The same day it was voted that a committee of three be appointed to apply to the general court to have trustees incorporated to superintend the school and the school funds, who shall be chosen annually. The legislature passed the act March 27, 1793, and Richard Devens, Nathaniel Gorham, Josiah Bartlett, Aaron Putnam, Joseph Hurd, Nathaniel Hawkins, and Seth Wyman constituted the first board of trustees of the Charlestown free schools.
April 18, 1793. The town treasurer was empowered to deliver to Aaron Putnam, Esq., treasurer for the trustees, all the moneys, bonds, notes of hand, etc., being the property of the free schools of Charlestown, that now are or may come into his. the treasurer's, hands.
From this time all proceedings of the Charlestown School Board, up to 1814, were recorded by the secretary in a book, known as Volume I. Unfortunately, this valuable record is supposed to be lost, certainly it cannot now be consulted. The selectmen's books furnish us with the annual amounts appropriated for schools, the names of the trustees as they were elected, and a few other items.
Voted May 6, 1793, to raise £ 175 for the schools, in addition to the school funds.
May 12, 1794. The proceedings of the trustees of the schools, with a state of their funds, were read in town meeting. This may be called the first Charlestown school report. The same day it was voted to raise £ 200 for the schools.
May 6, 1795. The second annual report was presented, and the sum of £ 350 was appropriated for the schools. But what is of more interest to us, it was also ‘voted to build a schoolhouse in Milk Row,’ and £ 100 was appropriated, and if there is any surplus ‘it is to be disposed of by the trustees at their discretion.’ The sum named must be construed as generous in the extreme; but the simplicity of the last clause is almost touching. The good fathers of the town were to learn that appropriations for schoolhouses never come out with a surplus. We hear no more of this project until the meeting of May 14,
