The Jackson County Academy operated under this name, and informally as the Jefferson Academy, until December 1859 when a judge in the Inferior Court of Jackson County from 1819–1827, William Duncan Martin, willed upon his death a substantial endowment to the school; the name was soon changed to the Martin Institute.
In 1874 the Martin Institute was granted collegiate status, which is roughly equivalent to high school or lower undergraduate today.
It was a two-story brick building on a hill north of and just outside the city of Jefferson, with classroom (then called recitation room) seating for nearly 300 students comprised the first floor, with a large chapel, vestibule, stage, and music rooms occupying the second story.
The students and teachers met in local churches until a new building on a newly donated site was completed in 1946.
The school had a significant reputation for its fine scholarship and excellent teachers, attracting students from several neighboring states and a few foreign countries.