Nathaniel Hawthorne College

Nathaniel Hawthorne College was a nonprofit private coeducational liberal arts college founded in 1962 by John Berrigan, Kenneth McLaughlin, and Joseph Whelton who purchased the property for the college.{{Cite web |title=Closed Colleges and Universities |url=https://www.education.nh.gov/who-we-are/division-of-educator-support-and-higher-education/closed-colleges-universities |access-date=2024-01-14 |website=New Hampshire Department of Education |language=en}}{{Cite web |last=Brown |first=Ray |date=2011-12-05 |title=Nathaniel Hawthorne College (NH) |url=https://collegehistorygarden.blogspot.com/2011/12/nathaniel-hawthorne-college-nh.html |access-date=2024-01-14 |website=College History Garden}}{{Cite web |year=1988 |title=History |url=https://nhcalumni.tripod.com/history.html |access-date=2024-01-14 |website=Nathaniel Hawthorne College Alumni |publisher=Nathaniel Hawthorne College Yearbook}} McLaughlin served as the college's president.{{Cite news |last=Winslow |first=Ron |date=1980-01-06 |title=A Fly-by-Day School, With Airport; A New England college finds its angel in the wild blue yonder |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1980/01/06/120957895.pdf?pdf_redirect=true&ip=0 |access-date=2024-01-14 |work=The New York Times |pages=20 |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}

The college had 100 students for its first semester in September 1962.{{Cite web |date=October 22, 1988 |title=For Sale: One College |url=https://www.upi.com/Archives/1988/10/22/For-sale-one-college/4649593496000/ |access-date=2024-01-14 |website=United Press International Archives |language=en}}{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XD4LAAAAIAAJ&q=%22Nathaniel+Hawthorne+College%22+-wikipedia |title=College and University |date=1963 |publisher=American Association of Collegiate Registrars |volume=38 |page=224 |language=en |via=Google Books}} Its enrollment was quickly boosted to as many as 700 students by men seeking to avoid the draft for the Vietnam War. When the war ended, enrollment dropped to 500 students, and the college was forced to lay off some of its faculty.

McLaughlin decided that continuing as just a liberal arts college would bring about the college's extinction. He was a noted "aviation enthusiast" and already owned a private airport. In 1971, a curriculum in aviation was added. By 1980, aviation was the college's mainstay, helping to keep it open and attracting some 65 percent of its students. The college owned nineteen aircraft for the 315 enrollees in the program in the fall of 1979. Of the 528 students enrolled that semester, fifteen percent were from foreign countries, including France, Greece, Japan, Venezuela, and several African countries. As a result, the college began offering special English classes.

In 1982, the college merged with the Florida Institute of Technology. Its academic focus changed to aeronautics, business, and computer science.{{Cite news |last=Kessler |first=Abby |date=May 16, 2017 |title=Hawthorne Academy plans to host first academic class this fall |url=https://www.ledgertranscript.com/Hawthorne-Academy-plans-to-host-first-academic-class-this-fall-9926115 |access-date=January 13, 2024 |work=Monadnock Ledger-Transcript}} It also shortened its name to Hawthorne College and was rechartered by the State of New Hampshire.

The college's enrollment declined, and its operating debt increased to $400,000 a year (${{Inflation|index=US|value=400000|start_year=1987|fmt=c}} in today's money). In 1987, it had less than 300 students. Time magazine noted that even with the inducement of flying lessons, Hawthorne had less than half the number of day students it needed to fill its freshman class.{{Cite magazine |date=1978-05-29 |title=Education: This University Wants YOU! |url=https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,919719,00.html |access-date=2024-01-14 |magazine=Time |language=en-US |issn=0040-781X}} With long-term debts over $4 million, the college declared bankruptcy in 1988 and began plans to liquidate its assets. It graduated its last class in April 1988. The college officially closed in 1988.Lurding, Carroll and Becque, Fran. (August 5, 2023) "[https://uofi.app.box.com/v/closed-institutions Closed Institutions]". [https://www.library.illinois.edu/slc/collections/national-fraternity-collections/fraternity-sorority-almanac/ Almanac of Fraternities and Sororities]. Urbana: University of Illinois. Accessed December 21, 2023.

After its closure, the college campus was bought by Maruzen Construction Company of Japan in 1990. In 1992, Maruzen opened an aviation college similar to the later years of Hawthorne College, but this institution was short-lived. The former college was then was owned by a Maharishi meditation school. In 2014, it was purchased by the nonprofit Overseas United Education, which opened a preparatory school called the Hawthorne Academy in the fall of 2017.

The college's former airfield is now the Hawthorne–Feather Airpark, a privately owned public-use airport.

The college was located on the former Flint Estate in North Branch, Antrim, New Hampshire. It also included a former airport. The campus consisted of {{Convert|900|acre|ha}} that overlooked the North Bridge River. The campus expanded to include properties in three towns, twenty buildings, and a {{Convert|50|acre|ha}} airfield with a {{Convert|3500|ft|m}} runway.

In 1984, the surviving historic buildings of the Flint Estate were listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The student yearbook was Janus.{{Cite web |title=Nathaniel Hawthorne College 1975 Yearbook - Janus - Antrim, New Hampshire #1759302470 |url=https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/nathaniel-hawthorne-college-1975-1759302470 |access-date=2025-05-09 |website=Worthpoint |language=en}} The college had a chapter of Kappa Sigma fraternity from 1975 to 1982. It also had a chapter of Alpha Eta Rho, a professional aviation fraternity. The college's marching band included bagpipes and highland dancers.{{Cite news |date=1963-02-14 |title=Basketball Games Aid Heart Fund |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/concord-monitor-basketball-games-aid-hea/172023478/ |access-date=2025-05-09 |work=Concord Monitor |pages=14 |via=Newspapers.com}}

The Hawthorne College mascot was the Highlander.{{Cite news |date=1965-11-29 |title=SMU Huskies Retain Basketball Honors |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-times-transcript-smu-huskies-retain/172023316/ |access-date=2025-05-09 |work=The Times-Transcript |location= |pages=11 |publication-place=Moncton, Moncton Parish, New Brunswick, Canada |via=Newspapers.com}} The college was a member of the ECAC Northeast intercollegiate athletic conference. Prior to that, it belonged to the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics and the Eastern Small College Conference and the New England Intercollegiate Association.{{Cite news |date=1971-05-27 |title=MVP Awarded to Marcantonio |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-item-of-millburn-and-short-hills-mvp/172023650/ |access-date=2025-05-09 |work=The Item of Millburn and Short Hills |pages=18 |via=Newspapers.com}}{{Cite news |date=1974-12-19 |title=UNH Recovering, Hawthorne Unbeaten |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/concord-monitor-unh-recovering-hawthorn/172021845/ |access-date=2025-05-09 |work=Concord Monitor |pages=22 |via=Newspapers.com}}{{Cite news |date=1972-11-06 |title=Johnson's Eyes Tourney Berth, Record is 8-3-1 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-burlington-free-press-johnsons-eyes/172024086/ |access-date=2025-05-09 |work=The Burlington Free Press |pages=22 |via=Newspapers.com}} Its team played in the 1983 NAIA Ice Hockey Championship semifinals, and played NCAA Division III hockey from 1984 to 1988.{{Cite web |date= |title=Hockey Championships |url=https://sites.google.com/site/naiahistoryandrecords/naia-hockey-championships |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201009214028/https://sites.google.com/site/naiahistoryandrecords/naia-hockey-championships |archive-date=2020-10-09 |access-date=2025-05-09 |website=NAIA History and Records}} The college had both a men's and women's basketball team.{{Cite news |date=1970-03-14 |title=Hawthorne Team Visits Bahamas |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/nashua-telegraph-hawthorne-team-visits-b/172022924/ |access-date=2025-05-09 |work=Nashua Telegraph |pages=9 |via=Newspapers.com}}{{Cite news |date=1969-03-14 |title=Pittsfield Boy |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-berkshire-eagle-pittsfield-boy/172022682/ |access-date=2025-05-09 |work=The Berkshire Eagle |location=Pittsfield, Massachusetts · |pages=19 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{Cite news |date=1983-11-22 |title=Around the State |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-star-ledger-around-the-state/172023087/ |access-date=2025-05-09 |work=The Star-Ledger |location=Newark, New Jersey |pages=58 |via=Newspapers.com}}{{Cite news |date=1981-02-14 |title=Monday's Games |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/journal-tribune-mondays-games/172023183/ |access-date=2025-05-09 |work=Journal Tribune |location=Biddeford, Maine |pages=22 |via=Newspapers.com}} It also had baseball, soccer, skiing and cross country teams.

Hawthorne College started a cross country running team in 1980. Jim Boynton was a stand out runner and won the Mayflower Conference Championship in 1981 and 1982. He came in third place in 1980. He also won most of the season meets from 1980 to 1983 with course records at Franklin Pierce College, Castleton State (VT) and Hawthorne. He also received the All Conference Team award for his achievements in 1980 and 1982.

• G. M. Ford, novelist
• Robert E. Raiche, New Hampshire House of Representatives

• Ronald C. Arkin, computer science department chair known as a roboticist and roboethicist
• David Arseneault, athletic director and women's basketball coach
• Baldwin Domingo, military aviation history professor; later served in the New Hampshire House of Representatives
• John B. Harwood, professor, later served in the Rhode Island House of Representatives
• Charles W. Thomas, professor of science, a rank of rear admiral in the U.S. Coast Guard{{Cite journal |last=Reed |first=John C. |date=1974-01-01 |title=Charles W. Thomas (1903-1973) |url=https://journalhosting.ucalgary.ca/index.php/arctic/article/view/65910 |journal=Arctic |language=en |volume=27 |issue=1 |pages=88 |doi=10.14430/arctic2858 |issn=1923-1245}}

• List of colleges and universities in New Hampshire
• List of NCAA ice hockey programs

• Shea, William F. Birth of a College. Antrim: Nathaniel Hawthorne College, 1966.

{{Reflist}}

• [https://nhcalumni.tripod.com/ Nathaniel Hawthorne College Alumni website]
• [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YobBs5eqkC0&ab_channel=FirehawkProdawktions Nathaniel Hawthorne College Antrim New Hampshire] (video)

{{Colleges and universities in New Hampshire}}

Category:1962 establishments in New Hampshire

Category:Liberal arts colleges in New Hampshire

Category:Educational institutions established in 1962

Category:1988 disestablishments in New Hampshire

Category:Educational institutions disestablished in 1988

Category:History of education in the United States

Category:Defunct private universities and colleges in New Hampshire