But to the families who built them, a school was never just a place for reading, writing and arithmetic. Nearby, Brandon’s school story was shaped by persistence. Her hospitality gave children a chance to keep learning until the community built a proper schoolhouse on Parsons Avenue in 1905. A combined grade school serving all 12 years opened in 1916, and Brandon High School, established in 1914, graduated its first class in 1923. Yet their legacy remains visible every morning when children walk onto campuses bearing the names Limona, Brandon and Bloomingdale.