Established in 1945, the school is located in the upper Mojave Desert and is adjacent to the Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake.

[2] Burroughs was originally housed at what was called Murray Middle School aboard the base, but moved to its current site in the Fall of 1959.

Successful athletic teams at Burroughs have always had the ability to play well on the road, with its nearest competitor typically 2–3 hours away.

Members of the team included: Gary Maxwell, Stuart Young, Larry Fletcher, Joel Adams, Jay Carty, Bill Wilde, Ron Thimsen, John Dragovich, Dennis Henden, Doug Brewer, Gary Koehler, Ray Wilson, Rad Bushnell and Phil Donnell.

Burroughs entered the post season ranked a school best #4 in the polls and defeated Victor Valley, San Bernardino, and Righetti to reach the semifinals at the Long Beach Sports Arena.

Burroughs advanced to the first-ever state championship tournament, earning a win over Washington Union before finally falling to Banning in the semifinals.

Members of the team included: Dalton Heyward, Daniel Means, David Wooten, Scott Fulton, Dale Killilea, Paul Vander Werf, Bobby Bruce, John Fry, Greg Peake, Paul LaMarca, Jim Cleveland, Jim White and Tim Allen.

[6][7][4] After years of dominating the waters of the Golden and Mojave River Leagues, Burroughs claimed its first CIF-SS Title in boys' Swimming.

The team consisted of well-rounded cast of athletes, but was led by freshman phenomenon David Chan who was named Swimmer of the Meet.

[7][4] Burroughs continued its dominance of the CIF pool in 1995, claiming its second consecutive division title in Long Beach by edging Jurupa Valley 186-185.

Ryan Lopez combined with Mark and Dale Garland to round out what is arguably the most competitive foursome ever seen in a CIF pool.

As the 1997 season neared, Chan was named to the US Junior National Team and was on track to be part of the 2000 US Olympic squad.

After a season that saw them perform better at a variety meets that they had in years past, the Lady Burros claimed the school's first-ever CIF Championship for women.

Team members included: Jenna Marvin, Cindy Bithel, Lani Seaman, Kari Seaman, Amy Speer, Lisa Speer, Jennifer Schwalb, Jessica Schwalb, Kym Bauer, Stacy Davis, Moriah Baker, Danielle Herteg and Monika Lee.

Burroughs defeated Colony and Sultana in the first two rounds of the playoffs at home, then traveled to Palm Desert to defeat the then-unbeaten Aztecs, and clinched the title with a 42-30 win over the Palm Springs High School Indians on Dec. 10, 2005. Notable players on the championship squad included seniors QB David LaFromboise, WR Hayo Carpenter, RB Anthony Williams, and defensive standouts Ron Marker and Shawn Parker.