Almonte and District High School
Almonte and District High School (ADHS) is a public high school in Almonte, Ontario, part of the Upper Canada District School Board. It serves about 350 students in grades 7–12. The school colors are orange and black, and the mascot is OODA (Our Own Dumb Animal). The teams are called the Almonte Thunderbolts. The catchment area includes Almonte and most rural parts of Mississippi Mills.
ADHS opened in the late 19th century; sources say 1875, with a cornerstone marked 1876. A notable former student is James Naismith, the inventor of basketball, who attended from 1875 to 1877 and again before graduating in 1883.
Athletics are a big part of ADHS. The Thunderbolts won the province-wide OFSAA league in 2003 and have earned many regional titles since 1990. They also saw success in 2015 with a junior football title and in 2018–19 with a senior OFSAA basketball championship.
The school supports charity work through SchoolBOX, founded by ADHS alumnus Tom Affleck, to build schools for children in Central America. In 2013, Rick Mercer filmed a segment at ADHS for the Spread the Net campaign, and the school raised $5,854.05—the most of any Canadian secondary school that year.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 07:39 (CET).