This aerial photograph of the Upsala Area Schools complex was donated by Dan Hovland, a former board member of The Morrison County Historical Society and current president of the Upsala Area Historical Society. The photograph was taken in October of 2004, shortly after the new school had opened and the previous two-story brick building had been torn down. The new building includes both the Upsala Elementary School and the Upsala High School. Settled in the 1870s, Upsala was originally known as Swedback’s Settlement. John Swedback, a prominent local businessman, operated a sawmill, built a general store and opened the first creamery in the area. The community was later named Upsala after the city of Uppsala in Sweden.
If you are interested in learning more about the history of Upsala and the surrounding area, feel free to stop in at The Charles A. Weyerhaeuser Memorial Museum or visit the Upsala Area Historical Society(UAHS). Information on UAHS as well as additional historical information can be found on the organization’s website (http://www.upsala.k12.mn.us/uahs/).