Washington and Lee University (informally called Washington and Lee or W&L) is a private liberal arts university in Lexington, Virginia, United States.
The classical school from which Washington and Lee descended was established in 1749 as Augusta Academy, about 20 miles (32 km) north of its present location. In 1776 it was renamed Liberty Hall in a burst of revolutionary fervor. The academy moved to Lexington in 1780, when it was chartered as Liberty Hall Academy, and built its first facility near town in 1782.
In 1796, George Washington endowed the academy with the largest gift ever given to an educational institution at that time: $20,000 in stock. The gift rescued Liberty Hall from near-certain insolvency. In gratitude, the trustees changed the school's name to Washington Academy; in 1813 it was chartered as Washington College. Dividends from Washington's gift continue to help pay part of the cost of each student's education. Robert E. Lee was its president after the Civil War in 1865 until his death in 1870. The school was renamed Washington and Lee University and its motto, Nōn Incautus Futūrī', meaning "Not unmindful of the future," is an adaptation of the Lee family motto.
The University consists of three academic units: The College; the Williams School of Commerce, Economics, and Politics; and the School of Law
Read more about Washington And Lee University: History, Campus, Organization and Administration, Academics and Reputation, Research, In Literature
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