About Us

McKinley Elementary students

Welcome to McKinley Elementary!

McKinley Elementary school is located at 1740 Constance Boulevard N.E. in Ham Lake, near the intersection of Constance Boulevard and Highway 65. McKinley students attend Roosevelt Middle School and Blaine High School.

As the only public school in Ham Lake, we feel a strong sense of community here at McKinley. Our students are genuinely kind and generous, which has created a positive and welcoming environment in the building. The involvement of our Parent Teacher Organization and greater community provides the support to make McKinley an amazing place to learn and grow.

McKinley school profile

Principal

Michael Koenig

Work: (763) 506-3401

Assistant Principal

Andrew Kelley

Work: (763) 506-3420

History of McKinley

All the schools were closed and consolidated into the Anoka-Hennepin School District in 1961. A large, modern elementary school was built on 14 acres of property donated by the Burton and Chester Livgard families. Dedication was held March 30, 1965, for the new school named McKinley Elementary School.

Before McKinley...

Each school building was assigned a “district” number and each had its own School Board. All of the one-room schoolhouses were consolidated into the Anoka-Hennepin School District in 1961. Two of the schools were actually located outside of what is now the city of Ham Lake, but children living in the Township of Ham Lake attended them, so they have been included.

The original schoolhouse was replaced by this one in 1941-1942, built by the WPA. The new school included a library where books were placed on the shelves with some unheard of system called the Dewey Decimal System. Parents took turns bringing commodities from Anoka, so “hot lunch” was served. Favorite games were “Last Couple Out,” “Drop the Handkerchief,” “Anti-Over,” and “Jacks.” In 1941, the teachers taught the students how to make and use bandages. In May of 1942 it became the registration place for sugar rationing. The building still stands and is now a residential four-plex.

At Glen Cary, around 1898, the classes were taught in Norwegian. The Glen Cary School was located on the site of the current Ham Lake City Hall. After the schools were consolidated, it became the meeting place for the township meetings and then city meetings. It had extensive remodeling in 1976 with a large addition. It was demolished in 1990 at the time that a new city hall was constructed.

This school was originally located near 171st Street and Lexington Avenue. It is currently located near Carlos Avery Game Farm.
Lake Netta was organized in 1871 and the classes were first held in farmer’s homes until the first school was built six years later. It was first erected about three miles south of the lake, but in 1889 it was moved with the aid of horses up to Lake Netta. In 1935 a new school was erected and the structure remains as a residential dwelling today.

Charlie Moore (whose father, Christ, came to Ham Lake in the late 1880s) remembers hauling bricks from Andover with a team and wagon for the brick schoolhouse, which was built in 1914 1990 at the time that a new city hall was constructed.

This school was originally located at the intersection of Crosstown Boulevard and Constance Boulevard. school was erected and the structure remains as a residential dwelling today.

This schoolhouse was relocated and now sits at the Anoka County Fairground.

Search