James Madison High School – Named After Fourth U.S. President James Madison

In 1959, James Madison High School, which is named after James Madison, the fourth U.S. President from Orange County, Virginia, was open to students.

As a junior at James Madison High School, the author Philip Andrew Hamilton, took an Advanced Placement United States History Class, with history teacher Mr. McGuire whom greatly stoked the author’s interest in that subject. McGuire had Philip do a World War II history project on October 25, 2003 where he got to interview the Mr. and Mrs. Roeschke, a German civilian couple who lived in the seaport of Bremen, Germany, as children, as it was ruthlessly bombed by the British Royal Air Force. The couple described seeing people “burning like candles” after leaving the bomb shelters. This project brought history “to life” and created Philip’s lifelong interest in the subject.