Hampden-Sydney College, in continuous operation since November 10, 1775, was established to form good men and good citizens. One of the few remaining all-male colleges today, it was named for John Hampden and Algernon Sydney, champions of parliamentary rule in England. Patrick Henry and James Madison were early trustees, and U.S. President William Henry Harrison was a member of the class of 1791. Student companies were formed in the Revolutionary War and the American Civil War. During the civil rights movement in the 1960s, the college did not publicly take sides. Some faculty children attended the all-white private school Prince Edward Academy when all of the county's public schools were closed to stave off integration, while several Hampden-Sydney students taught children in the Prince Edward Free Schools established for Black students during this period. The college enrolled its first Black student in 1968 without fanfare, and the hiring of African American faculty members soon followed. Through more than 200 years of strong leadership, Hampden-Sydney College has maintained an active student body and a reputation for excellence in educating men of all origins.