The End of an Era

Phebe McKeen died in 1880, leaving Philena on her own at Abbot for another twelve years before she resigned as principal in 1892. Both women dedicated their iives to their work, spending more than thirty years molding, shaping, and educating young women at Abbot Academy. Through their outreach efforts and their fund-raising campaigns as well as their genuine interest in giving the women of Abbot their full attention and a rigorous, well-rounded education, the McKeen sisters were truly a "binary star" that had a lasting effect on Abbot and its students.