Radford School

Plans for the establishment of a quality boarding and day school for girls in El Paso were begun in 1910 as a result of a meeting of leading citizens. Through their efforts, a joint stock company was formed and classroom space was leased in houses on Terrace Street. The El Paso School for Girls opened on Sept. 10, 1910, with 18 students. Ora W. L. Slater and Olga E. Tafel served as associate principals. With increased enrollment, plans were soon begun for the construction of new facilities at this site. The land was provided by Paul Harvey and Paul D. Thomas, owners of the Terrace Street property. The first building, completed in 1917, was a three-story residence hall with one-story classroom additions. In 1927 Dr. Lucinda de Leftwich Templin of Missouri became principal. Faced with the school's large debt, she persuaded her friends George A. and Julia Brown Radford of Webster Groves, Missouri, to pay off the mortgage and incorporate the institution. Renamed for the Radfords, the school experienced new growth. Now a leading college preparatory school, it has produced many prominent women leaders, including Sandra Day O'Connor, the first woman justice of the United States Supreme Court. (1981)

Radford School is a historical marker in El Paso, El Paso County, dedicated in 1982. It is one of 94 historical markers documented in El Paso County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 140 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 31.8013, -106.4409 near El Paso. The nearest cataloged historic site is Quarters Number 1 (historic place), about 0.5 miles away. Others within a short drive include Fort Bliss, C.S.A., El Paso First Ward Chapel, and Memorial Park.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5141004164. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.