Broxton School
written by Zelma Alexander

Broxton was the name of a man who was building a railroad in this community. It was to run northeast and southwest and it was between where Ruey Sawyer now lives and north of the Hemmings place, but this railroad was never completed. A Mr. Jim Doughtery owned the farm where Sawyer is and built a store down in the corner next to the road in front of Beaver's farm and Mr. Doughtery put a post office in the store too, and that's what he called the store until they built the school house. The school was named after that man. The date when this store and Mr. Broxton were there is not known, sometime after 1906. In 1913 the people of the community got together and decided to consolidate. Five one room schools which were 3 miles apart in a square. These schools were 'Prairie View' or 'Peg', that was the southeast. Then 'Cash Valley' was southwest. 'Hale' northwest, 'Cracker Box' north and 'Hog Creek' northeast.

Mr. Joe Hemmings owned the farm where the school is and he donated the plot of land for the school. The families living around there got together. They were the Hemmings, Dickeys, Warner, Massey, Coats, and Bagleys. The building of school started in 1913. The school was completed so school started in 1914. The first school board members were Joe Hemming, J.W. Coats, Philetus Bagley. The first superintendent was Mr. Bates. Teaching in one of the one-room schools were 1914 - Mr. Bates, 1915 - J.I. Jordon, 1916 - Earl Houston, 1917 - Mr. Hughes for the first half of the term, then Mr. Earl Houston came back and finished the last half of the term, 1918 - Lloyd Oraves, 1919 - J.R. Brown, 1920 - O.J. Watkins, 1921 - Miss Offholder, 1922 - Mr. Siebert, 1923 - Mr. Sciever, 1924 - Mr. Kilian, 1925 - R.A. Nichols, 1926 - R.A. Nichols, 1927 - B.I. Poe, 1928 - Robert O. Ryan, 1929 - Bluford Gordon, 1930 - Frank Fuller, 1931 - Roscoe Roberts, 1933 - B.I. Poe, 1934 - N.R. Echols, 1935-36 - Mr. V.R. Echols, 1937 - Pat White, 1938 - 39 - Horace Harrel, 1941-42 - Horace Harrel, 1943 - L.W. Manley, 1944-45-46 - Mr. Fed Walkup, 1947-48 - Mr. Coomb, 1949 -50 - Bernard Robertson, 1951-52-53 - O.J. Roan, and 1954 -55-56 - Alvin O. Coles.

The first graduating class from high school was in 1917, including Hazel Reynolds and Hazel Carl. The first school wagon drivers in 1914 were Frank Weidenmaier and Mr. McCullum, 1915 - Mr. Routh, 1916 - Mr. Robertson, 1917 - Luther Massey. First janitor in 1914 was Russell Routh, 1915 - Roy Howard. First school motor bus in 1923, by then they had four buses. Broxton school was a nonconsecutive credited school. In 1926 school became a credited school. First basketball team in 1917. Their colors were black and white. Then later years, black and yellow. In 1937, basketball coach Arlie Williams changed colors to blue and white and team didn't have a name so they selected 'Bulldogs' as mascot.

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