Mississippi Industrial College was a
historically black college
Historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are institutions of higher education in the United States that were established before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the intention of primarily serving the African-American community. Mo ...
in
Holly Springs, Mississippi
Holly Springs is a city in, and the county seat of, Marshall County, Mississippi, United States, near the southern border of Tennessee. Near the Mississippi Delta, the area was developed by European Americans for cotton plantations and was dep ...
. It was founded in 1905 by the Mississippi Conference of the
Colored Methodist Episcopal Church
The Christian Methodist Episcopal (C.M.E.) Church is a historically black denomination within the broader context of Wesleyan Methodism founded and organized by John Wesley in England in 1744 and established in America as the Methodist Episcopal ...
. After desegregation of community colleges in the mid-20th century, it had trouble competing and eventually closed in 1982. The campus was listed as a historic site on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 1980 and was acquired by
Rust College
Rust College is a private historically black college in Holly Springs, Mississippi. Founded in 1866, it is the second-oldest private college in the state. Affiliated with the United Methodist Church, it is one of ten historically black colleges ...
in 2008.
History
Intended to train students for agriculture and trades, the school was located on a campus. The Mississippi Conference of the
Colored Methodist Episcopal Church
The Christian Methodist Episcopal (C.M.E.) Church is a historically black denomination within the broader context of Wesleyan Methodism founded and organized by John Wesley in England in 1744 and established in America as the Methodist Episcopal ...
founded it in 1905.
In January 1906 the first academic session began. Two hundred students were enrolled by May 1906. By 1908 the school had 450 students.
By 1912 the college was running an
extension program to allow students who didn't have time to attend its regular programs to benefit from the education it provided. According to the ''
Times-Picayune
''The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate'' is an American newspaper published in New Orleans, Louisiana, since January 25, 1837. The current publication is the result of the 2019 acquisition of ''The Times-Picayune'' (itself a result of th ...
'', then president D. C. Potts told a meeting of the Mississippi Colored Methodist Conference in reference to this that "an institution
ICfor which the people were sacrificing ought to be able to help more than the few students who attended its session."
After the
desegregation
Desegregation is the process of ending the separation of two groups, usually referring to races. Desegregation is typically measured by the index of dissimilarity, allowing researchers to determine whether desegregation efforts are having impact o ...
of Mississippi
community colleges
A community college is a type of educational institution. The term can have different meanings in different countries: many community colleges have an "open enrollment" for students who have graduated from high school (also known as senior sec ...
, many students chose to go to other schools. In addition, student expectations were changing.
In 1982 the campus closed.
In November 1999 the Mississippi Industrial College Alumni Association, Inc. (MICAAI) was organized in order to preserve the campus and buildings, which had been listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 1980. The
University of Mississippi
The University of Mississippi (byname Ole Miss) is a public research university that is located adjacent to Oxford, Mississippi, and has a medical center in Jackson. It is Mississippi's oldest public university and its largest by enrollment.
...
said "the campus now lies in disrepair." In 2008
Rust College
Rust College is a private historically black college in Holly Springs, Mississippi. Founded in 1866, it is the second-oldest private college in the state. Affiliated with the United Methodist Church, it is one of ten historically black colleges ...
acquired the defunct institution's campus.
Notable faculty and alumni
*
James Holmes Teer, (1862–1938), college's Board of Trustees, as Treasurer
*
Elias Cottrell, born into slavery(1853–1937), college's founder, 7th Bishop of the
CME Church, Elected, 1894.
*
Paul A. G. Stewart, '61, 50th Bishop of the CME Church, Elected, 1998.
*
Jim Thomas –
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...
All-Star, '63
* Oree Broomfield '53, 45th Bishop of the CME Church, Elected 1982.
* C. D. Coleman, '47, 36th Bishop of the CME Church, Elected, 1974.
* Dr. J. Y. Trice, '46, Minister, Presiding Elder, CME Church, Mayor, City of Rosedale, MS (1985-2001)
* Lawrence Autry, '52, and Irwin Whitaker, '63, First Black elected Superintendent of Education,
Marshall
Marshall may refer to:
Places
Australia
* Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria
Canada
* Marshall, Saskatchewan
* The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia
Liberia
* Marshall, Liberia
Marshall Islands
* Marshall Islands, an i ...
and
Leflore County
Leflore County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2010 census, the population was 32,317. The county seat is Greenwood. The county is named for Choctaw leader Greenwood LeFlore, who signed a treaty to cede his peo ...
* Charles Jones, '67, and Charles Robinson, '68, served as Superintendent of Education in Arkansas School Districts.
* Earl Glass, '63, NCAA, nation's basketball leading scorer in 1962-63, 42.9 per game. 5th leading scorer in NCAA history.
* First Black Mayors – Viola Foster, '56, Plantersville, Frank Jones, '63, Oakland, MS & Dr. Jessie Edwards,'75, Coldwater, MS, town's library named in his honor, elected alderman 1981-85, elected mayor of the town from 1989-2001, 2005-13 & 2017-21.
*
Dr. Lacey Reynolds, '74, Basketball Coach, MIC, Lemoyne-Owen College, Grambling, Texas Southern (TSU), Prof. of P.E., TSU.
* Lafayette Stribling, '57, Mississippi High School Activities Association Hall of Fame, and SWAC Hall of Fame Basketball coach
* Robert Ledbetter,'60, Football Coach (HS), Norfolk State University, New Orleans Saints, New York Giants, New York Jets.
* Paul Holly, '59, educator, ABA, NBA Basketball Official, Collegiate Football and Basketball Official.
* Dr. E. E. Rankin, '36, President MIC, 1957-78.
* W. M. Frazier, President, MIC, 1933-55.
* Dr. Elbert B. White,'65, Associate Dean of Undergraduate Studies, and Associate Professor of Engineering at George Mason University.
* Osborne Bell, '63, First Black elected
Sheriff
A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...
of Marshall County since
Reconstruction
Reconstruction may refer to:
Politics, history, and sociology
*Reconstruction (law), the transfer of a company's (or several companies') business to a new company
*''Perestroika'' (Russian for "reconstruction"), a late 20th century Soviet Union ...
.
* Jesse Townsend, '57, drafted by the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro leagues in 1957. Once struck out twenty-four batters in one game.
* Dr. Fred Pinson, MD,'1910, Dr. Ansell R. Russell, MD,'1911, and Dr. Dr. S. N. Sisson, MD,'1917 (7).
* Mary Callaway, '1912, M. A., English, Stanford University, 1916. Thesis, "Timon of Athens in the Elizabethan Drama" <8> Cubberley Library, Stanford University Press, Catalogue of Graduate Students Pg. 58, 1916.
*William M. Henley, '57, Educator (Mathematics, Physics, & Chemistry), Alderman Holy Springs, Ms. High School basketball and football coach. History of Mississippi Industrial College
References
7. Dr. Jessie J. Edwards, '75, Mississippi Industrial College
External links
Mississippi Industrial College
University of Mississippi.
{{authority control
Defunct private universities and colleges in Mississippi
Education in Marshall County, Mississippi
1905 establishments in Mississippi
Educational institutions established in 1905
1982 disestablishments in Mississippi
Historically black universities and colleges in the United States
Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Mississippi
National Register of Historic Places in Marshall County, Mississippi
Rust College