Another New England tradition bites the dust: R.I.P., Governor Dummer Academy

I always used to wonder about it, whenever I'd pass the sign on the highway near Newburyport, Massachusetts that said Governor Dummer Academy.

What was it like for the students when people asked them where they attended school? What endless string of lousy puns were they subjected too, and did they take it in good stride? When the movie "Dumb and Dumber" came out, did it get better, or did it get worse?

But it's all over now, or at least it will be on July 1, 2006. From that day forward, the nation's oldest independent boarding school (who knew?) will just be known as the Governor's Academy. Pick a governor, any governor:

"The board of trustees believes the long-term interests of the Academy are best served by implementation of this change in the school name," board president Dan Morgan said in a statement.

Morgan had told alumni of plans to change the name after a preliminary vote by the trustees in December 2004, drawing questioning letters and e-mails.

But you can't please all of the people all the time:

To appease critics, trustees agreed to include the words "Established in 1763 by Governor Wm. Dummer" on the school's printed name and seal.

The gesture wasn't enough for Michael Smith, a 1954 alumnus who said he has made his last donation to his alma mater.

"Why give money to a school that has no respect for history?" asked Smith, a retired federal government official who lives in McLean, Va.

They won't be getting a penny from me.