Montgomery Bell Academy
| Montgomery Bell Academy | |
|---|---|
| Address | |
|
4001 Harding Road Nashville, Tennessee 37205 United States |
|
| Coordinates | 36°07′44″N 86°50′13″W / 36.1289469°N 86.8369443°WCoordinates: 36°07′44″N 86°50′13″W / 36.1289469°N 86.8369443°W |
| Information | |
| Type | Private all-male college-preparatory |
| Motto | "Fortitudo Per Scientiam." |
| Established | 1867 |
| Headmaster | Bradford Gioia |
| Grades | 7-12 |
| Gender | Male |
| Enrollment | 713 |
| Color(s) | Cardinal and Silver |
| Mascot | Byron |
| Newspaper | Top of the Hill, The Bell Ringer |
| Yearbook | The Bell |
| Endowment | $60 million |
| Website | School website |
 The Ball Building and the Massey Building |
|
 The Patrick Wilson Library |
|
Montgomery Bell Academy (MBA) is a preparatory day school for boys in grades 7 through 12 in Nashville, Tennessee.
MBA was established in 1867 in the aftermath of the American Civil War. It is the successor to two well-known schools, the Western Military Institute, which Sam Davis, the "Boy Hero of the Confederacy", attended, and the former University of Nashville. The school's board still operates under the corporate title, "Board of Trustees of the University of Nashville", although that institution was otherwise disbanded in the early 20th century.
From 1870 to 1875, former Confederate General Edmund Kirby Smith was the chancellor of the University of Nashville, which operated both a two-year college operating as the University of Nashville, and MBA, the preparatory high school and grammar school. In 1875 a financial crisis and a timely donation from the Peabody Fund caused an organizational separation of the university and the preparatory school. The university was operated under a new board of trustees and used the proceeds of the Peabody Fund to operate the university under the name of Peabody Normal College, later called the George Peabody College for Teachers. The board of trustees of the University of Nashville continued to operate MBA as a preparatory school.
In 1881, the campus of MBA was moved to an estate which was at the time well west of downtown Nashville which was previously known as "Totomoi". The military nature of one of the predecessors notwithstanding, under its current name it has always operated as a civilian institution, as a day school rather than a boarding school. The school is named in honor of Montgomery Bell, a Pennsylvania native who made his fortune as the early 19th century "ironmaster" of Middle Tennessee and whose will endowed it, with the stipulation that it forever be an all-male institution. That this practice has survived into the 21st century has proved to be quite startling to some, but in recent decades there has been little local sentiment in favor of a change since a number of excellent girls-only and coeducational academic options have developed in Nashville. Probably more of its graduates go on to attend Vanderbilt (down to 7% in recent years) than any other university, but no single institution of higher learning attracts a very large proportion of the graduates.
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