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Welcome to the official
website of the Bradshaw High School Alumni Association in Florence, Alabama.
Bradshaw High School opened its doors in August of 1966. The
school was named in honor of Mr. Henry A. Bradshaw, a well-known local
attorney. After passing the bar exam, Mr. Bradshaw opened the
Ashcraft & Bradshaw Law Firm and became attorney for the Florence City
Schools, as well as the Lauderdale County School System. Both of
Mr. Bradshaw's parents were educators so he, too, had a love for
education.
Bradshaw High School had an initial enrollment of seven hundred and
ninety students. During the next ten years, Bradshaw enrollment
quickly escalated to more than one thousand students, who were well
accommodated in the
two hundred and fifty thousand square foot
complex. The first principal was Mr. Joe Brewer. He was
succeeded by John Willis,
Ronnie Owens, and Jimmy Johnson and Dr. Randy Pettus. In it's final year as Bradshaw, the high
school had an enrollment of over nine hundred students.
The former Bradshaw
High School campus is situated on a thirty-two acre site in Florence,
Alabama. The area around the school is primarily residential, but is
becoming more and more business oriented. The school itself consisted
of over 250,000 square feet, which included well-equipped classrooms and laboratories, two large gymnasiums, an auditorium, dining room and cafeteria, a commons area, and a
vocational wing.
Bradshaw always had a reputation for stressing excellence.
Historically, Bradshaw students excelled academically. For
the
last 10 years of its existence, Bradshaw seniors received on average more than three million
dollars in scholarships
annually. Bradshaw claimed numerous National
Merit Finalists, Semifinalists, and Commended Scholars. In addition
to academics, Bradshaw also claimed great success in athletics.
Further, Bradshaw students have historically been
involved community affairs, and have gained much recognition as community
servants. The Bradshaw student body typically reflected the
Florence community both economically and racially. Students from
higher, middle, and lower economic levels were enrolled, and the
ethnic ratios were typical of the community.
For 38 years, Bradshaw High School was
viewed as one of the top schools in the area. At the conclusion of the 2003-2004 school year,
Bradshaw High School closed its doors, and a new chapter began, as
Florence High School opened on the former Bradshaw campus that very
year.
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