In 1792, Judith and Jacob moved to Warrenton, North Carolina, a small town well situated on the roads linking Richmond, Charleston and Savannah.

[citation needed] His wife, Judith, was a woman of delicate constitution who died at the time of the birth of her seventh child.

He managed to obtain an excellent knowledge of Hebrew language and literature and studiously devoted himself to literary pursuits, especially biblical research, and wrote many scholarly articles.

In the summer of 1808, some of the locals met with Jacob and offered to help support the establishment of an “academy” for girls, on the condition that he would become its headmaster.

Since the overwhelming majority of girls who attended the academy came from well-to-do homes in which they were pampered, some of them must have had trouble adjusting to the school's regimen.

Since all of the Mordecai children, male and female, attended and/or worked in the school, as well as several cousins, there was a critical mass of Jewish students to observe holidays.

In 1819, at age 56, ten years after opening his Female Academy, Jacob Mordecai chose to sell the highly successful enterprise and move his family to Richmond, Virginia.

He purchased the Spring Farm slave plantation and lived as an active member of Richmond's Jewish community, serving as president of its Congregation Kahal Kadosh Beth Shalome.