This article investigates the early history of the predecessor institutions of the University of New Brunswick – the Fredericton Academy and the College of New Brunswick – and considers how the development of collegiate education influenced that of the settler state. It argues that colonial elites who sought to build a school for their children not only did so on unceded Wolastoqey lands, but also supported and operated their school through the misappropriation of other funds and in opposition to established British law. The actions of the colony’s executive regarding the collegiate school built in Fredericton allowed the House of Assembly to gain greater political autonomy and power to help shape the province’s future.