The King's College Tract consisted of an 20000 acres (80.9 km²) area of forested land in the vicinity of the present towns of Cambridge

Cambridge, Vermont

Cambridge is a town in Lamoille County, Vermont, United States. The population was 3,186 at the 2000 U.S. Census. Cambridge includes the village of Jeffersonville.-History:...

 and Johnson in the U.S. state of Vermont

Vermont

Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...

. The tract was granted in 1764 by Lieutenant Governor Cadwallader Colden

Cadwallader Colden

Cadwallader Colden was a physician, farmer, surveyor, botanist, and a lieutenant governor for the Province of New York.-Biography:...

 of the New York crown colony, in the name of King George III to the board of governors (trustees) of King's College – today's Columbia University

Columbia University

Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...

. The grant was intended for the eventual expansion of the college.

The emergence of the Vermont Republic

Vermont Republic

The term Vermont Republic has been used by later historians for the government of what became modern Vermont from 1777 to 1791. In July 1777 delegates from 28 towns met and declared independence from jurisdictions and land claims of British colonies in New Hampshire and New York. They also...

 in 1777 forestalled claim of the grant, and Vermont's General Assembly

Vermont General Assembly

The Vermont General Assembly is the legislative body of the U.S. state of Vermont. The Legislature is formally known as the "General Assembly," but the style of "Legislature" is commonly used, including by the body itself...

 made a grant of the same land in 1785 to William Samuel Johnson

William Samuel Johnson

William Samuel Johnson was an early American statesman who was notable for signing the United States Constitution, for representing Connecticut in the United States Senate, and for serving as president of Columbia University.-Early career:...

, an American founding father and jurist who informally represented Vermont before the Continental Congress

Continental Congress

The Continental Congress was a convention of delegates called together from the Thirteen Colonies that became the governing body of the United States during the American Revolution....

 and argued for its eventual admission to the federal union.

By coincidence the association with King's College (Columbia University) continued, as Johnson became president of then Columbia College in 1787. Though Columbia University never moved to King's College Tract, eventually a college was located there. In 1828 John Chesamore founded the Lamoille Academy, predecessor to today's Johnson State College

Johnson State College

Johnson State College is a small public liberal arts college, founded in 1828 by John Chesamore at Johnson in the U.S. state of Vermont. Johnson's president is Barbara E. Murphy and its board chair is Gary M. Moore.- History and governance :...

.