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The Gunnery is a coeducational boarding and day Prep school for 295 students in grades nine through twelve. The 220-acre (0.89 km²) campus borders the village green of Washington, Connecticut, U.S., a small, historic town in the Litchfield Hills. The Gunnery has no religious or military affiliations.

The Gunnery was founded in 1850 by Frederick W. Gunn, a teacher, abolitionist, and father of recreational camping in America. The basic mission of The Gunnery is to promote the four cornerstones on which character is built: scholarship, integrity, respect and responsibility.

There are nine dormitories on campus that house from 12 to 48 students each. In most cases, students are grouped by class. Each dormitory consists primarily of single and double student rooms, but also houses faculty members and their families. 85 percent of the faculty lives on campus.

The Gunnery’s academic curriculum emphasizes the liberal arts; Advanced Placement courses and many electives are offered in all disciplines. Classes average 14 students in size and provide a seminar atmosphere, allowing for maximum student-teacher interaction.

Interscholastic sports

Student clubs and organizations

Tradition

• One of the first photographs of a Baseball game was taken at The Gunnery's first alumni day in 1869. The Alumni baseball game is still played every year during Alumni Weekend.

• A school tradition is to find The Stray Shot, a 20", 80 lb (36 kg). cannonball hidden by a group of seniors who then leak clues to its whereabouts to the junior class. When a group of juniors finds The Stray Shot they engrave their initials into the ball and hide it again for next year. The game is usually played in secrecy. The Gunnery faculty lost track of The Stray Shot I in 1992 and The Stray Shot II in 2002. The Stray Shot was spotted at Graduation 2007 before it was abruptly hidden again.

• Senior Rock is a large boulder in the middle of the Quad, in front of Gunn dormitory, dedicated to Hamilton Gibson (Third Headmaster). By tradition, seniors are the only group of people allowed to climb or sit on the rock.

• The School Walk - The whole school takes a day off classes on Fredrick W. Gunn's birthday to go for a recreational hike, a tradition that he started. This walk takes students around Steep Rock, the nature conservancy in the town.

Notable alumni

• Benjamin Foulois 1893 - Founder of US Army Air Corps.
• Harold Bache '12 - President of Bache and Co, later Prudential Bache.
• Richard L. Feigen '47 - American art dealer.
• Jonathan Linen '62 - Vice Chairman of American Express and Director of InterContinental Hotels Group.
• Sam Posey '62 - Racecar driver and sports broadcast journalist.
• George Grande '64 - Voice of the Cincinnati Reds on Fox Sports Net Ohio.
• Len Abess '66 - Banker who generously shared the $ 60M proceeds of the the sale of his bank with 399 employees
• Gerald Warner Brace (1901–1978) was an American writer, educator, sailor and boat builder.
• Christopher Dunford ’66 - President of Freedom from Hunger.
• Stephen Baird ’68, Managing Director of UBS AG.
• Edsel Ford II '68 - Member of the board of directors for the Ford Motor Company
• Dick Wolf '68 - Creator of Law & Order.
• Samuel Newhouse III '70 - Editor, heir to Condé Nast Publications Inc.
• Jonathan M. Tisch '71 - Chairman and CEO of Loews Hotels and Treasurer of the New York Giants.
• Dr. David Abala '73 - Urologist, member of Duke University Medical Center, White House Fellow, and Official doctor for the Super Bowl.
• Maynard Webb '74 - COO of Ebay.
• David Modell '80 - Former owner of the Baltimore Ravens.
• Mark Lazarus ’82 - President of Turner Entertainment Group.
• James Perse '91 - Fashion Designer.
• Jesse Soffer '03 - Actor.
• Austin Smith '07 - NHL 5th round draft pick by the Dallas Stars.

External links

• NEPSAC main page
• The Gunnery website

Coordinates: 41°37′49″N 73°18′42″W / 41.6303°N 73.3118°W / 41.6303; -73.3118