription raised $5,000 to build the school. In 1864, Federal troops occupied the school, and the Latin motto above the stage, "To God and Country," which is the logo at West Point, probably saved the academy from being burned. In 1939, the school closed, and the Ladies Improvement Club saved the building and continued the annual Chrysanthemum Show, which is now in its 100th year.