Marker rededicated

A July 3 rededication of a granite marker commemorating George W. Bradford at the corner of Martin Luther King and William streets in drew approximately 70 people with ties to George W. Bradford, a Black educator whose work had a strong impact on the community. Rusk’s first school serving the Black community was built during the 1938-39 school year, with Bradford serving as its first principal. The building subsequently was destroyed by fire the following decade, but churches in the community welcomed students so that the 1942-42 school year would not be interrupted, according to a school history.

Several years after Bradford retired from teaching in May 1948, the school’s name was changed to honor him. George W. Bradford High School remained open through the end of the 1968 school year before being shuttered and students sent to the local high school as part of desegregation. In recent years, Rusk Primary School was renamed G.W. Bradford Primary, in honor of the educator.

A granite marker was placed at the original site of the Bradford school and was dedicated on July 4, 1976, during the nation’s bicentennial. The marker recently was rededicated on the 45th anniversary of it being erected. All photos courtesy of Maxine Henderson