Edgefield County · Marker 19-07
Village Academy
Chiurch St., 100 ft. S of its intersection with Brooks St.
Front inscription
Organized in 1811, the Edgefield Village Academy was located for many years on this site acquired from Col. Eldred Simkins, in 1825. The South Carolina Coeducational Institute was located here from 1903 to 1913. During Reconstruction, many exciting political meetings were held in the grove near the Academy.
Furman Academy and Theological Institution
This school, founded by the State Convention of Baptists of South Carolina on March 17, 1826, was originally located on this site. The Institution was the forerunner of both Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina and Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky.