Christian Brothers High School (Memphis, Tennessee)

Contents

Christian Brothers High School (CBHS) is located in Memphis, Tennessee, United States, at 5900 Walnut Grove Road. It is a Catholic, all-boys, college-preparatory school with a Lasallian tradition.

History

Christian Brothers College opened in November 1871 in a schoolhouse at 612 Adams Avenue in downtown Memphis that served students from elementary school through college.[1][2] The school was founded by four brothers from the De La Salle Christian Brothers, a Christian teaching order, who moved to Memphis after some of the order's schools were destroyed by the Great Chicago Fire in October 1871.[1]

In 1915, during the outbreak of World War I, Christian Brothers temporarily suspended their college-level classes because an overwhelming majority of that age-group had enlisted in the United States Armed Forces, although secondary education continued in the Christian Brothers High School.[1][2] (The elementary school education was dropped in 1922.)[2] High school enrollment grew in the 1920s and 1930s.[2]

By 1940, Christian Brothers had outgrown the Adams facility and therefore relocated to a new campus at the intersection of East Parkway South and Central Avenue.[1] The first building on the new campus, Kenrick Hall, was constructed in 1939-1940 to house the Christian Brothers High School and the College.[2][3][4] Again, during the early 1940s with World War II, the school temporarily suspended college-level classes but continued with the high school curriculum.

In the years following World War II, high school enrollment rose because of the baby boom. Christian Brothers High School moved to a separate campus on Walnut Grove Road in Memphis and began to operate under a separate charter.[1] The new CBHS campus opened in 1965 after four years of planning, fund raising, and construction.[1] The college-level school (now Christian Brothers University) remained at the East Parkway campus.

In 1963, Christian Brothers accepted Jesse Turner, Jr., making CBHS the first racially integrated high school in Memphis, public or private. Turner graduated as co-salutatorian in 1967.[5][6]

CBHS continues to occupy the 31.5 acre Walnut Grove campus, with significant expansion over the years.[1]

Feeder schools

Feeder schools include:

  • St. Dominic School for Boys
  • St. Louis Catholic School
  • Holy Rosary Catholic School
  • Woodland Presbyterian School
  • Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic School
  • St. Ann Catholic School
  • Sacred Heart School
  • St. Paul Catholic School
  • Grace-St. Luke's Episcopal School
  • St. Francis of Assisi Catholic School

Notable alumni

  • Pete Carney – musician
  • Ray Crone – Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher
  • Zach Curlin – basketball and football coach for the University of Memphis
  • Dominic Dierkes – actor, comedian, writer[7]
  • Paul Finebaum – sports journalist
  • Logan Forsythe – MLB second baseman[8]
  • Phil Gagliano – MLB player
  • Ralph Gagliano – MLB player
  • Dallan Hayden – college football running back for the Memphis Tigers
  • Paul Hofer – National Football League (NFL) running back
  • Phil Irwin – MLB pitcher[9][10]
  • Mike Jankowski – skiing and snowboarding coach[11]
  • Bill Justis – recording artist, music producer, and film composer
  • Patrick Kutas – college football guard for the Ole Miss Rebels
  • Chuck Lanza – NFL player[12]
  • Nick Marable – folkstyle and freestyle wrestler, represented Team USA at the 2014 World Wrestling Championships[13]
  • Robert Marshall, Jr. – Bishop of Alexandria in Louisiana
  • Tim McCarver – MLB player and sportscaster[8][14]
  • Shaun Micheel – professional golfer[15][16]
  • Cary Middlecoff – dentist and professional golfer[16]
  • Anthony Miller – NFL player
  • Lawrence "Boo" Mitchell – musician
  • Richard Mulrooney – professional soccer player[17]
  • John J. Shea, Jr. – ear surgeon[18]
  • Jim Strickland – politician, mayor of Memphis[19]
  • Jesse Winchester – musician, songwriter
  • Will Brick - MLB Player

References

  1. 1.[1.2][1.3][1.4][1.5][1.6][1.7]"History". Christian Brothers High School. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  2. 2.[2.2][2.3][2.4][2.5]"Mission and History". Christian Brothers University. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  3. 3.WMC Action News 5 Staff (June 1, 2015). "Christian Brothers University to demolish oldest building on campus". Action 5 News. Memphis, TN: WMCTV Action 5 News. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  4. 4.Whitehead, Josh (October 17, 2015). "Lost Memphis 24: Kenrick Hall". Crème de Memph. Retrieved January 10, 2025.
  5. 5.Rubio, Daniel (July 7, 2017). "Integrating Memphis Schools". Retrieved October 3, 2019.
  6. 6.Roberts, Jane (September 17, 2018). "How Brother Terence McLaughlin Helped Transform Memphis". Retrieved August 23, 2020.
  7. 7.Beifuss, John (June 9, 2010). "Always the comedian, Dominic Dierkes takes his skits beyond YouTube". The Commercial Appeal. Retrieved May 30, 2014.
  8. 8.[8.2]Goldstein, Kevin (February 25, 2010). "Future Shock". Baseball Prospectus. Retrieved November 20, 2015.
  9. 9.Lembo, John (March 18, 2013). "Pirates' Phil Irwin no stranger to adversity". Bradenton Herald. Archived from the original on May 31, 2014. Retrieved May 30, 2014.
  10. 10.Singer, Tom (November 7, 2013). "AFL a chance for Irwin to get on Bucs' radar". MLB.com. Retrieved May 30, 2014.
  11. 11.Calkins, Geoff (February 14, 2010). "Mike Jankowski's life hardly a 'pipe dream". The Commercial Appeal. Retrieved May 30, 2014.
  12. 12."Chuck Lanza". The Pro Football Archives. Archived from the original on May 31, 2014. Retrieved May 30, 2014.
  13. 13.Nick Marable - Team USA. Retrieved November 9, 2020.
  14. 14.McCarver, Tim; Peary, Danny (2013). Tim McCarver's Baseball for Brain Surgeons and Other Fans. Random House. p. 327. ISBN 9780307831774. Retrieved November 20, 2015.
  15. 15."A Tale of Three Memphians". Sports Illustrated. May 28, 2004. Archived from the original on June 8, 2004. Retrieved November 14, 2007.
  16. 16.[16.2]Mell, Randall (August 18, 2003). "Micheel's Stunning Shot Clinches Title". Sun-Sentinel. Archived from the original on May 31, 2014. Retrieved May 30, 2014.
  17. 17.Stukenborg, Phil (February 25, 2014). "Richard Mulrooney named University of Memphis men's soccer coach". The Commercial Appeal. Retrieved May 30, 2014.
  18. 18.White, Stephanie Nerissa (March 31, 2013). "Dr. John Shea Presents his Professional Papers to the Memphis Public Library". The Commercial Appeal. Retrieved May 30, 2014.
  19. 19."The City of Memphis > Government > Mayor Jim Strickland > Mayor's Office". www.memphistn.gov. Retrieved December 28, 2022.