For many public spirited men in Massachusetts, 1837 was a turning point. After more than a decade of agitation for common school reform, the venerable and cumbersome General Court had finally consented to establish a State Board of Education. At the time there was some confusion as to what this new body might accomplish, but it was generally acknowledged that its most important act would be to select the right man as its executive secretary. The establishment of the board was the result of collective effort on the part of various reformers throughout the state, but if there was any man who could claim it as a personal triumph, that man was James Gordon Carter of Lancaster, teacher, editor, and legislator.

The thirteenth century was a period of centralization and reform in the Church, spearheaded by Pope Innocent III and the Lateran Council of 1215. This movement together with the rise of the universities led, among other things, to the encouragement of a new type of bishop—the scholar-bishop, a man who made a name for himself in the schools, and, as a result of his educational achievements, was called to an episcopal office.

The role of the Teachers' Institute in the history of American education has been documented by a succession of competent scholars who indicated the impact of Institutes in furthering the cause of education within the states through the expedient of a grassroots teacher-training program. Institutes were popular in various states at different times; in Michigan they attained popularity during the decades after 1840. While the story of the nineteenth-century struggle to augment teacher capabilities through Institutes is generally well known to the student of educational history, rarely does one have the opportunity to examine the actual proceedings of one of those early Institutes to see exactly what was taking place. It well may be asked: What actually occurred at these meetings? What was the nature of the training which the teachers received, and did it have any real utility? How did the sponsoring authorities attempt to inspire teachers toward a greater professional dedication? These are all legitimate questions worthy of an answer.

Scarcely had American independence been won in 1783 than a flood of articles, pamphlets, and books asked what should be the functions of education in a republic? The American Philosophic Society offered a prize for the best proposal of a liberal education suited to the genius of the new American nation. George Washington, Robert Coran, Benjamin Rush, William Smith, Francis Hopkinson, and Jonathan Trumball all called for a new education for the new republic. Regarding higher education, they all agreed that education must be more than a mere adornment; it must have a practical bent. Benjamin Rush wrote: