On August 5, 1938, lightning struck the dome of Thomson High School and as the town residents watched helplessly, the school burned to the ground.The Board of Education voted to use the bricks from the razed school to construct a wall around the athletic field. Legend has it that the Thomson High School football team helped clean the bricks and build the wall. For six decades Thomson has cheered its athletic teams in “The Brickyard” and countless numbers of students have graduated within “The Brickyard” walls.