History
The school was founded in 1820 by local citizens as a "building for higher education." Once called Wolfeboro & Tuftonboro Academy, in 1887 it was renamed Brewster Free Academy in honor of John Brewster, a benefactor. For sixty years it charged no tuition fee to area residents, and from its inception through 1964, the school served as the only high school in Wolfeboro. (The town began to pay local students' tuition starting in 1947.) During the immediate postwar years it was a popular school with military veterans seeking to improve their credentials for a university education under the GI Bill. In 1963 the graduating class consisted of 60 local students, with 30 additional post-graduate students, who boarded on campus. Many of these were there to increase their athletic prowess, and some, including Milt Morin who played in the NFL, had successful college and pro sports careers. The local students were then shifted to Kingswood Regional High School in town, and Brewster became a private boarding school.
In 1985, Digital Equipment Corporation co-founder Ken Olsen donated a number of Digital personal computers to Brewster. The computers were part of a new lab dedicated to Grace Murray Hopper, whose family had a summer house in Wolfeboro. The lab is called the Grace Murray Hopper Center for Computer Learning.
Since 1995, Brewster hosts the Great Waters Music Festival. This summer festival promotes live musical performances including choral, symphonic, folk, pops, jazz, Broadway, dance, and renowned vocal and instrumental artists. Celebrity performers have included Wynton Marsalis, Dave Brubeck, Arlo Guthrie, Chuck Mangione, and the Glenn Miller Orchestra.
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