Chronology

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1. Antebellum and Civil War · 1800–1865

2. 1845
   Construction or physical change · Hillsborough Academy, Hillsborough Hillsborough citizens pay to refit the academy building for the Caldwell Institute

   Townspeople paid for the repair and enlargement of the Hillsborough Academy building so that the Caldwell Institute could move in from Greensboro. The older school was absorbed into the institute under Alexander Wilson.

3. July 9, 1845
   Founding or opening · Hillsborough Academy, Hillsborough Caldwell Institute reopens in Hillsborough after leaving Greensboro

   The Orange Presbytery's Caldwell Institute, founded at Greensboro, moved to Hillsborough and began its first session there on July 9, 1845, with Alexander Wilson as president. It used the Hillsborough Academy building and absorbed that school.

4. 1848
   Statistic or record · Hillsborough Caldwell Institute enrollment peaks at 100 in Hillsborough

   Under Alexander Wilson the school reached a peak enrollment of 100 students in 1848. Attendance fell back to 68 the next year, and in 1850 the trustees voted to discontinue it.

5. 1850
   Closing or ending · Hillsborough Academy, Hillsborough Caldwell Institute closes in Hillsborough

   The Caldwell Institute ended in 1850 after five years in Hillsborough.

6. 1851–1858
   Founding or opening · Hillsborough Academy, Hillsborough Hillsborough Academy is revived under Benjamin Huske and Ralph Graves

   After the Caldwell Institute closed, Benjamin R. Huske and Ralph Henry Graves revived the Hillsborough Academy, which ran until 1858.

7. Early twentieth century · 1900–1944

8. April 14, 1902
   Founding or opening · Caldwell Caldwell Institute gets a large new school district

   A committee from Caldwell Institute asked for one district made from parts of the Wilson, Little River and Poplar Grove districts. The board approved and had the boundary surveyed.

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Compiled and maintained by the Friends of the Orange County Public Library from county records, the sources named on each card, and the index’s event pages. Last updated October 1, 2026.