Printed material, legal documents, financial records, correspondence and other papers documenting the history of Amherst Academy, its Charity Fund, and the resulting inception and founding of Amherst College as an institution for the education of "indigent young men of promising talents and hopeful piety." The collection brings together from disparate sources the early founding documents of the College from its inception in 1817 to its securing of a Massachusetts charter in 1825 through to its gradual institutional stability in the latter 19th century. Printed material includes early circulars and catalogues of both Amherst College Academy and Amherst College. Papers of several 19th century trustees of the College are also included.

This collection is organized into four series:

• 1. Amherst Academy Records, 1815-1995
• 2. Inception and Founding of Amherst College, 1818-1891 (bulk 1818-1825)
• 3. After the Charter, 1825-1849
• 4. 19th Century Trustees of Amherst College

The Early History Collection was compiled from surviving records in a variety of locations, including the records of Amherst Academy as well as from Memorabilia volumes assembled by Edward Hitchcock, president of Amherst College, 1845-1849. Because the history of Amherst College is tied so closely to that of Amherst Academy, materials related to Amherst Academy are included in Section 1 of the Collection. Sections 2-4 document the inception and early period of Amherst College.