Scandinavia Memory Project

Twenty-two yearbooks and other publications from schools in the village of Scandinavia in Waupaca County, Wisconsin are now available online from the Scandinavia Public Library. Although no schools remain in the community, from 1877-1932 the village was home to Scandinavia Academy (renamed Central Wisconsin College in 1920), a junior college supported by the Norwegian Lutheran Church which enrolled more than 2,000 students over the four decades of its existence. After Central Wisconsin College closed in 1932, the building was used as Union Free High School until 1960.

The digital collection includes the last yearbook published by Scandinavia Academy in 1919-1920; the 1923-1924 yearbook from Wisconsin Central College; eighteen volumes of the Scandinavia High School yearbook, The Viking, from 1936-1960; and five issues of the 1941 edition of the Campus Echo, a student newspaper.

Scandinavia Public Library director Sue Vater Olsen worked with Bradley Shipps of the Outagamie Waupaca Library System to create the digital collection. The Scandinavia Memory Project was supported by Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) funds awarded to the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction by the Federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). 

A page of senior portraits from the Scandinavia Academy yearbook, 1919-1920. Scandinavia Public Library.
A page of senior portraits from the Scandinavia Academy yearbook, 1919-1920. The yearbook’s name, The Valkyrie, is a nod to the region’s Nordic heritage. Scandinavia Public Library.
Central Wisconsin College girls' basketball team, from the College's 1923-1924 yearbook. Scandinavia Public Library.
Central Wisconsin College girls’ basketball team, from the College’s 1923-1924 yearbook. Scandinavia Public Library.
Scandinavia High School band, from the 1943 yearbook. Scandinavia Public Library.
Scandinavia High School band, from the 1943 yearbook. Scandinavia Public Library.

Explore the Scandinavia Public Library’s digital project.