 The Romney Literary Society commenced a movement to establish an institution for " the higher education of the youth of the community " . As a result of this initiative , the teaching of the classics was introduced into the curriculum of Romney Academy in 1820 , thus making the institution the first school of higher education in the Eastern Panhandle . In 1846 , the society constructed a new building to house the Romney Classical Institute and its library , both of which fell under the society 's supervision . 
