Children & Education

At the end of the 18th century, a number of private schools were set up in Exeter to educate the children of the well-off, some teaching boys, others girls (‘maids’). Some boys’ schools specialised in Classics (Greek and Latin) for the clergy and lawyers, others in maths, foreign languages and book-keeping for the business world. Girls’ schools normally taught languages, maths, music etc.

The museum holds a series of medals issued by private Exeter and Topsham schools in the early 19th century. They were awarded for successes and improvements in areas including penmanship and mathematics. The locations of many of these schools have not been established. The schools represented in our collection are: Mulling's School, Mr Gould's Seminary, Topsham Academy, Truman's Mathematical Boarding School,   Mr Stephen's Academy, Alphington School for Boys and the South Devon Collegiate School Exeter.