The Chester Academy is the building housing the school established by Scottish scholar, Samuel Halliday, who settled in Chester Township. The three-story building was erected in 1839 with the goal of serving students from all over Meigs County. In its early years, the brick schoolhouse was used for community events, as a voting location, meeting house for social groups such as debate societies and singing schools. The complete absence of church buildings in the township prompted many of the township’s churches to worship in it. The building remained in use for scholastic purposes until the Civil War, after which the school closed. In 1975, the courthouse and school were listed together on the National Register of Historic Places, qualifying both because of their architecture and the place that they had played in Ohio’s history.
