Buxton Ridge Military Academy

Buxton Ridge Military Academy

Buxton Ridge Military Academy is the military school to which Jake Morgendorffer was sent instead of high school (and possibly junior high as well).

There is no indication that his experiences were happy ones. He describes the other boys as bullies who could "smell" his fear. He describes himself as being demeaned and terrorized by Corporal Ellenbogen, one of the instructors (who is seen in a flashback). Also, Jake's family appears to have largely forgotten about him at the time, leaving him at the academy until he graduated.

Between these abuses and the general hardships of life there, not to mention the fact that Jake described himself as a bed-wetter well into his teen years, the experiences he had at Military School were not pleasant. These shared negative experiences were the basis of a bonding moment between Jake and Anthony DeMartino.

Curiously, it is difficult to sort out to what degree Jake's memories are accurate. In real life, similar complaints are sometimes held over similar places or similar institutions; for example, the Blue Jackets Guard, which is basically a military version of the Boy Scouts. However, if Jake has proven nothing else throughout the series, he has shown us that he is not necessarily the most reliable witness to his own life.