Adams endowed the school with a large agricultural estate at Knighton in Staffordshire, providing income for future generations; as a result of this Knighton was exempt from all land taxes until 1990. The school was endowed with 1,400 books soon after its foundation, which at the time represented one of the largest school libraries in England. A typical Oxford or Cambridge college then only had about 1,000 books. Only seven of these 1,400 books are still in the school's ownership, with the rest having been sold at various times when the school has suffered financial hardship.