The History of Maplewood Academy

The roots of Maplewood Academy trace to 1888 when the Minnesota Conference of Seventh-Day Adventists (SDA) opened the Minneapolis Preparatory School in the basement of the new Minneapolis SDA Church on the corner of 4th Avenue and Lake Street. In August 1889, The Minnesota Conference Committee decided the school needed to be expanded, so the school moved to a rented three-story hotel on Main and Ferry Streets in Anoka, Minnesota. In 1904, a 94-acre farm near Maple Plain, Minnesota, was purchased as the site for the Minnesota Industrial School. The move of the school to this beautiful location also brought a name change. Maplewood Academy began in 1904 with seven faculty members and 57 students in attendance.

Hutchinson, Minnesota was also the site of educational advancement during this time. In 1902, a four-story brick structure, located on the north end of Main Street, came into being when John Hutchinson, one of the founding fathers of Hutchinson, donated the original ten acres for the building site to be used as the Christian Liberal Arts College for the Danish-Lutheran church.

Ansgar College opened its doors to 200 students in the fall of 1902. The college was hit with tragedy almost immediately when in February 1903 a fire destroyed everything but the shell of the building. In August 1903, the college was ready for classes once again. Ansgar was forced to close its doors forever in 1905 because of financial difficulties. The building was sold and renamed Metropolitan College. This school opened its doors in the fall of 1905 as a business college. Financial trouble continued to plague the school, and in December 1906, the owner declared bankruptcy. The college principal then purchased the school, renamed it Hutchinson College, and continued its operation until 1909. Once again finances were a concern and in January 1910, the college was sold to the SDA Church to be used as the Danish-Norwegian Seminary to prepare students for foreign missionary service.

On September 28, 1910, the Danish-Norwegian Seminary opened its doors to students. This seminary was operated in conjunction with Maplewood Academy in Maple Plain.

In 1928, the two schools merged on the Hutchinson campus. Maplewood Academy was now located on an open campus on the summit of a broad hill, with the entire school plant, classrooms, library, chapel, kitchen, dining hall, bookbindery, and print shop all located in one building.

1939 brought Maplewood Academy a new gymnasium to replace the one in the basement of the Administration Building. This gymnasium was used until 1968, when the current gymnasium was built.

In 1958, a cafeteria/music/home economics building was added to the campus. The girls’ dormitory was built in 1963, and the boys’ dorm in 1969.

In October of 1976, the Maplewood Academy Administration building was listed on the Minnesota Inventory of Historic Places due to its historical and architectural significance.

However, at that time, other discussion about the building's great deterioration were also taking place about the Administrative Building. The building had shown such great deterioration and wear that the Minnesota Conference administration and the constituents of the Minnesota Conference voted to build a new structure to replace the old building. On April 1, 1979, ground was broken for the new Administrative Building. In May, 1979, the last Maplewood Academy class graduated from the old Administrative Building.

The new building was constructed over the next year and the move into the new building was stared January 29, 1980. School was dismissed the next day so the faculty could continue to move and set up for classes to resume on February 3, 1980.

Friends, faculty, and students gathered on the afternoon of January 30, 1980 on the Administration Building front steps to pay tribute and say good-bye to an old friend. On February 6, 1980, the demolition of the old Administration Building began. It was a tearful and sad day for many alumni and friends. The building was the place where many fond memories had been made. The building had graciously served the Hutchinson community and the SDA church for over 78 years.

The chapel on the current Administration Building is built on the site of part of the former Administration Building. It is fitting that the school chapel rests on the ground of that beloved building.

Through the Hutchinson years, Maplewood Academy has been knows as “The School on the Hill.” Many students, faculty, and staff members have passed over the academy’s threshold. Time has changed its physical structures, but time will never alter the reason Maplewood Academy exists. Educating for Eternity is the phrase on the school seal. These words were and continue to be the major objective of Maplewood Academy. The spirit of Maplewood and its alumni remains the same.

The above history is excepted from the 2004 Alumni Directory. Many thanks to Adrian Lauritzen ’25, Judy Glass ’87, Debbie Barr (ff/s), Peggy Glass ’76, and The Hutchinson Leader staff for contributing to this article.