The first game in the 1962 gym was played in the fall of that year, with the Bright Star Junior Boys defeating the Bradley Junior Boys, 26–22.

Below are some photos taken during and immediately after the final home game last week.

For the benefit of those who may not be close enough to Bradley to see the progress on the new gym, here are two photos which may give some perspective on that progress.

The first photo was taken on June 12, 2011:

And the photo below, taken on January 29, 2012, from approximately the same angle, shows the completed slab of the building:

UPDATED 11/10/10:  Mrs. Ida Mae Black Dillard, who was a member of this class, has graciously furnished bradleyark.com with a list identifying most of the members of this class, and has also furnished another photo of the same class as fourth graders in 1940!

In the photo above, the first graders are:

Front row, L-R:  Sadie May Tompkins, Jane Riley, Martha Jean Baker, Ida Mae Black, James Gayle Garner, Glayes Burns, Paulene Burns, _____ Benefield, William Adams.

Middle row, L-R:  James Thomas Benefield, Ann Barker, Glen Newton, Earlene Tucker, ____________, Nettie Baker, Lucy Short, Georgie Philips, Doris Jean Daniels.

Back row, L-R:  ____________, Clovis Harvin, Margret Beason, Ethel Lambeth, Odessa Stanley, Charles Haley, Opel Powell, Lola Brown, Chester Cross.

And below is the 1940 photo of the same class as fourth graders:

Front row, L-R:  Ida Mae Black, James Gayle Garner, Gordon Lewis Jones, J. B. Hartsfield, Opel Smith, Jane Holland, Netty Baker, Lucille Arnold, Alice Moore, Susie Weems, Martha Jean Baker, Doris Jean Daniels.

Middle row, L-R:  Carol _______, Andrew Whisenhunt, Dan Howard, Ann Barker, Betty Jo Henderson, Margret Young, Glades Burns, Austen Templeton, Lucy Short, Charles Haley, Haward Hodges, Opel Powell.

Back Row, L-R:  Carl Adams, Dorothy Black, Ethel Lambeth, Rosemary Brown, Odessa Stanley, James Elbert Newton, Earlene Tucker, Charlene Welborn, Clovis Harvin, Geneva Sandlin, _____________.

Standing in back is William Church.  The teacher is Miss Christene Smith.

Bradleyark.com wishes to thank Mrs. Ida Mae Black Dillard for sharing these photos and this information.

Faces in the above photo are obviously difficult to discern, so here are two zoomed-in photos of the participants. Somehow Jerry Pickett and Odis Weems, the two gentlemen at the right of the group photo above, got left out of the close-up photos below.

Shown in the above photo are, left to right:  Rodney Burton, Bobby Brackman, Velinda Potts Hanson, Nancy Adkins Kees (in rear), Margaret Spence Cannon, Charanda Pratt Pool, and Carl Stephens.

Shown in the above photo are, left to right:  Carl Stephens, David Thompson, Gary Burton, Marion Cochran Morgan, Carl Wayne Adams, Kay Baker Weems, Janis Stone Kirwin (partially obscured in rear), and Glenda Allen Ray.

Below are each of those four classes, shown first as a group, and then with either two or three closer-up photos.  While I know the names of most of the people in the photos, there are a few whom I cannot presently identify.  Married names of the ladies present posed another problem.  A blank space in the captions below indicates that I cannot identify a particular person, or that lady’s married name.  Any help that readers can provide by leaving a comment as to correct identity or correct spelling of name(s) would be greatly appreciated.

As mentioned in previous posts, each caption refers to the photo or photos under that caption.

The class of 1960 is observing the 50th anniversary of its graduation this year.  Sixteen of the 20 living graduates attended the reunion.  Two others are deceased.  Below are, left-to-right:  Jerry Wilson, Jay Cheney, Mary Harrist Crabtree, Gene Smith, Melba Cox Cheney, Carroll Nations, Judie Williams Carey, Marie Russ, Jerrell Caskey, Charles Lane, Jimmy Thompson, Della Keith ________.

Shown below are some members of the class of 1963.  Left-to-right:  Pat Givens Calhoun, Eddie Adkins Stout, John Dinkins, Donna Vickers Jackson, Buck Williams, Diane Higdon Fletcher, Marvin Cross, Betty Weems Bourg, Doris Taylor Caswell, Joyce Dinkins Caskey.

Shown below are some members of the class of 1964.  Seated, left-to-right:  Ronnie Odom, Averial Redmon.  Standing, left-to-right:  Jimmy Gildon, Carl Pauley, Ronald Jim Byrd, Jerry Clary, Dickie Bishop, Patsy Collier Vines, Henry Maness, Johnny Umphries.

Shown below are some members of the class of 1965.  Left-to-right:  Bill Lee, Linda Nolte Umphries, Wayne Sparks, Linda Kay Bussey Pickler, Margie Duke Odom, Jerry Dyer, Cheryl Cason Taylor, Mitchie Jones (mostly obscured), Charlotte Hinds Brumley, Bruce Lee.

Let’s do this again sometime!

Below are some of the photos taken that afternoon.  As with previous posts, the caption refers to the photo under the caption.

The Givens brothers, Bill (William) and Oscar, both class of 1967.

The Adkins sisters, Nancy Adkins Kees (‘70) and Eddie Adkins Stout (‘63).

Glenda Knott Givens (‘69), David Byrd (‘67), and LaDonna Collier McLain (‘67).

Mary Harrist Crabtree (‘60) and Marie Russ (‘60).

Sister and brother Betty Jackson Cook (‘66) and Buddy Ray Jackson (‘65).

James Drake (‘62) and Gene Smith (‘60).

Linda Kay Bussey Pickler (‘65) and Patsy Collier Vines (‘64).

Marvin Cross (‘63) and John Dinkins (‘63).

Former Bradley High School faculty member Don McLaurin and his wife, Marion.

Earl Vickers (‘69) and Billy Bynum (‘69).

Cheryl Cason Taylor (‘65) and Patsy Collier Vines (‘64).

Susie Cochran Hargis (‘69), John Bishop (‘69), Vickie Powell Paige (‘69), Clyde Stephens (‘62) and Dolores Maness Grimes (‘69).

Next:  Group photos of some of the members of the classes of 1960, 1963, 1964, and 1965 who attended the reunion. 

For readers who have not been to Bradley in the last few years, the baseball field remains where it has been located since at least 1950.  The softball field is located in the north portion of what was once the football field, with home plate near what would have been the northeast corner of the north end zone of the football field.

Current Bradley Schools Superintendent Gammye Moore, in the purple jacket, below, began the ceremony by announcing its purpose and identifying the honoree, who, notwithstanding the presence of many members of his family, demurred that he was under the impression that he was coming to a ceremony honoring Bradley’s current basketball coach, Bennie Harris.

Those making brief remarks included former Bradley School Board President Andrew Whisenhunt, current basketball coach Bennie Harris, former Bradley Elementary School Principal John K. “Buddy” Black, former (early 1950’s)basketball coach Joe Langdon, Mollye McCalman, and former faculty member Richard Johnson.

Coach Bennie Harris, below, with Travis, told a humorous story of how he once was working as a law enforcement officer and realized that there was a vehicle behind him, following his every move.  Thinking this rather unusual, he stopped his patrol unit and the vehicle behind him also stopped.  It turned out to be Travis Gore, wanting to hire him as Bradley’s basketball coach.

Travis was presented with a plaque, which he is holding in the photo below.

Below, left to right, are Coach Bennie Harris, John K. “Buddy” Black, and Travis Gore.

Below, left to right, are Coach Joe Langdon, Travis Gore, and Andrew Whisenhunt.  Coach Langdon was Travis’ coach when Travis was in Bradley High School.

Before refreshments were served, the ceremony adjourned to the newly-erected gate on the road going into the baseball and softball fields from Highway 160.  Travis and many members of his family gathered for a picture below the gate.

For the curious, “S.” is for Sherman.

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“The Bradley Bears Class of ‘59 returned to their High School den recently for their Fiftieth Reunion.  Eighteen of their class of twenty-seven and one faculty member were reunited at the Bradley Baptist Church Family Life Center on May 16, 2009, for an afternoon of activities and a Fish Fry prepared on site.  A slide show from pictures submitted by classmates covering the last fifty years helped share stories of families, careers, homes, pets and hobbies.  Four members were memorialized.  Several gag awards added fun to the event, which was highlighted by the female classmates naming “The Best Looking Old Man.”  The warm greeting and hugs paid tribute to Bradley High and to the closeness they had treasured as a class.

The room was decorated in a purple and gold reunion theme with sand buckets holding a branch with classmates’ names on Bear cutouts on each table.  The snack table held a Teddy Bear fishing in a goldfish  bowl.  An eight-by-ten picture of each classmate was presented with their picture, classmate names on a bookmark, a magnet showing all the buildings in which they had been schooled, and a directory of classmates from Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Mississippi as mementos.

Seated, L-R:  Cheroyl Owens Taylor, Ann Copeland Dickson, Wanda Spruell Hays, Nellie Givens Nichols, Carolyn Kilgore Lamar, and Kathleen Spruell Malone.

Standing, L-R:  Bette Barnett Davis, Ralph Hamner, Martha Williams Mueller, Cecil Smith, Linda Fay Burns Givens, B. J. Powell, Charles Ambrose, Patsy Powell Burkett, Dianne Barker Rogers, Derial Whitehead, David Umphries, and LaVerne Burks Keahey.”

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The four deceased members of the class are Bobby Collier, Charles Hamm, Rayford Lee and John Wynne.

The other members of the class who did not attend the reunion are Glenda Colvin Null, Gloria Pickett McCoy, Mary Wilson, Jimmy Redmon and Lawrence Shaver.

Who are these kids?  Even though I was a member of this class, fifty-four intervening years have drastically reduced my ability to identify them.  Below are two slightly enlarged and cropped versions of the photo.  Most of the identifications on these photos were made not from memory, but by comparing them with the class photos in the 1956 Bradley School yearbook.  Almost certainly, there are one or more errors and, of course, some of the faces have not been labeled at all.  Corrections and additional identifications will be most appreciated and promptly incorporated into the photos.

James Drake, a member of that class, has provided bradleyark.com with two photos of those in attendance.

Ladies first:

Standing, left to right:  Judy Cheney Bogart, Bette Whetstone Lynn, Lola Lane Starling, Faye Tucker Durabb, Sherry Jackson Hendrix, Gloria Stephens, Sharon Drake, Judy Coker and Sue Cook.  Seated, left to right:  Rachel McKinney, Carolyn Burks, Diane Fletcher, Mary Cross, Phyllis Barrington.

And the gentlemen in attendance:

Standing, left to right:  Clyde Stephens, James Drake, Bob Coker, Dickie Bishop, Robert Lane, Samuel Marvin Cross and Willie Harrist.  Seated, left to right:  James Bland, Floyd Goode, Tom Burks, Henry Fletcher, Gerald Lynn and Marvin Barrington.

Thanks, James, for the photos.

From left to right:  Johnny Craig, Danny Maness, Ricky Powell, Dennis McEachern, Jan Allen Segrest, Curtis Thompson, Betty Carol Endsley Stanley, Penny Dreher Lyons, Delores Maness Grimes, Linda Goodwin Elledge, Barbara Price McGuffie, Carroll Collier (partially obscured), Jean Starling Burnett, John Bishop, Billy Bynum, Vicky Powell Paige, Bobby Works, Buddy Stevenson, Earl Vickers, Susie Cochran Hargis, Jimmy Ray Dickerson, Peggy Wilson Cook, and Ronnie Hill.  Mary Adams Garner is not shown.

Faces in the above photo are obviously difficult to discern, so here are some zoomed-in photos of the participants.

Above are, from left to right:  Johnny Craig, Danny Maness, Ricky Powell, Dennis McEachern, Jan Allen Segrest and Curtis Thompson.

Above are, from left to right:  Curtis Thompson, Betty Carol Endsley Stanley, Penny Dreher Lyons, Linda Goodwin Elledge, Delores Maness Grimes, Jean Starling Burnett, John Bishop, Billy Bynum, Vicky Powell Paige, Bobby Works and Buddy Stevenson.

Above are, from left to right:  Carroll Collier, Billy Bynum, Vicky Powell Paige, Bobby Works, Buddy Stevenson, Earl Vickers, Susie Cochran Hargis, Jimmy Ray Dickerson, Peggy Wilson Cook, and Ronnie Hill.

In the above photo of the middle group, one person is obscured, so here’s another photo.

That’s Barbara Price McGuffie behind Linda Goodwin Elledge and Jean Starling Burnett.  Carroll Collier, Billy Bynum and John Bishop are obviously preoccupied with something besides the camera.

Three faculty members from the 1960’s also attended the reunion.

From left to right:  Coach Leo Johnson, Janiece Rogers Blount, and Jimmy Gray.

Class members who were unable to attend were Bobby Adams, Larry Adams, Tommy Harvey, Glenda Knott Givens, Rebecca Knott Fricks, Don McDonald and Bobby Earl Steed.

The Class of 1969 also paid tribute to the five deceased members of their class with a memory board of photographs.  Those class members are Fred G.  Berry, Jr. (1949–1992), Billy D. “Butch” Bland, Jr. (1951–2002), Fred H. Dreher III (1951–2008), Gary Dale Pickett (1951–1991) and Rose Hinds Thompson (1950–1996).

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It’s probably trite to say that a good time was had by all, but the class members seemed to me to genuinely enjoy each other’s company.

On a personal note, I very much enjoyed visiting with Coach Leo Johnson, who is a veritable walking encyclopedia of happenings in the Bradley schools from the mid-1950’s to the late 1960’s.  Two bits of trivia from our conversation:

Coach Johnson’s paddle/strap was well known throughout the student body, both by students who had felt its sting and those who did not.  Coach Johnson told me that any “paddle-able” offense, no matter how heinous, always drew a set number of “licks” (8). 

Some of us remember watching Coach Johnson during games and thinking he was quite intense.  In 17 years of coaching basketball (not all at Bradley), how many technical fouls did he get called for? (Answer: 3).

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Summer is class reunion time and if any other classes which are reuniting will furnish a photo(s), or a short article on their affair, I’ll be glad to post them.