Chlora K. May; pictured with her daughter, Myrna May, and Spencer Hardy Sr.; speaks on Coosa County Training/J.D. Thompson High School’s history and its place in the community during the ceremony for the unveiling of the school’s historic marker on September 26, 2025. Photo by Christa Jennings
Special to the News
Submitted by Mamie Ellis
As Women’s History Month ends, we honor and recognize the contributions of four women that led the way in documenting and sharing the history of Coosa County Training/J. D. Thompson High School.
In 1953, Ms. Bertha L. Lovejoy, a teacher at Coosa County Training School, wrote “A History of the Coosa County Training School, Cottage Grove, Alabama, from its Beginning 1899 to the Present 1953.” The thesis was an in-depth history of the school.
In 1965, Mrs. Naomi Leonard Walker, a resident of the Cottage Grove community, authored the story of John R. Savage, who founded the Cottage Grove Industrial Academy in 1899. Mrs. Walker provided invaluable information about the arrival of Mr. Savage and the school he founded.
In 2003, Mrs. Allie Crawford Simpson nominated the Coosa County Training /J. D. Thompson High School to be listed on the Alabama Register of Landmarks & Heritage. The Alabama Historical Commission listed the schools on the register September 26, 2003.
In 2025, on September 26, Mrs. Chlora K. May addressed a crowd gathered at the historical school marker unveiling ceremony.
Mrs. May spoke of the rich history of the school and community. And in closing she gave us an assignment – tell the school’s history.
“I want you to remember that if the story is told of our history here, you are going to have to tell it,” Mrs. May said.
