Benjamin Abbot

Who was Benjamin Abbot?

Benjamin Abbot, September 17, 1762 – October 25, 1849, was an American schoolteacher. His most significant work was his work as a teacher at the Phillips Exeter Academy.

He was born in Andover, Massachusetts, the son of John Abbot from a family settled in Andover since its earliest days. He entered Phillips Academy, Andover in 1782, then entered Harvard University, graduating in 1788. He married his first wife, Hannah Tracy Emery, in 1791. Later, in 1798, he married again, to Mary Perkins. He had four children.

In 1811, he received a LLD degree from Dartmouth College. He was a teacher and the principal of the Phillips Exeter Academy, teaching such subjects as Latin, Greek, and mathematics.

His students included such prominent individuals as Lewis Cass, Daniel Webster, Edward Everett, Jared Sparks, and Francis Bowen. Daniel Webster paid tribute to him at his retirement.

He died in Exeter, New Hampshire in 1849. Abbot Hall, the oldest dormitory at Phillips Exeter Academy, is named for Benjamin Abbot, the school's second principal.