Dobbin House
Gettysburg, Adams County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
Built in 1776 by the Rev. Alexander Dobbin. In use for some 25 years as one of the first classical schools west of the Susquehanna River. It is now a museum refurnished in keeping with the early period.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
The Reverend Alexander Dobbin built this stone house in 1776, the very year of independence, and for some twenty-five years ran within it one of the first classical schools west of the Susquehanna River. Students here read Latin and Greek on a frontier that had only recently been wilderness, evidence of how quickly settlers sought to plant learning in new country. Today the restored house serves as a museum of that early-republic world.
Why it matters
The Dobbin House marks the frontier's early hunger for education, showing how classical schooling followed close behind the axe and the plow into western Pennsylvania.
Plan your visit
NearbyMake a day of it — museums, food, and places to stay near this marker.
Museums & culture
- Jennie Wade House Giftsnearby · 548 Baltimore Street, Gettysburg, PA
- Casteel Sculptures0.1 mi away · 789 Baltimore Street, Gettysburg, PA
- Gettysburg Diorama & History Center0.2 mi away · 241 Steinwehr Avenue, Gettysburg, PA
- Gettysburg Heritage Center0.2 mi away · 297 Steinwehr Avenue, Gettysburg, PA
- Shriver House Museum0.3 mi away · 309 Baltimore Street, Gettysburg, PA
- Lincoln Train Museum0.3 mi away · 426 Steinwehr Avenue, Gettysburg, PA
Attractions
- John Eisenhower Bridge2.6 mi away · Waterworks Road
- Sachs Covered Bridge2.9 mi away
- Sachs Covered Bridge2.9 mi away · Waterworks Road, Gettysburg, PA
Food & drink
- Reid's Winery Cider House0.2 mi away · 400 Baltimore Street, Gettysburg, PA
- Blue & Gray Bar & Grill0.5 mi away · 2 Baltimore Street, Gettysburg, PA
- Ploughman Cider Taproom0.5 mi away · 14 Lincoln Square, Gettysburg, PA
- Ernie's Texas Lunch0.6 mi away · 58 Chambersburg Street, Gettysburg, PA
- Upper Crust Pizza0.6 mi away · 19 York Street, Gettysburg, PA
- Ragged Edge Coffee House0.6 mi away · 110 Chambersburg Street, Gettysburg, PA
Places to stay
- Inn at Cemetery Hillnearby · 613 Baltimore Street, Gettysburg, PA
- 1863 Inn of Gettysburg0.1 mi away · 516 Baltimore Street, Gettysburg, PA
- Brickhouse Inn Bed and Breakfast0.1 mi away · 452 Baltimore Street, Gettysburg, PA
- A Sentimental Journey Bed & Breakfast0.2 mi away · 433 Baltimore Street, Gettysburg, PA
- Colton Motel0.2 mi away · 232 Steinwehr Avenue, Gettysburg, PA
- Farnsworth House Inn0.2 mi away · 401 Baltimore Street, Gettysburg, PA
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Related people
- · Rev. Alexander Dobbin
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Thaddeus Stevens
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Before he became one of the most powerful and uncompromising figures in Congress, Thaddeus Stevens lived in Gettysburg, leaving in 1842. Here he built his early career as a lawyer and ironmaster while championing two causes that defined him: the abolition of slavery and the defense of free public schools in Pennsylvania, which he famously fought to preserve in 1835. From these Adams County beginnings he rose to lead the Radical Republicans and shape Reconstruction after the Civil War.
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