Oak Grove-Coburn School, Private preparatory academy in Vassalboro, Maine
Oak Grove-Coburn School was a private preparatory academy situated on a 500-acre campus featuring a castle-like main building that overlooked the Kennebec River. The grounds contained Owen Hall for classes, Senior House with dining facilities, Briggs Hall for student housing, and numerous athletic fields.
Quaker mill-owner John D. Lang founded the institution in 1848 as Oak Grove Seminary. The school emerged from a merger between Oak Grove Seminary and Coburn Classical Institute in 1970.
The school upheld Quaker principles that shaped how students lived and studied together on campus. This philosophy influenced the way the community treated education as a shared experience between local and international students.
The campus sits in a quiet area with extensive woodland trails available for visitors to explore. The main building and various halls are accessible and demonstrate the layout of academic life from that period.
The historic chapel from 1786 on the grounds is maintained today by Friends of Oak Grove Chapel and remains open for visitors. The property was repurposed as the Maine Criminal Justice Academy after the school closed, giving the historic buildings new purpose.
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