The Shadow
The All-Colts Reunion held in the Alleghany Highlands Sept. 9-11 drew more than 300 alumni from the classes of 1963-1984.
*Alleghany County High School opened its doors as a new building in 1963.
*Situated on the banks of the Jackson River between the City of Clifton Forge and the City of Covington, the new school’s athletic teams competed against Clifton Forge High School from the beginning till school consolidation ended the rivalry.
*In 1983, the City of Clifton Forge Public Schools and Alleghany County Public Schools consolidated, ending the history of both CFHS and ACHS by creating the new school, Alleghany High School that dropped the name “Colts” as its mascot and adopted CFHS’ mascot’s name, “Mountaineers.”
*The All-Colts Reunion began adjacent to AHS’s Mountaineer Field prior to the final rivalry game which Covington High School’s Cougars lost to the Mountaineers 30-6, breaking a three-year winning streak by the Cougars.
*Rain greeted those alumni who attended the All-Colts Reunion at the Jackson River Sports Complex the next day where the Third Annual Darrin Nicely Slow Pitch Softball Tournament, won by Debos Brown & Sons from Salem, was being held.
*While the Colts gathered under the pavilion, a band provided entertainment at the nearby River Rock Amphitheatre as part of the festivities organized for the three-day Expedition X Festival that drew tent campers from several states to ride the trails in the Alleghany Highlands.
*The All-Colts Reunion ended the next day at AHS where tours of AHS were conducted before the final farewell till we meet again biddings by classmates were offered.
*Kenny Higgins, a former Colt star in baseball and football who became an industrial arts teacher and varsity football coach at AHS, as well as the school’s principal, announced that the second All-Colts Reunion may be held in 2023.
*Higgins, one of the planners for the All-Colts Reunion, said, “Everyone I talked to at the reunion wants the event to become an annual one.”
*“The ACHS athletic rivalry with Covington High School did not begin until 1968,” Higgins remembered.
*He concluded, “All the members of our planning committee played an important role in making the All-Colts Reunion a success.”
In addition to Higgins, the planning committee included Buddy Buchanan, Gary Childs, Joe Massie, Greg Vess, Bill Dressler, Jr. and Eddie Putnam along with their wives.
