Culver Academies history

He had a summer home on Lake Maxinkuckee, and there concluded to found his institure [institute]. The first building erected was a frame structure, which was destroyed by fire on the 4th of February, 1895.

The new building did not solve enrollment issues and only 37 boys were present at the start of the second year and dropped below 30 in 1896.

Henry Harrison Culver died in 1897, but his school’s future was firmly established.

At the 1911 Commencement, 75 former cadets were invited to participate in the exercises.

By 1914, there were more than 100 active members in the association and enrollment grew rapidly.

In 1916, a new constitution and set of by-laws were adopted and the name of the organization changed to The Culver Legion.

By 1922, the organization had become so significant, in the opinion of the trustees, that it was decided that The Legion should take an active part in school affairs.

On November 2, 1925, the Culver Legion Memorial Building was dedicated to the memory of Culver's heroic dead of World War I. Never had such a distinguished contingent of national and international figures gathered on campus.

In 1932, the Culver family relinquished control of the school by surrendering “all property, funds, and other possessions” to The Culver Educational Foundation, a not-for-profit entity.

In 1939, commandant of cadets, Charles F. McKinney ’12, prepared a monograph which stressed the importance of leadership. “Today as never before, the world needs leaders, leaders in every phase of human endeavor.

CulverMilitaryAcademy began admitting faculty daughters as students in the fall of 1957 – 50 years ago.

My father was hired by Culver in 1968 as Dean of Admissions, but also to be part of the team to establish a girls’ school, a decision not yet made but under consideration.

An early proponent of equality wrote in TheVedette of May 29, 1970, more than a year before CAG opened:

“A fresh breeze blew off LakeMaxinkuckee in September 1971 as the young women of CAG enrolled and, acknowledging a dimension that had begun with Emily Jane Culver, began adapting to their crucible for the future.”

Greg Clary ’72 reminded me at the Roundtable event in May that our class gift in 1972 was for a CAG scholarship, a clear message to Culver that the girls were here to stay.