Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is the Americanwizarding school,[2] located on Mount Greylock in modern-day Massachusetts.[1] It accepts students from all over North America. Students of this school, as at Hogwarts in Scotland, are sorted into four houses.[3]
When Newt Scamander travelled to New York in the 1920s, he met several people (including Porpentina and Queenie Goldstein) who were educated at this school.[2]
Location
Ilvermorny Castle is on top of the highest peak of Mount Greylock in the Berkshires of Western Massachusetts.
The castle was once a granite stone house constructed by Isolt Sayreand James Steward to be their home. When it eventually became a school, the cottage kept expanding until it became a castle. The front doors are adorned with marble statues of Sayre and Steward on either side. It is concealed by several enchantments which sometimes makes the school like a wreath of misty cloud.[1]
History
Ilvermorny was founded in 1627, 637 years after Hogwarts, and the school was originally just a rough shack containing two teachers and two students.[4] Ilvermorny was originally a stone cottage constructed by Irish immigrant Isolt Sayre, and her No-Maj husband James Steward. It became a school when their adoptive children Chadwickand Webster Boot hoped they could return to Ireland so they could attend Hogwarts. Isolt then promised they could build their own school at Ilvermorny with the objective of home-schooling them.[1]
Thus, the school started with just the couple acting as teachers and their two adopted sons, Chadwick and Webster Boot, as students. Each of them named one of the four Houses: Chadwick created Thunderbird, Webster created Wampus, Isolt created Horned Serpent, and James created Pukwudgie.
Eventually, the school enrolled more students, and the couple were able to provide wands not just for their children, but for the other students too. These students were Native Americans of the Wampanoag and the Narragansett tribes who shared their knowledge of magic in return for being taught the technique involved with wandwork. Therefore, Native American magic became involved in the foundations of Ilvermorny. Over the next few years, the school grew even more and by 1634, there were enough children for inter-house competitions.[1]
For a time, the school acted only as a day school, with James, Isolt and their family as the only live-in residents. News of the new school reached Europe, and Isolt’s wicked aunt, Gormlaith Gaunt finally found her niece. She made her way to the school, and cast a curse on James and Isolt from a distance to put them in a deep sleep while hoping to kill them and abduct their new-born twin daughters. She did not know, however, about Chadwick and Webster, and when she cast a spell in Parseltongue to disable Isolt’s wand, the brothers’ wands (whose cores were of Horned Serpent horn) alerted them to the danger.
Chadwick went to hold off the Dark witch, while Webster tried to wake their parents. Webster joined the duel and the couple were awakened by the cry of their infant daughters. While James went to protect the babies, Isolt tried to join the fight, but her wand was useless, being disabled earlier. In the duel, the whole family was driven to the bedroom, and Isolt called out to her late father William for help and was answered by her old friend William, a Pukwudgie, who killed Gormlaith, and from that day on, William and his family acted as the school’s security and maintenance staff.
After Gormlaith’s died, Isolt and James buried her wand in the school grounds. She did not wish to keep the wand as it was the last reminder of her unhappy childhood. Within a year, a snakewood tree grew from the ground where it was buried. Any attempts to kill or prune it were unsuccessful, and it was kept after it was discovered that the tree contained powerful medicinal properties.
Middle history
By the 18th century, Ilvermorny became a granite castle and more teachers were added to cope with the growing number of students. By this point, the school had become a boarding school. Ilvermorny reached the same reputation that other schools of magic had, and the founders had concealed their school by clever enchantments, some of which made it look like a misty cloud to No-Majs.[1]
During the 18th century, one of Ilvermorny’s ex-students, Dorcus Twelvetrees, revealed to a No-Maj named Bartholomew Barebone the location of the school, among other information concerning the wizarding community. However, it turned out that Bartholomew was the descendant of a Scourer, and he revealed all the information he got from Dorcus to the No-Maj community, including Ilvermorny’s address. It led to one of the greatest ever breaches of the International Statute of Secrecy, but also the passage of Rappaport’s Law, which effectively segregated the No-Maj and wizarding communities.[5] When first-years arrive at Ilvermorny, they are sorted into their house and then they are taken to another area where they get to choose (or be chosen by) their wand. Before Rappaport’s Law was repealed, students were not allowed a wand outside of school until they were seventeen and were not allowed a wand before arriving at Ilvermorny.[1]
By the nineteenth century, Ilvermony gained the international reputation it enjoys today.[1] By the 1920s, Ilvermorny had been flourishing for more than two centuries and was widely considered to be one of the greatest magical educational establishments in the world. As a result of their shared education, all witches and wizards who attended are proficient in the use of a wand.[6]
They had also developed a school song. Scared parents of Ilvermorny students asked Ilvermorny to hold all students during the holiday season.[7] The New York Ghost reports on their House points and awards.[8] An essay from the Ilvermorny Scholars’ Vanishment report was published in Transfiguration Today in 1926.[7]
In the 1920s, French students were offered a student exchange programme to Ilvermorny for students whose parents worked at the French Ministry of Magic.[9] Ilvermorny introduced Creature Care into their Curriculum in 1927.[10]
Uniform
The robes of Ilvermorny are blue and cranberry. The colours honour Isolt and James: blue because it was Isolt’s favourite colour and because she had wished to be in Ravenclaw house as a child; cranberry in honour of James’s love of cranberry pie. All Ilvermony students’ robes are fastened by a gold Gordian Knot, in memory of the brooch Isolt found in the ruins of the original Ilvermorny cottage.[1]
As evident by students visiting MACUSA headquarters, the Ilvermorny robes (at least as of 1926) come in two separate, solid colours, rather than being the same for all students.[12] However, the school robes worn by Chadwick and Webster Boot were identical, being mostly blue with cranberry red trim. They are also wearing black waistcoats and brown breeches underneath their robes.
Subjects
Defence Against the Dark Arts
Defence Against the Dark Arts, commonly shortened to D.A.D.A., is the class that teaches students defensive techniques to defend against the Dark Arts, and to be protected from Dark creatures. Defence Against the Dark Arts was one of the subjects which have been taught at Ilvermorny since the 17th century. One of the professors was Rionach Steward, the daughter of Ilvermorny founders Isolt Sayre and James Steward.
Charms
Charms was another known subject at Ilvermorny, as Chadwick’s Charms Vols I–VII, which was written by founder Chadwick Boot are standard textbooks for Charms class at Ilvermorny.[1] Charms are a type of spells concerned with giving an object new and unexpected properties, and hence this class mainly consists on learning those sorts of spells. The Charms Chalice was a possible award related to the subject.
Transfiguration
Transfiguration was also likely taught at the school, as an article by Ilvermorny Scholars was published in Transfiguration Today. Transfiguration is the art of changing the form or appearance of an object, and hence this is what this class teaches. Transfiguration is a theory-based subject and regarded as scientific. They also have a tournament called the Transfiguration Tournament.
Potions
Potions was a class held at the school; the Excellence in Potions Cup was a related achievement at the school. Potions is described as the art of creating mixtures with magical effects. It requires the correct mixing and stirring of ingredients at the right times and temperatures. The subject also requires use of a wand and is is the wizarding version of Muggle Chemistry.
Xylomancy
Xylomancy was an extracurricular class offered by the school in 1926.[13] It is an “often overlooked” type of divination that relied upon twigs. It is also possible that divination is offered at IIvermorny.
Arithmancy
Arithmancy was likely offered at the school as the school has an award called the Arithmancy Achievement Accolade. Arithmancy is a branch of magic concerned with the magical properties of numbers. This subject is most likely a theory based one. It can also be assumed that this is an elective subject at IIvermorny, as it is at Hogwarts.
Study of Ancient Runes
Study of Ancient Runes was likely offered at the school as the school has an award, called the Excellence in Runes Cup. The Study of Ancient Runes is a general theoretical subject that studies ancient runic scripts. It can be assumed that this is an elective subject at IIvermorny, as it is at Hogwarts.
Creature Care
Creature Care was introduced in the school’s curriculum in 1927.[14] It may be a consequence of the attack onNew York City in 1926, and magizoologist Newton Scamander‘s actions to help the American wizarding community.
Starry Seawolf 