In the late 1700s, most of the Loyalists upon their arrival to the area were farmers, and did not see formal education as a valuable or important thing. In 1787, three years after their arrival, more privileged Loyalists began to petition for a school to be built in each district, to teach mathematics, arithmetic, English and Latin. Finally, in the early 1800s, the government of Upper Canada passed The Common School Act of 1816, which allowed for a common school to be built in every district where at least 20 students would attend. It would then be the township's responsibility to divide itself into School Sections based upon the locations of the congregated pupils. The Act distributed grants of £25 to schools that met the requirements to pay for a teacher's salary. Although this Act showed promise for the township, the Act did not supply funds for building materials or labour for schools to be built, thus few schools managed to be established early on.