The town of Lovejoy is about 20 miles south of Atlanta and is the southernmost and smallest city in Clayton County. Lovejoy High School opened in September 1989 and has a 70 acre campus.
Lovejoy High School opened its doors with a diverse faculty and almost 800 ninth and tenth graders from different, and sometimes rival, schools. The following year eleventh grade was added and in 1991 Lovejoy had all four grades. The school was designed by Spangler and Manley of Griffin, Georgia and The Reddick Company was in charge of construction.
The day before school was scheduled to start in August 1989, the students received an unusual phone call telling them not to come to school. Students were told that there were no lockers, many rooms were unfinished, the gym and Media Center were not complete and the kitchen had no appliances.
Those problems were quickly remedied and school soon began. For several weeks the lunches were made at a nearby elementary school and sent over by school bus.
High school traditions continued as varsity football premiered at Lovejoy on August 31, 1990. Lovejoy played West Hall High School, another first year varsity team, providing Twelve Oaks Stadium with an official inauguration. Although the Wildcats did not win, the night was fun and filled with music, cheering and flags waving and the beginning of our "L" held high in the air.
