St. Thomas Military Academy Records

The St. Thomas Military Academy (STMA) can trace its orgins to the founding of the St. Thomas Aquinas Seminary in 1885. The school's curricula included a college preparatory course for students, many of whom aspired to train to become priests.  When the Saint Paul Seminary opened in 1895, the re-formed College of St. Thomas continued to a offer high school level curricula for its students.

In 1903, the College of St. Thomas began mandatory military instruction for all students (college and high school levels).  In 1905, the mllitary program was formaly brought under the supervision of the United States Army.  The obligation for College of St. Thomas students to undertake military training was dropped in 1920.  This led to the official separation of the administration of the College of St. Thomas and the St. Thomas Military Academy in 1922.

The Academy continued to be based on the grounds of the College of St. Thomas until 1965 when it the school moved to its own campus in Mendota Heights, MN.  At that time, the school's name was officially changed to the St. Thomas Academy.